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SPORTS JUNE 21, 2024 | The Indian Eye 46

T20 WORLD CUP

Bumrah, Pandya and Pant emerge as most

valuable players as Super Eight clashes begin

India pacer Ishant Sharma believes that the best is yet to come from dynamic batter Rishabh

Pant, who has shown his class on the tricky surface of New York

OUR BUREAU
New York, NY
ll gazing eyes now shift to the
West Indies. The US leg of the
AT20 World Cup is over.
Now, India will be taking on Af-
ghanistan in their first Super Eight
clash on June 20 at Bridgetown. In-
dia ended unbeaten run in the group
stage with wins over Ireland, Pakistan
and the USA in low-scoring games,
with their last game against Canada
on June 15 having been washed out
due to rain. Afghanistan are also un-
defeated yet.
As the world cup now enters the
crucial stage, experts are pondering
who are the most valuable players for
Team India.
Former Indian spinner Har-
bhajan Singh has praised the per-
formances of pacer Jasprit Bumrah,
all-rounder Hardik Pandya and wick-
etkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant during
the group stage of ICC T20 World Rishabh Pant plays a shot during the match against USA in New York (ANI)
Cup, placing them as the players to
watch out for the Men in Blue who
will start their Super Eights stage better than what was expected of T20 World Cup. Pant returned to a fifty, Suryakumar Yadav and Shi-
against Afghanistan from June 20. him.” international cricket after sustaining vam Dube found their form while
Harbhajan said that the biggest He also said that Pant, who has injuries in a life-threatening accident Arshdeep Singh stepped with the
positives during the India-Pakistan scored 96 runs in three matches so in December 2022. ball, especially in the powerplay.
game in particular were Bumrah, far at an average of 48 and a strike He brought his consistency to the Ishant feels that the bench
Hardik and Pant putting their hands rate of 125 on tough Nassau Coun- ongoing T20 World Cup. It became strength that allows India to cover
up with match-winning performances. ty pitches in New York, gave India evident in India’s campaign opener all fronts of the game sets them apart
“The biggest positive is that a left-right combination batting at against Ireland when he effortlessly from the previous editions’ squad.
when you are in trouble, how do you number three. reversed scoop the length delivery to “What sets this Indian team
get out of it? One or the other player “Rishabh Pant played at number clear the fence over the head of the apart from the previous editions is
raised his hand and did his job that 3. His role was completely changed. wicketkeeper. that this time, we have all bases cov-
day. Jasprit Bumrah’s spell, Rizwan Before this World Cup, we were say- He has amassed 96 runs at an ered with different players contribut-
hit a bad shot and got out, after that ing that Sanju Samson will play in the average of 48.00 and a strike rate of ing in each game. In the first game,
the energy team showed up was com- team because he has made big runs. 124.67 in three matches. Rohit Sharma scored a half-century,
mendable. All those who were asleep To make Rishabh Pant play at num- Before the beginning of the tour- Suryakumar Yadav regained his form
they woke up and pulled the match ber 3 is a big positive. The left-right nament, many former stars backed against the USA with a scintillating
from that situation while defending combination is formed when Rishabh India to reach the semi-final. With 50, Arshdeep Singh also picked cru-
a small score. It was not a common Pant plays at number 3. There are a their unbeaten start in the tourna- cial four wickets and not forgetting
thing to win the match against Pa- lot of positives,” said Harbhajan. ment, some fans believe that the Ro- Rishabh Pant, who is consistently
kistan from their claws. The biggest India pacer Ishant Sharma be- hit Sharma-led side could go all the scoring 30s and 40s. Different players
positive is that Hardik Pandya took lieves that the best is yet to come way to the final. contributing in different games pro-
the wicket. He was the fourth bowler from dynamic batter Rishabh Pant, India had a lot of positive take- vide stability and balance to the team.
in this tournament. But if you look who has shown his class on the tricky aways from their performances in the Moving ahead in the tournament,
at his wicket tally, he has done much surface of New York in the ongoing US. Skipper Rohit Sharma slammed this will surely help them,” he added.

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