SLOW AND UNSTEADY VERSUS SPIN

POST the batting powerplay against the Netherlands on Wednesday, the score was 51/2, with Tilak Varma and skipper Suryakumar Yadav in the middle.

- GOMESH S @ Ahmedabad

Despite the early dismissal of openers, India had managed to finish the powerplay strongly, but a bigger challenge awaited.

Through this tournament, the defending champions have struggled to sustain the momentum after the powerplay, especially against spinners. And it was something the opponents had taken note of.

Netherlands had used spinners up front to get rid of Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan, and they knew neither Surya nor Tilak had been fluent against spinners. In came Colin Ackermann, who delivered a boundary-less seventh over. He helped halt the momentum, something Bas de Leede and Logan van Beek built on. The hosts lost momentum, going from 51/2 in six overs to 74/2 at the halfway mark. To be precise, they managed 25 runs in the 7-11 over window. And in the process, also lost Tilak. Surya, too, couldn't kick on as he did against the USA and fell shortly after. Thankfully for India, Shivam Dube stepped up and took India close to 200, which helped them beat the Netherlands by 17 runs.