Suryakumar Yadav spared India’s blushes with a superb unbeaten 84 off 49 balls as the co-hosts beat the USA by 29 runs in their opening T20 World Cup match at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. India were in deep trouble at 77 for six before Suryakumar, who had been dropped on 15, struck four sixes and 10 fours to lift his side to 161 for 9.
The USA’s reply lost momentum when they lost three wickets for 13 runs inside four overs. Milind Kumar (34), Sanjay Krishnamurthi (37) and Shubham Ranjane (37) — three of five India-born players in the USA XI — put up resistance but the visitors finished 132 for 8.
“Only I can tell how much pressure I was feeling,” said player of the match Suryakumar. “But I had the belief. I knew if I bat till the end, I can make a difference. It was a little different wicket. But we cannot brush everything under the carpet. We need to bat much better.”
Indian fans had expected a big scoring display after USA captain Monank Patel elected to field, but India’s top order spectacularly folded. Opener Abhishek Sharma, currently ranked the world’s No 1 T20 batter, fell for a first-ball duck, and the real collapse came in the final over of the Powerplay when Shadley van Schalkwyk took three wickets in five deliveries to leave India reeling at 46 for 4. Ishan Kishan (20) and Tilak Varma (25) could not capitalize on their starts, and Shivam Dube fell for a golden duck in that over.
A reprieve came when Ranjane failed to hold a return catch off Suryakumar when the batter was on 15, and Suryakumar seized the opportunity. He raced to a 36-ball fifty and hammered 21 from the final over, bowled by Saurabh Netravalkar, to secure the finish.
India were without pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who missed the match due to illness, and had been forced into a late change when Harshit Rana was ruled out with a thigh injury less than 24 hours before the game. Mohammed Siraj, a late inclusion as Rana’s replacement, justified the call with figures of 3 for 29, and Arshdeep Singh also struck, helping reduce the USA to 31 for 3 in the Powerplay.
Krishnamurthi and Milind Kumar put together a 58-run partnership to steady the chase, but once it broke India regained control. “I thought our bowlers did a good job,” USA captain Monank Patel said. “We dropped catches and that cost us. At one stage, felt we could restrict them for 130.”
Watch the Men’s T20 World Cup live on Sky Sports from February 7 to March 8.