Indian skipper Rohit Sharma's struggles with the bat continued in the crucial Super 8 clash against Afghanistan at the T20 World Cup 2024.
Fazalhaq Farooqi hunts down Rohit Sharma
Playing at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados, Sharma fell cheaply once again. This time, it was Afghan left-arm pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi who dismissed him. The dismissal came early in the innings, putting India under pressure. The fifth ball of the Farooqi's second over, gripped on the surface and, deceiving Rohit. The Indian captain, struggling for timing, went for a big shot across the line, only to miscue it. The ball ballooned up and was comfortably taken by Rashid Khan at mid-on. Adding to Sharma's woes, Farooqi's celebration after the wicket drew the spotlight. The bowler mimicked John Cena's signature 'You can't see me' gesture, much to the amusement of the crowd. Rohit crashed after scoring just 8 off 13 balls.
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Next came Rishabh Pant did put on a show with his 11-ball 20 but couldn't convert it into a big score and perished in the seventh over. Later Kohli too followed suit and returned to pavilion after scoring a run-a-ball 24 to leave India reeling 62/3. However, Suryakumar Yadav steadied India's boat with his 28-ball 53 to help India go past 150-run mark. India ended up posting 181/8 on the board and later summed up Afghanistan's innings for a lowly 134.
Earlier, India elected to bat first after winning the toss. Rohit made a big change in India's playing XI for the crucial encounter as he dropped Mohammad Siraj to fit in Kuldeep Yadav in Men in Blue's fold. On the other hand, Rashid Khan introduced Hazratullah Zazai in Afghanistan's final XI in place of Janat.
After winning the toss India skipper Rohit Sharma said:
“We are going to bat first. Looks alright at this moment, looks a good track. No grass on the pitch, I guess it will get slower. It's better than New York. We have to adapt to the conditions quickly. We have been here for a couple of days, we have played a lot of cricket. It's about understanding what we need to do in conditions like these. It's an early start. Usually start in the evening elsewhere. We enjoy playing here. We have made one change, Kuldeep comes in for Siraj.”
India's Playing XI:
Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah
Afghanistan's Playing XI:
Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Najibullah Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi
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