Virat Kohli the prominent opening batsman for Team India faced an unexpected departure registering a brief fiveball duck in the crucial 2024 T20 World Cup Super 8 showdown against Australia. The ace player fell victim to Josh Hazlewoods delivery early in the innings occurring in St. Lucia on Monday June 24.
Mitchell Marsh, Australia’s captain, sent the Men in Blue out to bat first. Virat Kohli ended Mitchell Starc’s opening over with a couple of dot balls and was on strike against Hazlewood at the other end. The right-handed batsman couldn’t find a way to open his account because the pacer kept things tight.
Hazlewood startled Virat Kohli with a bouncer, deviating from his regular length delivery outside the off stump. The right-handed batter grabbed the shot and attempted to drag it over the infield. But he could only get a top edge to the right of mid-on, near the midwicket zone.
Tim David raced nearly 28 meters to make a difficult catch appear easy, giving Australia an early advantage. View the dismissal right here:
Virat Kohli fourth appearance in the 2024 T20 World Cup falls below the doubledigit mark. Its worth noting that this event marks Josh Hazlewood debut dismissal of Kohli in the shortest version of the game.
Team India unfazed by Virat Kohli’s dismissal as Rohit Sharma takes on Mitchell Starc
Virat Kohli’s dismissal moved India to 6/1 in the second over. The replacement batter, Rishabh Pant, navigated the rest of the over before Rohit Sharma went insane. The Indian skipper hammered four sixes off Mitchell Starc in the third over, scoring 29 runs.
As of writing, the Men in Blue are 35/1 after three overs, with Rohit Sharma firmly in command of the proceedings against Australia’s new ball attack.
The present match is a must-win for Australia, which just lost to Afghanistan in the Super 8 stage. The Men in Yellow now lead the points table based on net run rate, but the final Super 8 match between Afghanistan and Bangladesh will have a significant impact on the outcome.
