Iyer, Rahul tons keep India perfect as Kohli, Rohit take World Cup wickets

Published November 12, 2023
India’s Virat Kohli (2R) celebrates with Shubman Gill (L), captain Rohit Sharma (2L) and KL Rahul after taking the wicket of Netherlands’ captain Scott Edwards during the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup one-day international (ODI) match between India and Netherlands at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on November 12. — AFP
India’s Virat Kohli (2R) celebrates with Shubman Gill (L), captain Rohit Sharma (2L) and KL Rahul after taking the wicket of Netherlands’ captain Scott Edwards during the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup one-day international (ODI) match between India and Netherlands at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on November 12. — AFP
Netherlands’ Sybrand Engelbrecht watches the ball after playing a shot during the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup one-day international (ODI) match between India and Netherlands at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on November 12. — AFP
Netherlands’ Sybrand Engelbrecht watches the ball after playing a shot during the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup one-day international (ODI) match between India and Netherlands at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on November 12. — AFP

Centuries from Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul powered India to a 160-run World Cup win over the Netherlands on Sunday as they completed the group stage with a perfect nine wins in nine games.

Iyer (128 not out) and Rahul (102) put on 208 runs to guide India to 410-4.

India then employed nine bowlers, including part-timers Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, to dismiss the Dutch for 250 in the tournament’s concluding league match in Bengaluru.

The hosts will face New Zealand in the first semi-final in Mumbai on Wednesday followed by the second last-four clash between Australia and South Africa the next day in Kolkata.

Iyer smashed his first World Cup ton in a match where all the top-five Indian batsmen went past the fifty mark on a batting-friendly pitch.

He reached his hundred — his fourth in ODI cricket — off 84 balls. He ended with 10 fours and five sixes.

Bengaluru-born Rahul raced to his ton with two sixes for the fastest Indian hundred in World Cups off 62 balls.

He departed four balls later as India fell short of their highest ever World Cup total of 413-5 v Bermuda in 2007.

Kohli reached his half century but fell for 51, silencing the crowd who had been anticipating the star batsman’s 50th ODI ton after he equalled Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 in the team’s previous win over South Africa.

Skipper Rohit, who hit 61, and Shubman Gill laid the foundations for the total in an opening stand of 100 with the pair hitting regular boundaries.

Gill fell for 51 off Paul van Meekeren and fellow quick Bas de Leede dismissed Rohit after the captain reached his fourth 50-plus score including a ton in the tournament.

Bas overtook his father Tim de Leede, who took 14 wicket for the Dutch in the World Cup, and claimed one more to finish as the highest World Cup wicket-taker for his nation with 16 scalps.

The in-form Kohli reached the 71st ODI fifty of his career only to be bowled four balls later by Roelof van der Merwe’s left-arm spin.

Kohli surpassed South Africa’s Quinton de Kock (591) as the leading batsman of the 2023 tournament with 594 runs.

Iyer kept up his blazing form to register his fourth successive score of 50 and above in the tournament and received support from the other end with Rahul joining the charge.

In reply, the Dutch were never in the chase and kept losing regular wickets including Kohli striking with the his gentle medium-pace to claim a first ODI wicket in nine years.

With the Dutch crawling in their reply, Rohit threw the ball to Kohli who sent back opposition captain Scott Edwards, caught behind in his second over off a ball drifting down the leg side.

It was only Kohli’s fifth career ODI wicket from his gentle medium-pace and first since 2014.

Sybrand Engelbrecht made 45 and Teja Nidamanuru hit 54 before the innings folded in 47.5 overs with Rohit ending using his part-time off spin to send back Nidamanuru.

Rohit last picked an ODI wicket in 2012 and this was only his 10th career wicket.

Opinion

Editorial

Economic plan
Updated 02 Jan, 2025

Economic plan

Absence of policy reforms allows the bureaucracy a lot of space to wriggle out of responsibility.
On life support
02 Jan, 2025

On life support

PAKISTAN stands at a precarious crossroads as we embark on a new year. Pildat’s Quality of Democracy report has...
Harsh sentence
02 Jan, 2025

Harsh sentence

USING lawfare to swiftly get rid of political opponents makes a mockery of the legal system, especially when ...
Looking ahead
Updated 01 Jan, 2025

Looking ahead

The dawn of 2025 brings with it hope of a more constructive path to much-needed stability.
On the front lines
Updated 01 Jan, 2025

On the front lines

THE human cost of terrorism in 2024 was staggering. The ISPR reports 383 officers and soldiers embraced martyrdom...
Avoiding reform
01 Jan, 2025

Avoiding reform

PAKISTAN’S economic growth significantly slowed down to a modest 0.92pc during the first quarter of the present...