India will head into the T20 World Cup 2026 Super Eight unbeaten after maintaining a clean sheet in the group stage of the tournament. The defending champions, eyeing history, defeated the Netherlands in their last league-stage match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, February 18 by 17 runs.
India have won all four of their matches in the league stage to remain on top of Group A. They displayed a strong performance with the bat on what seemed to be a slightly sluggish pitch before their bowlers did well enough to hold off a spirited Netherlands challenge in Ahmedabad.
India could not close this out but were always on top
The Indian bowlers did well on their part, but they could not close things out and bowl the Dutch out despite having sent them seven down. Dew might have played some part. The Dutch batters got off to starts and were always behind the eight ball in this chase, but they would be happy for having come a bit close to India.
The bowlers did a good job, with Varun Chakravarthy being a sort of unplayable bowler, taking three wickets for just 14 runs in four overs. Shivam Dube also chipped in with his two wickets for 35 runs in three overs, while Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya got one each.
More to follow…