After the disheartening defeat of the Indian Cricket team against New Zealand in the 28th match, Men in Blue have less to no hopes to qualify for the Semi-Final stage in T20 World Cup 2021. The catastrophic defeat of Team India left Indian cricket in shock and disbelief who were hoping for India to win back the title this year. However, there are some circumstances under which India qualifies for the Knockout stage. What are these conditions and How India can qualify for the Semi-Finals in T20 World Cup 2021? We will be talking about this in this post.
How can India qualify for Semi-Finals in T20 World Cup 2021?
India is placed in Group 2 of the Super 12 stage along with the other top nations including Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Namibia, and Scotland. So far, India has played two matches in T20 World Cup 2021 against Pakistan and New Zealand. Unfortunately, they lost both these games and now they hold the 5th spot in Group 2 Points table. It seems like an impossible task for India to make it to the knockout stage from here. However, there is still hope left for India to qualify for the Semi-Finals. Here are the Scenarios that will favor India’s case to make it to the next stage of the T20 World Cup 2021.
- Afghanistan to lose both their remaining games.
- New Zealand must lose at least one of their remaining games.
- India must win all the remaining matches with a higher margin.
India Must win all the Remaining matches with a higher margin
India has encountered Pakistan, and New Zealand so far in their T20 World Cup campaign. They lost their matches against both these nations and now India has left only three games to play. Afghanistan, Scotland, and Namibia will be easy targets for India. However, in order to qualify for the Semi-Finals, India must defeat Afghanistan, Scotland, and Namibia with 100+ Runs to improve their Run Rate. If India manages to beat these nations with a higher NRR, India have higher Chances to qualify for the Knockout stage, Given New Zealand also lose at least one of their games.
Afghanistan must lose their two remaining matches
Afghanistan is currently standing in 2nd place after Pakistan. They have the best NRR after their two matches against Scotland and Pakistan. In order for India to qualify for the knockout stage, Afghanistan must lose its two remaining matches. If Afghanistan manages to win only one of these games, India will be knocked out of the Semi-Finals.
New Zealand must lose at least one of their remaining matches
As of now, New Zealand holds the 3rd spot with an NRR of +0.765. They have played two games against Pakistan and India. They lost their first match against Pakistan by 5 wickets, however, they defeated India in their second game by 8 wickets. If India wants to reach the semi-final stage, then New Zealand must lose at least one of its games. If somehow, New Zealand wins both their next games, India will not qualify for the Semi-Final stage.
Luckily, New Zealand has to compete with Afghanistan on 7th November. Afghanistan is not an easy team to challenge, as they troubled Pakistan in their recent match.
Apart from it, all the 200 Million Indian cricket fans must pray hard for the Indian cricket team to qualify for the knockout stage. As prayers can force miracles to happen.
All the Best for Team India!