India bowling all-rounder Axar Patel won the ‘Fielder of the Match’ medal after India’s 24-run win over Australia in the Super Eights match of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024 on Monday. In the ninth over of the second inning, Axar took Mitchell Marsh’s catch with his non-dominant right hand and helped India take control of the match. Kuldeep Yadav placed a length ball onto the pads, Marsh pulled it behind the square where Axar made no mistake in taking the catch. Speaking while honouring the medal, India fielding coach T Dilip showered praise on the Men in Blue for their commitment to every catch. The medal was presented by by Nuwan Seneviratne, a throwdown specialist for the Indian team – someone that T Dilip described as an ‘unsung hero’ for the Indian cricket team.
“Phenomenal effort, boys. Everyone, well done. When it comes to fielding in the Caribbean, we will always test our metal… from boundary to infield we covered every gap, but the masterpiece was the commitment for every catch that we have done. With this kind of determination, whether it’s adjusting to the wind or speed in the outfield, we were top-notch. Lastly, we clearly show that we are here to dominate,” T Dilip said.
Recapping the match, Australia won the toss and decided to bowl against India.
Rohit Sharma (92 runs from 41 balls, 7 fours and 8 sixes) played a stupendous knock at a strike rate of 224.39. Rohit’s captain’s knock helped India to put 205/5 on the scoreboard in the first inning. Suryakumar Yadav (31 runs from 16 balls, 3 fours and 2 sixes) and Hardik Pandya (27* runs from 17 balls, 1 four and 2 sixes) played a supporting role and gave a solid target.
Mitchell Starc and Marcus Stoinis led the Aussie bowling attack after both of them picked up two wickets each in their respective spells.
During the run chase, Travis Head (76 runs from 43 balls, 9 fours and 4 sixes) played a dangerous knock but Jasprit Bumrah removed the Aussie opener in the 17th. Mitchell Marsh (37 runs from 28 balls, 3 fours and 2 sixes) also tried his best to chase the 206-run target but fell short in front of the Indian bowling attack.
Arshdeep Singh led the Indian bowling attack after he picked up three wickets in his four-over spell and helped India to win the match by 24 runs. India skipper Rohit Sharma was named the Player of the Match after his stupendous knock in the first inning.
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