Thirty-four hours after losing to Afghanistan, Australia faced up to unbeaten India in a new country needing a win to stay alive in the playoffs race. Prior to this match, St Lucia had been the ideal place to bat in the West Indies to far this tournament, with the average first-innings total being around 190. India, playing their first match in St Lucia since the 2010 T20 World Cup, posted a total of 205/5 after being asked to bat and then defended it to win by 24 runs, thus sealing passage to the semi-finals. The hero was their captain Rohit Sharma, who scored 92 off 41 balls in what is arguably his best innings in T20Is to date.
Mitchell Marsh’s decision to bowl under a bit of cloud cover with Mitchell Starc back into the XI appeared to be vindicated when Virat Kohli bagged his second duck of the tournament, out mistiming a pull shot off Josh Hazlewood to be well held by Tim David running back from midwicket. But Rohit had other ideas and pulled out all stops in a dazzling performance during the Powerplay.
Rohit entered this match with an average of 11.8 at a strike-rate of 112 from his last four innings but turned it on like few could have imagined given how often he has failed to click inside the Powerplay. An early review for a catch to slip showed that the ball had clearly bounced off Rohit’s outer edge, and the Indian skipper’s reply was to whip the next delivery between midwicket and mid-on for four. In the third over, Rohit took on Starc in stunning fashion, hitting four sixes and a four to hurry himself to 34 off 11 balls for what stands as the left-arm quick’s most expensive over in T20I cricket.
The first sight of Pat Cummins saw Rohit slog the pacer over the midwicket boundary – thus making him the first man to hit 200 sixes in T20Is – but immediately a passing shower forced the players off the field. On resumption, Rohit kept attacking and collected two fours and raised his half-century off a mere 19 deliveries. This audacious start from the skipper gave India their best Powerplay score of the tournament – 60/1 after six overs, with his contribution being 51 off 21.
Rishabh Pant’s dismissal for 15 didn’t slow down Rohit one bit. Marcus Stoinis was clattered for two sixes and three fours in the span of seven deliveries, but when Starc returned for the 12th over the fun ended as a pinpoint yorker hit the base of the stumps off the inside edge.
By this time, Suryakumar Yadav had quietly moved to 17 off eight balls. The arrival of Shivam Dube pushed SKY further into the background, as the left-hander smashed 20 off his first 11 balls faced as India’s 150 came up in the 14th over. Looking to cash in on some wayward bowling from Starc, SKY nicked behind for 31 off 16 balls. Starc did well to come back after conceding 34 from two wicketless over to end with 2/45 from his four.
Hardik Pandya was dropped on 4 by Marsh at cover-point and finished on 27 off 17 balls, helping India past 200 though at one stage when Rohit was teeing off every other ball, it looked as if they would push to 230.
Arshdeep Singh found David Warner’s edge in the first over of the chase, with SKY holding a fine diving catch to his left at slip, but Australia sailed through the Powerplay to stay in charge of the asking rate. Marsh enjoyed two reprieves in the span of minutes, first when Pant failed to run around to take a mistimed pull shot off Jasprit Bumrah and then when Arshdeep felled a tough caught-and-bowled chance. That seemed to be enough for Australia’s captain to cut loose. Arshdeep was swung for a four and six and then the arrival of Axar Patel saw Marsh mete out the same treatment to him, helping Australia to 65/1 at the end of the Powerplay.
Travis Head, India’s nemesis in ICC tournaments, had fetched himself 26 off 12 balls by this stage. Rohit persisted with Pandya despite 17 runs coming off his opening over, and Head smacked a four and six off his second to get Australia ahead of the required rate. His 50 came up off 24 balls, when Rohit gave Pandya a third straight over that cost 12 runs to take his figures to 0/43 after three.
It took a stunning catch just inside the deep square midwicket boundary from Axar to get Marsh on 37, when he timed his jump terrifically to pluck the catch with his right hand. Enter Glenn Maxwell, who swung his first two balls for 10 runs in a harsh welcome into the attack for Ravindra Jadeja. But the fun didn’t last, for Maxwell’s skip down the track to Kuldeep Yadav saw him bowled for 20 off 12 balls.
At that moment, Australia needed 78 off 41. Head was on 63 off 33. Stoinis succumbed, reverse-sweeping Axar to Pandya at backward point. The wickets told on Head, who on 76 tried to carve Bumrah over the infield and was taken by Rohit at cover, who celebrated that catch more than he likely would have had he scored a century in that match. From here, India closed in for the kill and finished off the match.
