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What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
Dominant India edged out Bangladesh by 120 runs to win their third consecutive title in the 3rd T20 World Cup for the Blind
The Indian cricket team maintained their dominance on the world stage as centuries from skipper Ajay Kumar Reddy and opener Sunil Ramesh helped them win the 3rd T20 World Cup for the Blind at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday.
In the final, India beat Bangladesh by 120 runs to win their third consecutive title of the tournament. Incidentally, India’s dominance in the tournament can be gauged by the fact that the team remained unbeaten during its quest for the third title.
It was not the best start for the hosts, as they lost vice-captain D Venkateswara Rao in the fourth over with only 28 runs on the board. It was soon 29 for two with Bangladesh’s Salman removing India’s no.3 Lalit Meena in the same over.
However, any hopes of Bangladesh pulling off the biggest upset of the tournament were dashed when Ramesh was joined at the crease by skipper Reddy. The duo took the bull by the horns as they played their shots all over the ground.
Bangladesh found themselves on the back foot in the face of the Indian duo’s onslaught. To make matters worse, luck appeared to have deserted them too, as Reddy was dropped at the deep. The Indian captain scored 40 runs at that moment.
Despite the stroke of luck, it was largely a chanceless innings by the Indian duo as they marked their superiority over their rivals. Ramesh (136*, 63b, 24×4, 1×6) reached his third century of the tournament with a boundary, while Reddy (100*, 50b, 18×4) too completed his ton in the final over of the innings.
The duo scored 248 runs for the unbeaten third wicket partnership as India posted a mammoth 277 for two in 20 overs.
Left with a mountain to climb, Bangladesh openers Salman and skipper Mohammad Ashiqur Rahman started with the right intent. But against a fired-up Indian attack, they struggled to hit the boundaries.
With the asking rate rising, against a disciplined Indian bowling attack, Bangladesh were left to rue their inability to make most of the power play overs.
Lalit Meena gave India the breakthrough in the 9th over as he handed Bangladesh’s opening stand 56 runs with the wicket of the rival skipper.
Salman tried his best, to build two partnerships with Abid (42 runs for the second wicket) and Arif Ullah (48 runs for the third wicket), but his best was not enough against the superior Indian bowlers.
To his credit, Salman remained unbeaten on 77 off 65 balls. He also finished the tournament as the edition’s highest run-getter with 425 runs in seven innings.
But his individual brilliance was not enough to save the day, as Bangladesh managed only 157 for three from 20 overs to suffer a big loss.
