The T20 World Cup has only a single outing left, as the Men in Blue take on South Africa at Bridgetown on Saturday. India has been a consistent performer in the history of the World Cups.
From winning the cup in the first-ever T20 World Cup under great Indian captain MS Dhoni to being led to several other semis and finals of the T20 World Cup, following a group stage exit in 2021, India has seen it all in the history of the tournament.
Before Rohit and co. set foot at the iconic Kensington Oval to play the final against the Proteas, let’s have a look at the Top 10 iconic innings played by Indian batters across all editions of the T20 World Cup.
Yuvraj Singh: 70 off 30 balls against Australia
Yuvraj Singh did continue his spark into the semis, the first-ever semi-final India played against the Aussies. After a slow start, he landed 5 in the crowd and scored a quickfire 70 off just 30 deliveries alongside Dhoni’s 36, which took India to 188.
Virat Kohli: 82* off 53 against Pakistan
India needed to be rescued against Pakistan, and who stood up again was India’s most trustworthy aid, Virat Kohli. He provided semblance to the innings alongside Hardik Pandya until he won it for India with sixes off Haris Rauf.
Rohit Sharma: 92 off 41 balls against Australia
Rohit’s great innings against Australia let India have their revenge over the side, as he played a ferociously stout innings against the Aussie attack, inching close to a World Cup hundred before Starc got the big wicket of his.
Virat Kohli: 82* off 51 balls against Australia
Trailing back to 2016, came Virat’s yet another splendid knock against the Aussies at Mohali. The hosts were slow until Kohli switched gears first against Coulter-Nile, followed by a 19-run over to Faulkner.
Virat Kohli: 72* off 44 against South Africa
Kohli once again stepped up for India in the sub-continent conditions, as Kohli helped India’s chase against the Proteas at Mirpur. This took India to the finals, where he scored a great 77 against Malinga-led Sri Lanka. However, the Men in Blue could not win the cup.
Gautam Gambhir: 75 off 54 against Pakistan
Gambhir’s innings still remain one of the finest ever in the history of the tournament, as he turned out to be among the scoresheets for India in the finals of the World Cup T20 against Pakistan. Though Irfan Pathan was declared the man of the match in the first-ever T20 World Cup final, it was Gambhir’s innings that set the stage for India.
Suresh Raina: 101 off 60 balls against South Africa
The first-ever World Cup hundred for India came in the very year 2010 when Raina took over the Proteas and scored a stunning 101 standing apart from all. India secured the match with 14 runs to spare.
Yuvraj Singh: 58 off 16 against England
The innings of a lifetime, which the cricketing world has not forgotten yet; many might have done it now, but who did it first? One and only Yuvraj Singh for the Men in Blue. 6 balls and 6 sixes, this remained a record in the books of cricket for over a decade and a lifelong nightmare for English pacer Stuart Broad, who had just then set his foot onto international cricket.
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Rohit Sharma – 79* off 46 against Australia
This remains the only inning on our list that could not secure a win, yet Rohit’s brilliance is worth a thousand praises as he single-handedly battled for his 79 runs off just 46 deliveries, chasing a total of 185 against the lethal pace of Dirk Nannes, Johnson, and Tait.
Suryakumar Yadav: 68 off 40 against South Africa
India once again struggled in a group-stage match against South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2022. SKY stepped onto some different gears while the entire team collapsed. Indian bowlers too made some great efforts to let SKY be crowned the POTM; however, with South Africa’s win, his hopes shattered. Yet SKY’s innings remain to have its own place in the hearts of Indian fans.