Title Defence Alive: India Stun Zimbabwe
India hammer 256-4 in a record T20 World Cup clash, crushing Zimbabwe by 72 runs to keep semi-final hopes alive in a high-voltage cricket showdown.
Defending champions India kept their hopes alive for the T20 World Cup semi-finals, defeating Zimbabwe by 72 runs in Chennai.
After remaining unbeaten in the group stage, Zimbabwe conceded more than 250 runs for the second consecutive match in the Super 8s, leaving India to score 256-4.
This is the second-highest total in T20 World Cup history, behind only Sri Lanka's 260-6 against Kenya in the inaugural edition in 2007.
Opener Abhishek Sharma scored 55 runs off 30 balls, hitting four fours and four sixes. All-rounder Hardik Pandya reached his half-century off 23 balls with a six off the last ball of the innings, and Tilak Varma made an unbeaten 44 off 16 balls.
Chasing 257, Zimbabwe opener Brian Bennett showcased his talent, scoring 97 off 59 balls, his third unbeaten half-century of the tournament.
The 22-year-old reached his fifty off 34 balls, hitting eight fours and six sixes, but lacked support, with Sikandar Raza's 31 (21) the second-highest score.
Now tied on two points with the West Indies, India know a win over the two-time champions in Kolkata on Sunday will secure their place in the last four.
South Africa, who maintained their 100% record in the tournament by defeating the West Indies by nine wickets, joined England in qualifying for the semi-finals with one game remaining.
India bounced back after a crushing defeat to South Africa.
India had played comfortably in the initial group stage, winning all four of their matches and surpassing 190 twice with the bat, but were defeated by South Africa in their first Super 8 match.
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Chasing 187, they were bowled out for 111—a result that left them in a near-win situation heading to Chennai.
Zimbabwe captain Raza, whose team was in a similar predicament, said at the toss that it would be a "nerve-wracking battle." India showed no signs of panic and posted their highest total in the T20 World Cup, surpassing 250 for the fifth time in a men's T20 International.
Sharma, who had been under pressure in the match without scoring three times in his previous four innings, set the tone with a half-century off 26 balls.
Initially happy to bat at number two behind Sanju Samson, who hit a six off the second ball of the match and a quickfire 24 off 15 balls, he took India to 80-1 at the end of the powerplay, hitting three fours and three sixes.
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His second-wicket partnership with Ishan Kishan (38) was worth 72 runs, and although Kishan couldn't capitalize on Tashinga Musekiwa's dismissal for 26, Suryakumar Yadav punished Zimbabwe's poor fielding. Blessing Muzarabani dropped his catch for eight, leaving the Indian captain to score 33 off 13 balls.
This was Zimbabwe's fifth catch from 15 attempts in the Super 8s. In the group stage, when they were unbeaten, their catching efficiency was 95.2%, and they dropped just one catch.
Although Suryakumar was playing at a strike rate above 250, his departure sparked a turnaround for India, with Hardik and Verma scoring 84 runs in the last 5.1 overs, including seven sixes. Hardik accelerated from 12 off eight balls to reach an unbeaten 50 off 23 balls, while Verma smashed seven boundaries off 16 balls.
On a difficult day, Zimbabwe's four pace bowlers conceded 3-197 in 14 overs.
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