Suryakumar rescues India after USA scare at T20 World Cup

Mumbai—India captain Suryakumar Yadav produced a rescue-act for the ages, striking an unbeaten 84 off 49 deliveries to drag the tournament co-hosts off the canvas and propel them to a 29-run victory over the United States in their T20 World Cup opener at a stunned Wankhede Stadium.

Inserted by USA skipper Monank Patel, India’s star-studded top order unravelled spectacularly, slumping to 77 for six inside 12 overs. Abhishek Sharma, the planet’s top-ranked T20 batter, was bowled first ball and the slide accelerated when Shadley van Schalkwyk snared three wickets in five legitimate deliveries late in the Powerplay, leaving the title-holders 46-4. Ishan Kishan (20) and Tilak Varma (25) failed to kick on, Shivam Dube departed for a golden duck, and the lower order perished in pursuit of quick runs.

At the centre of the carnage stood Suryakumar, dropped on 15 by bowler Shubham Ranjane. The captain counter-attacked with surgical precision, racing to a 36-ball fifty and plundering 21 off the final over from Saurabh Netravalkar to steer India to 161-9. His innings featured 10 fours and four sixes.

“We cannot brush everything under the carpet,” Suryakumar admitted. “Only I can tell how much pressure I was feeling, but I had the belief I could make a difference if I batted till the end.”

The chase never gained traction. Without rested spearhead Jasprit Bumrah and late withdrawal Harshit Rana (thigh), India’s rejigged attack struck early: Mohammed Siraj, drafted in on match-eve, removed two batsmen in a fiery spell and Arshdeep Singh claimed a wicket as USA crawled to 31-3 inside six overs. Milind Kumar (34), Sanjay Krishnamurthi (37) and Ranjane (37) — three of the five India-born players in the American XI — staged a middle-order revival, but the required rate kept climbing. Once Krishnamurthi and Kumar’s 58-run stand ended, the tail folded, closing at 132-8.

“We dropped catches and that cost us,” Patel conceded. “At one stage we felt we could restrict them for 130.”

The win gives India two points and a timely wake-up call; the USA leave with belief, if not the result.