T20 World Cup 2024: Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant fail to score big

India, riding high on an undefeated streak in the T20 World Cup, faced Afghanistan in the Super 8s stage today. However, the match started on a shaky note for the Men in Blue as captain Rohit Sharma once again failed to make an impact with the bat.

The wicket was taken by Fazalhaq Farooqi in the powerplay as Rohit was caught by Rashid Khan. The ball was delivered slightly full and stuck to the surface. Due to the two-paced nature of the pitch, Rohit was outfoxed and swung across the line, only to be caught at mid-on. Despite the change in conditions, the opening partnership for India continues to be struggled with. Rohit’s innings was ended at 8 runs from 13 balls, including one four.

 Rashid Khan Strikes Back

Rashid Khan, Afghanistan’s star spinner, delivered a stellar over, claiming his first wicket in three T20Is against India by dismissing Rishabh Pant. Pant, who was playing a promising cameo, was trapped lbw for 20 runs off 11 balls. His knock included four boundaries, but his attempt to reverse sweep a fuller delivery from Rashid ended his stay at the crease.

Rashid Khan to Pant, out Lbw

Three reds and that’s the end of Pant. Played well for his cameo, but has to make his way back to the pavilion. This was a touch fuller on off and Pant got beaten on his reverse sweep. Impact around off and it’s crashing into the off-stump. First wicket for Rashid Khan in three T20Is against India. A really impressive over too. Pant lbw b Rashid Khan 20(11) [4s-4]

Teams:

India (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 (Playing XI):
– Rahmanullah Gurbaz (w)
– Ibrahim Zadran
– Hazratullah Zazai
– Gulbadin Naib
– Najibullah Zadran
– Azmatullah Omarzai
– Mohammad Nabi
– Rashid Khan (c)
– Noor Ahmad
– Naveen-ul-Haq
– Fazalhaq Farooqi

With Rohit Sharma’s early exit and Pant’s dismissal, India’s middle order will need to step up and deliver. As the match progresses, the team will rely heavily on the experience of Virat Kohli and the all-round capabilities of Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja to post a defendable total.