Ahmedabad, Mar 8 (PTI) Fitting firmly with the ethos of team sport, every member of India’s playing eleven played a role of substance over the course of the one-month T20 World Cup, fuelling the team’s triumphant campaign.
In a 20-team ICC event, India’s playing eleven stood out with an abundance of match-winners, each of them capable of turning a game on its head with flashes of individual brilliance.
India were overwhelming favourites heading into the T20 showpiece but had their fair share of hiccups on way to a record third title.
However, the dominance that was expected of the hosts throughout the tournament, finally was displayed in the semifinals and final when they batted their opponents out of the game.
Batting-order wise, PTI looks back at the invaluable contributions from the men who gave India their second T20 World Cup crown in 18 months.
Sanju Samson
After a decade of under-performance and inconsistency, Sanju Samson finally realised his rare potential in this tournament. Having lost his place in the side due to poor form, Samson got an opportunity in the Super 8 stage of the tournament and he did not look back from thereon.
The stylish right-hander produced famous knocks of 97, 89, 89 in India’s three must win games in a row, including the final, to leave an indelible mark in tournament history.
His technique was questioned not so long ago but he overcome all those demons in the mind to lay the platform for India’s wins over the West Indies, England and New Zealand in three high-pressure knock out games.
Abhishek Sharma
India’s biggest match winner over the past 18 months, Abhishek Sharma, could not get a run in the initial stage of the tournament and the barren run extended into the business end of the tournament.
The stomach infection in early part of the competition impacted his form and fitness but the team management kept the faith in him and carried him on the shoulders all the way.
He repaid the faith when it mattered the most by smashing a timely half-century in the final, firing India to a whopping 92 for no loss in the powerplay, effectively shutting half the door on the Black Caps.
Ishan Kishan
Kishan was moved to number three to accommodate Samson in the top two but that hardly impacted his performance. The southpaw too thrived on the occasion to hammered a 25-ball 54 in the final.
However, his most significant effort came in the marquee clash against Pakistan in Colombo where he bludgeoned 77 off 40 balls on a challenging surface.
Along the way, there was also a 24-ball 38 against Zimbabwe in the Super 8. Not part of the team’s plans couple of months ago, Kishan has made most of the opportunities and cemented his place in the side.
Suryakumar Yadav
There was immense pressure on captain Suryakumar Yadav going into the tournament. Runs had deserted him following India’s title win in Barbados in June 2024 but three half-centuries in the preceding bilateral series against New Zealand gave him much-needed confidence ahead of the World Cup title defence at home.
He made instant impact by scoring a 84 not out in India’s tournament opener against USA at Wankhede. It was a two-paced surface and Surya played the conditions to perfection to bail the team out of trouble.
However, he would have liked more runs since the Super 8 phase of the tournament.
Shivam Dubey
Dube, who was also part of the successful 2024 campaign, has come of age in the last six months. He was lethal against the spinners in the middle overs but has now improved his game drastically against the pacers.
Silently, he played a series of impactful innings through the tournament, most notably the 66 against the Netherlands, the 43 against England in the semifinal and even his 26 not out off 8 balls in the final came at the opportune time for his team.
Tilak Varma
Tilak was moved from number three to five due to a combination change that saw Samson batting alongside Abhishek Sharma.
Having undergone a groin surgery ahead of the tournament, Tilak struggled in the league phase of the ICC event before finding his rhythm in a contrasting role in the middle order where he had to attack from the get go.
A 16-ball 44 against Zimbabwe in the Super 8 provided the opening he was looking for.
His seven ball 21 in the semifinal too was critical in the context of the game with no total safe at the high-scoring Wankhede.
Hardik Pandya
There is none like Hardik Pandya in world cricket and he reaffirmed his status a premier all-rounder with performances over the course of the campaign. The captain trusted him for bowling in any stage of the innings — be it the powerplay, middle overs or the last five overs.
He got couple of fifties with the bat and his 27 off 12 balls against England helped India cross the 250-run mark batting first.
Axar Patel
Vice-captain Axar Patel thought he got the rough end of the stick when he was dropped for the two games in Ahmedabad including the Super 8 contest against South Africa that India lost.
He was duly brought back into the side for the must win game against the West Indies. His moments of brilliance came in the semifinal when he took two sensational catches in different phases of the game to make a decisive difference.
In the final too he made his presence felt. Called upon to bowl in the powerplay, Axar got the rid of the dangerous Finn Allen to put New Zealand on the backfoot in an improbable run chase.
Varun Chakaravarthy
Chakaravarthy, India’s X factor bowler over the past 18 months, lost form in the Super 8 but was effective as usual earlier in the tournament.
He went for plenty of runs in the knock-out games with batters preferring to play him from the backfoot.
But such was the strong belief that team management had him, he was persisted with just like an out of form Abhishek Sharma.
He did get the explosive Tim Seifert out but was far from his best even in the summit clash. In the eyes of the team, he remains a match winner and it is only a matter of time before he rediscover his lethal ways.
jasprit bumrah
Bumrah is regarded as the best in the world and he lived up to his billing with a series of match-winning performances. Not once, teams were able to get the better of him. He was always one step ahead.
The prime examples his rare ability was seen in the semifinal and final when he foxed the batter to take the wicket off his very first ball. He ended with best ever figures in a T20 World Cup — four for 15, fitting for once in a generation fast bowler.
Arshdeep Singh
Alongside the faultless, Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh formed India’s potent pace attack. Like Bumrah himself, Arshdeep was used in all phase of the games and was rewarded for his accuracy and consistency. PTI
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Federal staff and is auto-published from a syndicated feed.)
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