The T20 World Cup 2024 saw some magical performances with both bat and ball. The pitches were not as friendly to the batters as we saw during the IPL but still, there were some outstanding batting performances. Here are the top five.
Aaron Jones 94* vs Canada
Aaron Jones’ selection in the tournament did raise a few eyebrows as he was not in form leading up to the tournament but his masterful batting in the first match made everyone sit up and take notice. It was the very first match of the tournament and the North American neighbours USA, the hosts and Canada faced each other. Chasing 195, USA lost their first wicket in the first over and when the captain
Monank Patel was out in the seventh over, Jones got his chance to show his prowess. He and Andries Gous batted together for nearly 10 overs and added 131 runs. Although Gous was dismissed, Jones ensured that he remained unbeaten and finished the chase in 18th over. On the way to an unbeaten 94 he hit 10 towering sixes and 4 boundaries and ensured there was never a run rate pressure on them.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz 80 vs New Zealand
After beating Uganda comfortably, Afghanistan first caught the eye when they thrashed New Zealand in their next match. It was an important step in their T20 World Cup journey which took them to their maiden Semi-final appearance. Although their bowlers got all the praise after blowing the opposition for just 75 runs, it was Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who provided them with a strong platform while batting.
Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran added their second 100-run partnership in the tournament as they added 103 runs in 14.3 overs. Gurbaz was the aggressive of the two, reaching his fifty of just 40 balls with three boundaries and same number of sixes. Even after the partnership is broken, Gurbaz continued his aggressive batting eventually dismissed in the 20th over after a well-made 80 off 56 deliveries.
Sherfane Rutherford 68* vs New Zealand
West Indies was another hosts of the tournament and after two relatively easy win against Papua New Guinea and Uganda they were in a spot of bother in their third match against New Zealand. The Kiwi quicks were on the money and reduced them to 22/4 when Rutherford came to the crease. Soon they were 30/5 but Rutherford held his end and built handy partnerships with Akeal Hosein, Andre Russell and Romario Shepherd.
At the end of the 19th over, West Indies were reeling at 112/9 with Rutherford on 31 on 27 balls. But he took full advantage of the last two overs as New Zealand had to use Mitchell Santner and Daryl Mitchell. He batted strategically, kept the strike in all 12 balls and hit 4 sixes and 2 fours in the process to take West Indies to 149/9 which was enough for them for a win. Rutherford himself remained unbeaten on 68 off 39 deliveries.
See also: 5 Memorable bowling spells from T20 World Cup 2024
Nicholas Pooran 98 vs Afghanistan
In their next match in T20 World Cup 2024, it was Nicholas Pooran’s turn to entertain the home crowd with his blistering batting. Coming to bat in the second over, Pooran batted throughout the innings before being unfortunately run out in the 20th over. He did not take time to settle, hitting the third ball he faced for a six and the very next ball for a four.
Another four and a couple of sixes in that over get him truly going and there was no look back. He reached his fifty in 31 balls and then shift another gear to race to 84 off 48 deliveries including 24 runs from Rashid Khan’s fourth over. The final over started with Pooran on 85 and two consecutive sixes off Naveen-ul-Haq took him to touching distance of a well-deserved hundred. But an outstanding fielding effort from Azmatullah Omarzai caught him short of the crease as his innings ended at 98, the highest in this edition.
Rohit Sharma 92 vs Australia
Rohit Sharma was the batting star for India in T20 World Cup 2024. He has scored highest runs for them, has the highest strike rate, scored highest number of fifties and hit highest number of fours and sixes. He also played the innings which can be rated as one of the best ever T20 International innings played by an Indian batter. India and Australia were meeting in the Super-8 stage and although India were all but qualified still it a match of immense pressure between two top teams.
Put into bat, Rohit was in full flow from very beginning, hitting his first boundary on the third ball of the match when he stepped out to Mitchell Starc. Despite losing Virat Kohli in the next over, Rohit did not stop and hit Starch for four sixes and one boundary in his next over. 29 runs in an over set the tone for the match and Rohit continued to bat gracefully. He soon reached his fifty off 19 deliveries and scored 51 runs in the Powerplay alone.
When Rishabh Pant was out after a 87-run partnership, Pant’s contribution was just 15. Rohit again hit 3 sixes and a boundary in the space of six balls from Adam Zampa and Marcus Stoinis and looked like unbeatable on that day. In first overs Rohit scored 89 runs at a strike rate nearing 250 and looed good for a big century. However, Starc came back to dismiss him for a memorable 41-ball 92. Sharma may miss his century but played one of the most impactful innings of the tournament.
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