Melbourne: India will have to register a win against Zimbabwe (India vs Zimbabwe) here on Sunday to make it to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2022 and captain Rohit Sharma also made a big innings in this match. Will try to play Among the top-order batsmen, Virat Kohli is in excellent form while players like KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav have also played some impressive innings but the Indian captain is yet to play long innings.
He has scored only 74 runs in four matches so far in the tournament. He will now land on a ground in which he has played some memorable innings. Rohit has played some good shots but he has failed to make an impact in the rest of the matches except the match against Netherlands. The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) witnessed the match between India and Pakistan two weeks ago and Virat Kohli’s scintillating innings but the match against Zimbabwe is no less important as it will pave the way for India to reach the last four.
If seen in this context, the Indian team will have to win against Zimbabwe at any cost. She will start as a strong contender for victory against the Zimbabwe side led by Regis Chakabwa. Zimbabwe had a good start in the tournament but could not maintain their momentum going forward. The Zimbabwe batsmen have not been doing well so far and it will not be easy for them to score runs in front of the Indian attack as Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Shami are bowling well.
R Ashwin is the only bowler in the Indian attack who has not been able to make a significant impact so far. A win in this match would take India to the top of Group 2 but a loss would open the way for Pakistan to reach the semi-finals.
If Pakistan beat Bangladesh in their last match, they will go ahead on the basis of better run rate. Another team in the group, South Africa, is currently in second place with five points and a win over Netherlands will also move them up but if they lose and Pakistan win, then Pakistan and India will make it to the last four.
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If India stays at the top of the group, then they can face either England or Australia in the semi-finals. If England beat Sri Lanka, India will have to tour Adelaide to face the Jos Buttler-led side but if Sri Lanka wins, then the Indian team will have to travel to Sydney to take on Australia. The Indian team has not changed its batting order yet.
Against South Africa, Axar Patel was dropped as he has more left-handed batsmen in his team. With the likes of Craig Ervine, Sean Erwin, Ryan Burle and Sean Williams in Zimbabwe’s batting line-up, there is a possibility that the Indian team management may give Deepak Hooda another chance.
However, the biggest challenge before India can be presented by Pakistan-born Sikandar Raza, who is in excellent form right now. Another option is to try Harshal Patel. Yuzvendra Chahal has not been tried yet because the team management does not want a long line of batsmen at the back. But if India face England in the semi-finals, Chahal may get a place as he has a good record against the English batsmen.
India and Zimbabwe have never faced each other in the T20 World Cup before but the coaching staff has enough spice to devise a strategy after the recent tour of the African nation. Even though it was a tour of ODIs and India’s top T20 players did not play in it, Zimbabwe’s team is almost the same that they played in that series. Zimbabwe had earlier defeated Pakistan and hence it would be a mistake to underestimate them.
The teams are as follows:
India: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (WK), Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Zimbabwe: Regis Chakabwa (Captain), Sean Williams, Sean Erwin, Craig Ervine, Sikandar Raza, Tendai Chatra, Luke Jongwe, Brad Evans, Wesley Madhevere, Wellington Masakadazka, Tony Munyonga, Richard Ngarwa, Ryan Burle, Blessing Mujarbani, Multon Shumba.
The match will start at 1.30 hrs IST. (agency)