Chennai : Half-centuries from Hardik Pandya and Abhishek Sharma helped India keep alive its hopes of making it to the semi-finals by thrashing Zimbabwe by 72 runs in a one-sided match of the ICC T20 World Cup Super Eight here on Thursday. With India’s win, South Africa qualified for the semi-finals from Group One. The match between India and West Indies on Sunday will decide the second team from the group to make it to the semi-finals.

Chasing India’s target of 257 runs, Zimbabwe’s team, despite the half-century of opener Brian Bennett (97 not out, 59 balls, six sixes, eight fours) and his 72-run partnership for the third wicket with captain Sikandar Raza (31), never seemed to be in a position to reach the target and could only score 184 runs for six wickets. Arshdeep Singh was the most successful bowler from India, taking three wickets for 24 runs. Axar Patel (one wicket for 35 runs), Varun Chakraborty (one wicket for 35 runs) and Shivam Dubey (one wicket for 46 runs) took one wicket each. With the explosive half-centuries of openers Abhishek (55, 30 balls, four sixes, four fours) and Pandya (50 not out, 23 balls, four sixes, two fours), who returned to form, India scored 256 runs for four wickets, which is the second highest score in the history of the tournament and the highest score of the current tournament. Pandya played an important role in taking the team’s score beyond 250 runs by making an unbroken partnership of 84 runs in 31 balls for the fifth wicket with Tilak Verma (44 not out, 16 balls, four sixes, three fours). Earlier, Abhishek gave a solid platform to India by making a partnership of 48 runs for the first wicket with Sanju Samson (24) and 72 runs for the second wicket with Ishan Kishan (38). Captain Suryakumar Yadav (33) also played a useful innings. All Zimbabwe’s bowlers proved expensive.

Blessing Muzarabani took one wicket after giving away 62 runs in four overs. Brad Evans also spent 52 runs in four overs while not getting any wicket. Chasing the target, Zimbabwe made a slow but good start by scoring 44 runs in the power play. Tadivanashe Marumani hit sixes off Pandya and Chakraborty while Bennett welcomed Jasprit Bumrah with two fours. Marumani got a lease of life at the score of 17 when substitute player Rinku Singh failed to catch Chakraborty’s ball. Marumani (20), however, could not take advantage of the lease of life and got Akshar’s ball caught straight to Ishan Kishan at point. Bennett increased the run rate with two sixes and a four off Akshar in the ninth over but Dion Myers (06) caught Tilak off Chakraborty’s ball. Bennett completed his third half-century of the current tournament in 34 balls with a six on Bumrah. Raza took the team’s score beyond 100 runs in the 14th over with a four off Axar. He also completed three thousand T20 international runs during this innings. Bennett welcomed Shivam Dubey with two sixes and two fours, resulting in 26 runs in the over.

Zimbabwe needed 126 runs in the last five overs. Raza, while trying to play a big shot on Arshdeep, was caught by Abhishek at long off. Arshdeep bowled Tony Munyonga (11) after LBW Ryan Burl (00). Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza won the toss and decided to bowl first, after which India made a good start by scoring 80 runs for one wicket in the power play. Samson opened the account with a six on the second ball of the match from Nagarava and then also hit a six on Blessing Muzarabani (one wicket for 43 runs). Abhishek welcomed Tinotenda Maphosa (one wicket for 40 runs) with two fours and a six, resulting in 23 runs in the third over. However, Samson, while trying to play a big shot in Muzarabani’s next over, got caught by Ryan Burl at deep midwicket.

Ishan also got off to a good start with two fours on Nagarava. He was lucky to score 26 runs in the 10th over when Tashinga Musekiwa failed to catch him off the bowling of Brian Bennett. India’s century of runs was completed on this ball. Abhishek completed his first half-century of the tournament in 26 balls with one run off Raza (1 wicket for 29 runs). Ishan also hit a four and a six on consecutive balls of Raza but was caught by Nagarwa at short third man on the next ball. Suryakumar was also lucky when Muzarabani failed to catch him at backward square leg off Evans’ ball. Suryakumar welcomed Maphosa, who came for the second spell, with fours and sixes on consecutive balls but Abhishek was caught by Raza at long on in the same over. Pandya, sent up the batting order, started with a six off the ball. Suryakumar hit a six off Nagarava but was caught by Musekiwa after one ball. He hit two sixes and three fours in his 13-ball innings. Tilak took India’s score beyond 200 runs in the 17th over with a six off Evans. Apart from hitting a six on Muzarabani in the 18th over, he hit two consecutive sixes on Nagarava in the next over. Pandya completed his half-century in 23 balls with two consecutive sixes on Evans on the last two balls of the innings.

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