India defeated Pakistan in dramatic fashion in a T20 Cricket World Cup match at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York despite arch rivals setting a target of just 120 runs.
In rainy, slippery conditions on a morning in New York, Pakistan’s bowlers Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah both bowled well, taking three wickets each as India were bowled out for just 119 runs in the 19th over – the fewest runs either bowler has managed in a Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup match, a shortened format of the sport in which each team plays a maximum of 20 overs per innings (an over is six balls).
Pakistan appeared to be in control of the match on Long Island, scoring 73 runs in 12 overs at the cost of just two wickets in pursuit of the modest target of winning the match.
But they fell apart just days later, losing to the United States in the second game of the tournament in Grand Prairie, Texas.
Jasprit Bumrah led India’s fightback, taking three wickets for just 14 runs as Rohit Sharma’s side stormed to victory. Pakistan needed 18 runs to win in the final over of the match but fell six short at just 11. They finished at 113 for 7 after 20 overs.
More than 400 million people around the world were expected to tune in to watch the match between cricket’s two most popular nations, though matches between the two nations are rare due to geopolitical tensions and they do not cooperate outside of International Cricket Council events.
So New York crowds are always going to be delighted. Tickets went on sale in early February, but the scale of demand was massive, with more than 200 times the number of people wanting seats than the stadium’s capacity of 34,000. As a result, ticket prices skyrocketed, with websites selling tickets on the secondary resale market for between $600 and $1,200 (£470 and £620). The official attendance on Sunday was 34,028.
(Alex Davidson-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)
The largely India-supporting crowd created a raucous atmosphere and there were huge celebrations after Bumrah disintegrated the Pakistan batting line-up.
India captain Sharma said his team batted poorly but showed tenacity to pull off a comeback victory in front of an emotional crowd.
“I don’t think we batted well enough,” he said. “We were in a good position at 80 for three when we were batting after half the match. I was hoping my team-mates would link up, but we didn’t and fell 15 runs short. We were aiming for 140 but the bowlers did the job.”
“There was enough runs on the pitch and the wicket was good so we thought 130/140 was a good target and we were confident in our bowling. There is a never give up attitude in the team. We wanted to go on the offensive early and they did. We said if it can happen to us, it can happen to them.”
He described Bumrah as a “genius with the ball” and said India would hope that Bumrah “maintains that mentality throughout the entire World Cup”.
He was full of praise for the support he received from the Indian fans in the stands. “No doubt about it, the crowd has been fantastic,” he said. “No matter where in the world we play, they never disappoint. They always support us with such fervor. It’s still early days and we have a long way to go.”
With this result, India are highly likely to progress to the Super Eight, the other round-robin tournament before the semi-finals, where they will face the USA and then Canada and need one more win to qualify.
Similarly, if Canada fails to beat India, the U.S. needs one more win (or one point from the canceled match) from its two matches against Ireland and India to advance to the next stage of the tournament. This will be the U.S.’s first appearance in a T20 World Cup.
T20 World Cup Group A standings
Team Play Win Loss Draw No Result Run Rate Points
1
India
2
2
0
0
0
1.455
4
2
united states of america
2
2
0
0
0
0.626
4
3
Canada
2
1
1
0
0
-0.274
2
4
Pakistan
2
0
2
0
0
-0.15
0
5
Ireland
2
0
2
0
0
-1.712
0
Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world, with more than one billion fans, 90 percent of whom are in India, according to an ICC study.
(Top photo: Alex Davidson-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)