Watch: Rishabh Pant Sacrifices His Wicket For Hardik Pandya, Gives Thumbs Up On Getting Run Out
In the 20th over of India's batting, Rishabh Pant sacrificed his wicket to bring Hardik Pandya on strike. Pant also gave Hardik a thumbs up, acknowledging his idea.
India all-rounder Hardik Pandya joined the party in the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final against England, leading the scoring charts with a brilliant 33-ball 63. Hardik didn't just show his brute-hitting power with the bat but also displayed great presence of mind to ensure that India get the maximum score on the board possible. Hardik slammed 10 runs on the final three balls to take India's score to 168 but in order for him to do so, wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant had to sacrifice his wicket.
Both Pant and Hardik got 1 run each on the first couple of deliveries of the 20th over. On the third delivery, Pant missed the ball and it went straight into the hands of the wicket-keeper Jos Buttler. But, Hardik insisted on changing the strike and had almost reached the other end of the pitch, without Pant realising it.
The wicket-keeper then left his crease unselfishly, sacrificing his wicket as Hardik was in hot form at that point of time. Upon getting run-out, Pant even gave a thumbs up to Hardik, acknowledging his idea and suggesting that it as a fair call.
Here's the video of the incident:
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As Hardik came onto the strike, he slammed a six and a four on the 4th and 5th delivery of the 20th over respectively. Hardik could've added 4 more runs to India's total but was got out hit-wicket while trying to hit a boundary on the final ball.
As far as India's batting is concerned, KL Rahul flopped in the match, after scoring two consecutive half-centuries in the last two matches. Rohit Sharma scored 27 off 28 while Virat Kohli registered 50 off 40 balls. In the end, India posted a total of 168/6 on the board.
Jos Buttler and Alex Hales, however, remained unbeaten as England chased down the target of 169 runs in 16 overs.
India Cricket Team
England Cricket Team
Hardik Pandya
Rishabh Pant