USA reach 49 for 3 in 10 overs chasing India''s 161 in T20 World Cup

Mumbai, Feb 7 (PTI) India's new-ball bowlers Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj made quick inroads, reducing the USA to 49 for 3 at the 10-over mark after the hosts had earlier struggled to a below-par 161 for 9 in the T20 World Cup match here on Saturday.

Siraj (2/18 in 3 overs) was the more destructive of the two, ripping out both openers Andries Gous (6) and Saiteja Mukkamalla (2), while Arshdeep Singh (1/11 in 3 overs) sent skipper Monank Patel back for a duck to leave the USA reeling at 13 for 3 inside the fourth over.

At the halfway stage of their innings, the USA needed another 113 runs to upset the defending champions, with the required run rate steadily climbing past the 10-runs-per-over mark.

Earlier, skipper Suryakumar Yadav led a stirring fightback with a counter-attacking unbeaten 84 off 49 balls, laced with 10 boundaries and four sixes, even as wickets kept tumbling at the other end.

India were in dire straits at 77 for 6 in the 13th over before Surya's onslaught hauled them to a respectable total, after USA's 37-year-old South African-born pacer Shadley van Schalkwyk (4/25) had ripped through the batting, striking thrice in a brutal sixth over to remove Ishan Kishan (20), Tilak Varma (25) and Shivam Dube (0). PTI A.

AM KHS