Suryakumar Yadav fired a warning to England with another extraordinary batting display as India advanced to the T20 World Cup semi-final in style.
The in-form batter blazed 61 not out in just 25 balls as India thrashed Zimbabwe by 71 runs at the MCG.
The result confirmed top spot in Group 2 of the Super 12s for India, meaning they will face England in Thursday’s second semi-final in Adelaide.
A day earlier, Group 1 table-toppers New Zealand will play Pakistan in Sydney, after the Asian side secured qualification following an extraordinary run of events on Sunday. The final is in Melbourne on Sunday.
Although the most dramatic action of the day had happened around 700 kilometres away in Adelaide, the MCG was still filled near to capacity for the final match of an engrossing group stage.
The fixture had been preceded by the Netherlands’ shock win over South Africa, followed by Pakistan sealing their place in the next phase by beating Bangladesh.
All of which meant India had already qualified by the time the game started. Still, the best part of 90,000 supporters turned up wanting entertainment.
KL Rahul was the first to provide it. The opener continued his return to form as he hit three sixes in a quick half-century.
It was overshadowed by Yadav’s remarkable late-overs blitz, which carried India to 186 for five from their 20 overs.
Zimbabwe still had something to play for, even if their chances of progressing to the last four had long since evaporated.
The Dutch had leapfrogged them into fourth place in the group with their win against South Africa. The top four sides in each group qualify directly for the 2024 World Cup.
The Zimbabweans never threatened to claim the win that would have got them back into that position. They managed just 115 all out in reply off 17.2 overs.
Sikandar Raza, with 34 off 24 balls, and Ryan Burl, with 35 off 22, were the only batsmen to show any real resistance.
Ravichandran Ashwin was the pick of India's bowlers with three wickets for 22 from his four overs.
