'Don’t think too much, just play freely': Rohit

India captain spells out his team’s mantra for success as they beat Australia by 24 runs; insists Men in Blue will continue same way v England in semis

India had kept Kuldeep Yadav on the bench during their three matches in New York not because they wanted to unleash him as a surprise weapon in the Super Eight stage—there are no surprises in international sport anymore—but because pitches at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium were ‘like those in Australia’, according to the left-arm wrist-spinner himself.

Once the team moved to the Caribbean for the second phase, it was obvious that on tracks that would assist spin, Kuldeep would be a shoo-in. He took a while to find his feet, his first ball in the T20 World Cup a no-ball against Afghanistan, but once he got his first bowl out of the way with two for 32, he has been on top of his game.

Australia’s unbeaten duo Mitchell Starc (left) and Pat Cummins  wear a dejected look after their defeat to India. Pic/Getty Images

Against Bangladesh, acknowledged as good players of the turning ball, Kuldeep teased and tormented the batters to finish with three for 19. And on Monday at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium against Australia, in a game that produced 386 runs, he wound up conceding just 24 runs in his full complement, picking up the crucial sticks of Mitchell Marsh and Glenn Maxwell.

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Marsh was spectacularly caught by Axar Patel on the deep backward square-leg fence while a charging Maxwell was defeated by a wrong ’un that spun across his bat and disturbed the furniture. Having looked on course to reel in India’s 205 for five, Australia never recovered from those blows and were restricted to 181 for seven, going down by 24 runs.

“Kuldeep is a champion spinner. Whenever he gets a chance, he delivers and he’s always been in the wickets,” acknowledged Arshdeep Singh, the left-arm seamer who packed off David Warner on his way to three for 37. “Today, he was bowling from the tough end and even against the wind, he managed to bowl at around six an over and took crucial wickets. He’s a really important player and we’re looking forward to him taking a lot of wickets in the next two matches.”

India’s tally was made possible by a blistering 92 from skipper Rohit Sharma, whose 19-ball fifty was the fastest half-century of this World Cup. Their third straight victory and top-dog status in Group 1 set up a Thursday semi-final in Providence against England, the team that had put them out at the same stage in the last T20 World Cup in Adelaide, Australia, a year and a half back.

“We want to play the same way, understand what the individuals need to do in a given situation. Don’t think too much about what’s lying ahead and play freely.  So far, we’ve been doing that consistently, and in the semi-finals, we’ll try and do the same. It’ll be nice [to play England] but nothing changes for us. We must focus on what we can do as a team and take the game on,” India’s skipper and Player of the Match said. 

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