India played the best cricket of the tournament so far to beat a strong Australian side in Mohali. After a bad start, Virat Kohli's brilliance made the chase an easy one for India. The semi-finalists are West Indies and England from Group 1, New Zealand and India from Group 2.
Over 19.1 || Score 161/4 (Kohli 82; Dhoni 18); Target 161
Then, as usual MS Dhoni ended the match with a four. India win by 6 wickets, and into the last four.
Over 19 || Score 157/4 (Kohli 82; Dhoni 14); Target 161
A brief stoppage with MS Dhoni taking time off. Team physio was out there. attending to the skipper. Bound to happen when the running was so frenetic.
The penultimate over started with a good delivery from Nathan Coulter-Nile. A dot ball. But Virat Kolhi placed the next ball where he wanted. It raced through square. He followed it up with a pull shot, went for a four. Poor delivery though.
Another four from Virat. This time a superb cover drive, stepping down the pitch and lofting over the cover fielder. A dot ball, then another four through the same area.
Huge over! 16 runs from Nathan Coulter-Nile's last over. His figures: 4-0-33-1. India need four runs.
Over 18 || Score 141/4 (Kohli 66; Dhoni 14); Target 161
The class of Virat Kohli in display. He started with a sumptuous four, pulled in front of deep backward square leg. It was followed by a perfectly timed four through the cover. Then a six. over the long-on boundary.
It was followed by a two. Good running. A leg bye. Then a two. What a running between the wickets.
19 runs from the over, and India need another 20 runs from 12 balls.
Over 17 || Score 122/4 (Kohli 50; Dhoni 12); Target 161
Shane Watson is a legend. And he started with a perfect slower delivery, a dot, to MS Dhoni. Crunch time for India.
Meanwhile, Virat Kohli reached his fifty off 39 balls, with a single in the third ball of the over.
MS Dhoni hit a four to end the over. Eight runs from the over. India need 39 runs.
Over 16 || Score 114/4 (Kohli 49; Dhoni 6); Target 161
Good running from India. After the first ball dot, Virat Kohli took a couple of twos, then hit a perfectly timed four, over through the mid-wicket. It was followed by a two, with MS Dhoni at the danger end. Another two.
Twelve runs from Josh Hazlewood's last over. His figures: 4-0-38-0. India need 47 runs from 24 runs.
Over 15 || Score 102/4 (Kohli 37; Dhoni 6); Target 161
Good over for Australia with asking rate ever climbing for India. Eight runs from Shane Watson's third over, which included a four off the blade of MS Dhoni. A slower ball, which was dispatched by Dhoni with a pull shot. That happened in the fourth ball of the over. Four more singles in the over.
Over 14 || Score 94/4 (Kohli 35; Dhoni 0); Target 161
Tidy over from James Faulkner, Australia's bowling hero from the previous match. And he removed Yuvraj Singh. Good catch at extra cover by veteran Shane Watson.
WICKET: Yuvraj Singh c Shane Watson b James Faulkner 21 (18b)
That happened in the last ball of the over. And with Yuvraj gone, India will have no problems running twos, stealing singles. Bad sight to see Yuvraj struggling with running.
Five runs and a wicket from the over. India need more runs 67 from 36 balls. MS Dhoni is the new man.
Over 13 || Score 89/3 (Kohli 32; Yuvraj 19); Target 161
He is struggling to run, but Yuvraj can clear the boundary. After a single of the first ball by Virat Kohli, Yuvraj dispatched a full toss over the cow corner.
A leg bye followed. After a dot ball, Kohli took a single to retain the strike. India need 72 runs from 42 balls.
Over 12 || Score 80/3 (Kohli 30; Yuvraj 13); Target 161
Yuvraj Singh took a single to give the strike to Virat Kohli. The right-handed batsman then came down the pitch to play a lofted shot. It looked like a half-hearted shot, but went the distance. His first six.
Two runs followed, with Yuvraj struggling to reach the safety. Three singles followed and 12 runs from the over.
Over 11 || Score 68/3 (Kohli 20; Yuvraj 11); Target 161
Spin from both ends for Australia. Adam Zampa on. And straight away a call for stumping. Yuvraj Singh survived. Close call.
Then, Yuvraj and Virat Kolhi rotated the strike for three singles, before the latter ate up the remaining two deliveries for naught.
Huge over for Australia. Three runs. India need 93 runs from 54 balls.
Over 10 || Score 65/3 (Kohli 19; Yuvraj 9); Target 161
Steve Smith introduced spinner in Glenn Maxwell into the attack. Virat Kohli took a single. Then, Yuvraj Singh, who just got his ankle strapped moments ago, responded with a single.
And India missed a chance to run two, with Yuvraj settling for a single. After back to back single, India got a 2 with a miss-filed from David Warner. A three was possible. Six runs from the over.
Over 9 || Score 59/3 (Kohli 15; Yuvraj 7); Target 161
Yuvraj Singh started with a four, edged through the slip cordon. And there was a slip fielder. He then played a flicked shot, but ended up requiring medical attention. Seemed like he had twisted the left foot.
Play resumed after a brief stoppage. A wide. Then, Virat Kohli took a single.
Nathan Coulter-Nile, then, continued with a bouncer to Yuvraj. Understandably so from the Aussie fast bowler. A single to Yuvraj, hobbling.
Nine runs from the over. India need another 102 runs.
Over 8 || Score 50/3 (Kohli 13; Yuvraj 1); Target 161
Shane Watson again. Short ball and Suresh Raina back in the hut. Good catch behind the wicket by Peter Nevill.
WICKET: Suresh Raina c Peter Nevill b Shane Watson 10 (7b)
Five runs and a wicket. Local hero Yuvraj Singh is the new man.
Over 7 || Score 45/2 (Kohli 12; Raina 7); Target 161
Awfully out of touch. Suresh Raina lucky to have survived after playing a clueless shot. He lobbed a slower delivery just wide of the mid-off fielder, and it trickled for a four.
Eight runs from the over. India need another 116 runs from 13 overs.
Over 6 || Score 37/2 (Kohli 11; Raina 0); Target 161
What a bowl, what a pathetic shot. Rohit Sharma's cup of woes continue. He had no clue what the ball was doing. Credit to Shane Watson though, for keeping it straight. Bowled.
WICKET: Rohit Sharma b Shane Watson 12 (17b)
That happened in the fifth delivery of the over. Suresh Raina is the new man. Three runs and a wicket from Watson's first over.
Over 5 || Score 34/1 (Rohit 11; Kohli 9); Target 161
New man Virat Kohli started his spade work in the earnest. The over started with Rohit Sharma taking single, through the square leg. Kohli blocked the next ball.
Then, he hit two back-to-back fours. First was a flick, the second a silken touch -- through the covers.
A single, and a dot ball to make it a 10-run over. India need 127 runs more from 15 overs.
Over 4 || Score 24/1 (Rohit 10; Kohli 0); Target 161
Classic pull shots from Rohit Sharma. Four of the first, single of the second.
Change of line from Nathan Coulter-Nile caught Shikhar Dhawan in an awkward position. Ball hitting body. He played a gentle nudge next. No runs.
And Dhawan departed. Holed out at short fine leg. Good catch by Usman Khawaja.
WICKET: Shikhar Dhawan c Usman Khawaja b Nathan Coulter-Nile 13 (12b)
Six runs and a wicket.
Over 3 || Score 18/0 (Rohit 4; Dhawan 13); Target 161
What a flick from Shikhar Dhawan. A fuller delivery and the left handed-batsman dismissed it, over the deep square-leg boundary.
He then gently ran down the following ball for a single. It was followed by another single from Rohit Sharma. Two dot balls to end the over. Nine runs from the over, which also included a wide.
Over 2 || Score 9/0 (Rohit 3; Dhawan 6); Target 161
Good start for Nathan Coulter-Nile. The right-arm fast bowler managed to a keep a seemingly circumspect Rohit Sharma quiet for the first three balls.
Then, the Indian opener played a pull shot, for a single. Of a good line, Shikhar Dhawan played a gentle leg glance for another single. A good looking, lofted cover drive from Sharma, but no runs. Two runs from the over.
India need 152 runs from 18 overs.
Over 1 || Score 7/0 (Rohit 2; Dhawan 5); Target 161
First ball, first run for India. Rohit Sharma played the first delivery from Josh Hazlewood with gentle hands, towards mid-wicket.
Then, Shikhar Dhawan played a beautiful cover drive. Silken drive. No need to run for that. And as usual, the Delhi batsman has issues with hoarding.
After a brief stoppage, Dhawan played a straight drive. Not the greatest of timings. No run. But the next delivery, he stole a single.
Sharma played the last two deliveries. A single to end the over. Seven runs from the over.
Ready for the chase. It will be a tough one for India, but MS Dhoni & Co should take from the fact that Australians were going for 200 at the start.
AUSTRALIA INNINGS
Over 20 || Score 160/6 (Watson 18; Nevill 10)
A wicket and 15 runs to end the innings. An eventful over.
The over started with the wicket James Faulkner, caught at long on by Virat Kohli.
WICKET: James Faulkner c Virat Kohli b Hardik Pandya 10 (10b)
After a dot ball, Shane Watson his a four, thick outside edge, behind the wicket. A single, then Peter Nevill played smart to hit a four and a six.
Over 19 || Score 145/5 (Watson 13; Faulkner 10)
Finally some runs for Australia. James Faulkner, who was tied down in the last over by Ashish Nehra, started the over with a four, through the third man area.
Three four singles, thanks to good fielding from the Indians.
Jasprit Bumrah thus ended his bowling today. His figures: 4-0-32-1. Impressive, considering his first over went for 17 runs. Nine runs from his last over though.
Over 18 || Score 136/5 (Watson 11; Faulkner 3)
Brilliant bowling at the death from India. Ashish Nehra produced a gem of an over to frustrate Aussies. Four runs from his last over. Nehra's bowling figures: 4-0-20-1. This is how he lead.
In the last five overs, Australia have scored 36 runs losing one wicket.
Over 17 || Score 132/5 (Watson 9; Faulkner 1)
Good come back from Jasprit Bumrah. Produced a beauty of a slower delivery to get rid of dangerous Glenn Maxwell, who was warming up for a late onslaught.
WICKET: Glenn Maxwell b Jasprit Bumrah 31 (28b)
James Faulkner is the new man. Three runs and a wicket from the over.
Over 16 || Score 129/4 (Maxwell 31; Watson 7)
Another good over for Australia. 15 runs from Ravindra Jadeja's third over.
Glenn Maxwell took a single of the first ball, then a leg bye, before another single to Maxwell. Jadeja then stray down leg side for a wide. Shane Watson took a single.
Then, Maxwell played two classic shots for a four and a six to end the over. He hit the penultimate ball, a slog sweep for his first boundary. He launched the last ball, over the cover boundary for a six.
Over 15 || Score 114/4 (Maxwell 19; Watson 6)
Plenty of short balls from Hardik Pandya. It somehow allowed batsmen to play shots as they want. The over started with a single, to Glenn Maxwell. A wide followed, attempting a slower delivery.
Shane Watson then hit his first boundary, a pull shot off a short ball. Four singles followed to make it a 10-run over. Good one for Australia.
Over 14 || Score 104/4 (Maxwell 16; Watson 0)
Yuvraj Singh raced through his third over. Conceded four runs. The left-arm spinner started with a wide, but managed to restrict the Aussies to a 2 and a single off the remaining deliveries.
Over 13 || Score 100/4 (Maxwell 13; Watson 0)
After a quiet period, Australian batsmen have started to open up, and with that India got the wicket, of Aaron Finch.
Finch played a pull shot, which initially looked like sailing over mid-wicket boundary. But instead found a waiting Shikhar Dhawan, who took the catch.
WICKET: Aaron Finch c Shikhar Dhawan b hardik Pandya 43 (34b)
That happened in the last ball of the over. Finch had just hit a four of the previous ball to brought up Australia's 100.
Hardik Pandya gave away seven runs, for a wicket. Retiring Shane Watson is the new man.
Over 12 || Score 93/3 (Finch 37; Maxwell 12)
A busy over. Yuvraj Singh conceded eight runs in his second over. Four singles and a couple of twos.
India have fought back brilliantly after that superb start from the Aussies. And with that, crowd in Mohali has come alive.
Over 11 || Score 85/3 (Finch 35; Maxwell 6)
Another good over for India. Hardik Pandya gave away four runs in his first over.
Glenn Maxwell consumed three balls to take a 2, then after a dot ball, Maxwell and Aaron Finch took a single each.
Over 10 || Score 81/3 (Finch 34; Maxwell 3)
Yuvraj Singh struck. First ball, and the wicket of Steven Smith. Contentious, but finger already raised. Marais Erasmus was convinced. MS Dhoni's appeal was convincing too.
WICKET: Steve Smith c MS Dhoni b Yuvraj Singh 2 (6b)
Seven runs and a wicket from the over. There were a no-ball and a wide too. New Man Glenn Maxwell, however, failed to capitalise the free hit.
Over 9 || Score 74/2 (Finch 32; Smith 2)
Then, a superb over from Ravindra Jadeja. One single to Steve smith.
Over 8 || Score 73/2 (Finch 32; Smith 1)
Spinners from both ends, with Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in operation.
First boundary for Australia in four overs, after the fall of Usman Khawaja. That happened in the third ball of the over. Superb timing. Ball beat the fielder at covers.
Then, the wicket of David Warner. Stumped.
WICKET: David Warner st MS Dhoni b R Ashwin 6 (9b)
Aus skipper Steven Smith is the new man. Nine runs and a wicket from the over.
Over 7 || Score 64/1 (Finch 26; Warner 5)
Bowling change for India. Ravindra Jadeja on for his first over.
The over started with a single, off Aaron Finch's bat. Two runs followed. A dot ball to David Warner, before a dot ball. The over ended with a single. Five runs from the over.
Over 6 || Score 59/1 (Finch 24; Warner 2)
Jasprit Bumrah, with Usam Khawaja gone, found some rhythm. He was supported on the field by his team-mates, even as Aaron Finch failed to beat the mid-on fielders.
A leg bye to start the over, with David Warner on strike. Two dot balls from Bumrah with Finch middling but failing the breach cover. Three singles followed.
Four runs from the over.
Over 5 || Score 55/1 (Finch 22; Warner 1)
First real chance for India, and the ball landed in no-man's land. A single to Australia. But Ashish Nehra got the wicket he wanted. Good catch by skipper MS Dhoni behind the stumps, on his left.
WICKET: Usman Khawaja c MS Dhoni b Ashish Nehra 26 (16b)
David Warner is the new man. Two runs and a wicket. Superb over from the experienced campaigner.
Over 4 || Score 53/0 (Khawaja 26; Finch 21)
A concerned MS Dhoni brought in his weapon of choice, R Ashwin. And the spinner has also been taken to the cleaners. This time by a reticent Aaron Finch.
A single to start the over, then Finch blocked the second ball, before hitting two successive sixes over the long-on boundary. Power-play, for sure.
Then, five wides. Pressure on Dhoni. Another wide. Then, two runs. Good running from the Aussie openers.
22 runs from the over.
Over 3 || Score 31/0 (Khawaja 25; Finch 6)
Ashish Nehra continued with his second over. Aaron Finch, after a dot ball, hit his four -- through the point area. A single, then Usman Khawaja found his sixth four of the innings. Lucky one.Ball followed his movement, but still got away with a four with Khawaja flicking, and ball raced through the fine leg area.
10 runs from the over. Australia are off to a brilliant start.
Over 2 || Score 21/0 (Khawaja 16; Finch 1)
Huge over for Australia, with Usman Khawaja punishing Jasprit Bumrah.
The over started with a single, then Khawaja hit three successive boundaries. After a dot ball, the left handed batsman ended with another four.
Over 1 || Score 4/0 (Khawaja 4; Finch 0)
Packed crowd in Mohali.
It's seasoned Ashish Nehra with the first over, not Ravichandran Ashwin for India today. Usman Khawaja faced the first delivery, and a short ball. The left-handed opener started with a four, pulled to the square leg boundary.
Nehra responded with two dot balls, with the third ball shaping away from the batsman.
It was followed by another three dot balls. Good start for India. Four runs from the over.
It's national anthem round. Australian first, as guest and also alphabetically.
Teams:
India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni (capt. & wk), Hardik Pandya, ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ashish Nehra, Jasprit Bumrah
Australia: Aaron Finch, Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Steven Smith (capt.), Glenn Maxwell, Shane Watson, James Faulkner, Peter Nevill (wk), Adam Zampa, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Josh Hazlewood
Match officials: Today's umpires are Kumar Dharmasena (SL) and Marais Erasmus (RSA). They will be assisted by Richard Illingworth (Eng) as third umpire, and Ranjan Madugalle (SL) as
the match referee
TOSS: Steve Smith wins the toss, and Australia will bat first. Both the sides are fielding unchanged XIs.
Meanwhile, Indian women's team lost to their West Indies counterparts and are out of the tournament.
Just the perfect appetiser to India-Australia match! Afghanistan produced a thrilling 6-run win over high-flying West Indies. Despite the defeat, Windies top Group 1 thanks to a better run rate over England. And the Carribean team will play the winner of India-Australia match in their semi-final in Mubai on March 31. The other first semi-final will be between New Zealand and England in Delhi, a day earlier.
SQUADS:
India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Shikhar Dhawan, Harbhajan Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, Mohammed Shami, Pawan Negi, Ashish Nehra, Hardik Pandya, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh.
Australia: Steven Smith (captain), David Warner, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Josh Hazlewood, Usman Khawaja, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Peter Nevill, Andrew Tye, Shane Watson, Adam Zampa
PREVIEW:
This is the final before the big final. Thanks to a brilliant New Zealand side, pre-tournament favourites India are playing for the right to play in the semi-finals. And their opponents are the current world champions, albeit in a different format. That's a different matter, a topic for another day, that cricket, despite having so limited teams in it's global role, can afford to have two world cups.
Coming to the match, India are expected to field an unchanged XI, despite concerns emanating from a lacklustre opening pair. Both Shkihar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma has failed and most importantly, their T20 man Friday, Suresh Raina is also struggling.
If it's not for Virat Kohli, India's campaign would have done and dusted long time ago. That being said, this team under mercurial Mahendra Singh Dhoni knows how to win matches. That, probably, is the defining the character. That's why India are still the favourite to win the tournament.
India's batting worries have been covered up by a brilliant bowling unit. The revival of Ashish Nehra, arrival of young pace bowlers in Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah have given the Indian camp enough confident. And there's the tried and tested spin duo of Ravichandran Aswhin and Ravindra Jadeja, probably, the deadliest combo right now.
Australia, who are also beaten by group leaders New Zealand like India, are a confident lot. The Steven Smith-led side has enough match-winners to change the course of any match, from any point.
For this match, Australia will be extra motivated too, considering the fact that they have failed to beat India in this format for nearly four years. Their last win over India came at the 2012 World T20 in Sri Lanka.
And in the most recent series, India whitewashed the Aussies at their own backyard.
But, as in any other knock-out match, and for that matter of fact between two world class teams, history hardly matters.
A team which has the likes of Steven Smith himself, Shane Watson, Glenn Maxwell, David Warner and James Faulkner, can beat any team.
New Delhi: Welcome to our live coverage of the match no. 31 of 2016 ICC World Twenty20, between India and Australia, being played at Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali.
