The “mother of all rivalries” took centre stage during the epic cricket match between Team India (IND) and Pakistan (PAK) in Match 19 of the T20 World Cup 2024 in New York. Notably, Men in Blue captain Babar Azam invited them to bat first after winning the toss. With the relatively affordable acquisition of openers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, the Green Shirts’ decision proved to be a great one.
But teenage batsman-stumper Rishabh Pant took charge and produced a calculated knock to keep Team India afloat. However, India’s batting order collapsed like a house of cards as a result of some outstanding bowling performances by Mohammad Amir and Naseem Shah. Consequently, India’s final score of 119/10 was below average.
In response, Pakistani captain Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan got off to a cautious start, but Jasprit Bumrah eventually made the breakthrough for India. To deepen the game, though, Rizwan continued to rack up points on the scoreboard. Mohammed Siraj’s a few tight play periods, then those of Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, and Ravindra Jadeja, destroyed Pakistan’s run-a-ball chase equation. Later, Bumrah once again demonstrated his ability to win games as he contributed wickets in the 19th over to help India regain the lead. As a result, Arshdeep Singh maintained his momentum and brilliantly defended the 18 required off the final over to ensure that India won the low-scoring thriller.
Also read: Naseem Shah loses against India and becomes emotional
Based on the current rankings, Team India has advanced after winning both of its games, accumulating four points. Their net run rate (NRR) is now +1.455 as a result of this. The USA, with exactly the same number of points as the Men in Blue, is right behind. At the moment, their net run rate is +0.626. In addition, after defeating Ireland in their first match against the USA, Canada secured the third position. Ireland and Pakistan, who are now in fourth and fifth place, respectively, have not yet opened their accounts in the points total as a result.
The more important questions at this point are: what must Pakistan do to continue aiming for Super 8 round qualification, and what position does India now occupy after defeating their bitter rivals?
What has Pakistan got to accomplish to get into the Super 8 round of the T20 World Cup in 2024?
Team Pakistan will now have to rely on other teams in addition to their outstanding Net Run Rate (NRR) performance. The Green Shirts must first win the games left in their group and then hope that Ireland and India lose to the United States in order to advance to the Super 8 level.
Consequently, the United States will be unable to secure six points. Interestingly, Pakistan may have a chance to go to the Super 8 round of the T20 World Cup 2024 if they can win their matches by a significant margin and have a higher run rate than either India or the USA. This might happen if Ireland manages to defeat the USA. If not, Pakistan is already facing certain elimination from the World Cup; even if they win every game, they will probably lose at the group stage.
Speaking of Team India, they have already secured the top spot and just need to win one more game to maintain their position as the group winners. They will therefore still have to play Canada if they defeat the United States on June 12. But they can almost guarantee their spot in the Super Bowl if they defeat the American team.
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