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India’s wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant had luck on his side as he was dropped thrice by Pakistan fielders during the high voltage clash at Nassau County International Stadium, New York. Pant continued to bat at no.3 but missed a chance to score a half-century. Had he scored four more runs, he would have broken former Indian captain MS Dhoni’s record for highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper-batter in T20 World Cups.
Dhoni scored 45 runs from 33 balls against South Africa in the inaugural edition of T20 World Cup 2024. India won the match by 37 runs against the hosts in Durban.
Dropped catches followed by counter-attack
Pant had to walk out to bat in the third over after Rohit Sharma lost his wicket to Shaheen Afridi. In the sixth over, Pant edged one past the first slip fielder Iftikhar Ahmed. On the next ball, he tried to play one towards leg side but managed a leading edge. Usman Khan got to the ball but dropped it despite getting both hands. Later, in the ninth over, he went after Imad Wasim. He could not time the slogsweep Usman came running from deep square leg but dropped the catch after putting in a dive.
In the 10th over, Pant punished Haris Rauf and hit him for three consecutive fours. He lost his wicket to Mohammad Amir in the 15th over. The southpaw took the aerial route in an attempt to clear the mid-off fielder but could not time it well. He got caught by Babar Azam. His 31-ball 42 featured six fours.
Pant’s previous-highest in T20 World Cups
Interestingly, Pant's previous best score in T20 World Cups came against Pakistan only. He scored 39 runs from 30 balls. India ended up losing to Pakistan by 10 wickets. This was Pakistan’s first win over India in World Cups.
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