ICC World T20 Match : Blast from the past

Best knocks from World T20

From Yuvraj Singh's brilliance in the maiden edition of the World T20 in 2007 to Stephan Myburgh's unbelievable knock to help Netherlands pull off a heist in 2014, there have been some superb batting efforts in the World Cups for the 20-over format. Here, we look at some of those:

1. Yuvraj Singh (58 off 16) vs England, Kingsmead Durban, 2007

India, who had lost to New Zealand in their previous Super-8s game, needed a victory to keep their semi-final hopes alive. Opting to bat first against England at Kingsmead Durban, they were off to a solid start, but losing Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Robin Uthappa in successive overs came as a blow to their endeavour to post a 200+ total. The MS Dhoni-led side were 159 for 3 at the end of the 17th over, when Flintoff was re-introduced into the attack, and was hit for two back-to-back fours by Yuvraj. The batsman was on 14 off 6 when Broad came on to bowl the penultimate over. Flintoff, before the start of the over, had some words to say to the Indian left-hander and that spurred Yuvraj to a record-breaking feat.

The fuse was triggered and Yuvraj vented it out against Broad as the first ball went deep into the stands over wide long on. Broad responded with a full delivery on leg, which was nonchalantly flicked over deep backward square leg; Flintoff smiled on wryly. Yuvraj then brought out the big golf swing to deposit the ball over long off, and followed it up by belting a high full-toss over the point boundary. A nervous Broad had a chat with skipper Paul Collingwood and decided to switch back to over-the-wicket. It made no difference to the left-hander, who cleared the square-leg fence and in the process, powered India past 200.

The anticipation for the final delivery was palpable and Yuvraj did not disappoint as he smashed the next one wide of the long-on fence, and history was made. The first to score six sixes in T20I and the fastest fifty (off 12 deliveries), Yuvraj was dismissed by Flintoff in the final over, but not before he had managed another six, as he finished with an astonishing 58 off 16, which helped India post a mammoth 218 for 4, a total which England fell short by 18.

2. Tillakaratne Dilshan (96* off 57) vs West Indies, The Oval London, 2009

Tillakaratne Dilshan was having a superb World T20, and had even mastered a stroke that would bear his trade-mark - Dilscoop. Sri Lanka though, were in a spot of bother in the semi-final against West Indies after being asked to bat. While the openers - Dilshan and Sanath Jayasuriya - got the team off to a superb start, quick wickets hurt Sri Lanka's progress with big guns like Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene falling in space of six deliveries. The top-heavy Sri Lankan team needed Dilshan, who was batting on 47 at that stage - with two sixes and five fours - to score big.

Score big he did, and cleverly too. Considering that his wicket would have put Sri Lanka in further trouble, the right-hander did not attempt any big hits, choosing instead to use the field to his advantage. He did not score any more sixes, but that did not affect his scoring rate as he dealt in fours regularly. He finished with 12 fours, and his knock of 96 came off only 57 deliveries as he helped Sri Lanka post a competitive 158, and the Sri Lanka bowlers ensured that his superb effort did not go in vain.

3. Michael Hussey (60* off 24) vs Pakistan, Beausejour Stadium Gros Islet, 2010

It was the semi-final of the World T20, Australia were facing the defending champions and they had a mountain to climb. Asked to bat, Pakistan posted a mammoth 191 for 6 on the board and Australia, in reply, did not have the best of starts. Openers David Warner and Shane Watson fell early and Australia kept losing wickets at regular intervals as the game progressed. Cameron White, in partnership with Michael Hussey, led the recovery, but Australia were reeling at 144 for 7 in 17.1 overs when White and Steven Smith departed in quick succession.

What could Michael Hussey, known as an accumulator do, with Australia needing 48 off 17 deliveries? That Saeed Ajmal, fresh from a four-wicket haul against South Africa, would bowl 11 off the remaining 17 deliveries, made the equation seem even taller for Australia. But Mike Hussey did not think so. With a six off Ajmal in the 18th over and two fours off Mohammad Amir in the 19th, Hussey brought the equation down to 18 off the final over.

It was Mitchell Johnson on strike for the first delivery and he managed to edge the ball to short fine-leg to manage a single and get Hussey back on strike. What followed was something special that Australia would savour for years. Two back-to-back sixes to the leg-side helped Hussey bring up his half-century off only 22 deliveries, and the left-hander finished things off in style, scoring a boundary and hitting the winning run with a massive six to help Australia win with one delivery to spare and enter a World T20 final for the first time.

4. Marlon Samuels (78 off 56 balls) vs Sri Lanka, R Premadasa Stadium Colombo, 2012

Since 1979, West Indies did not have a single World title (Champions Trophy not considered). They had entered the final of a World event for the first time since 1983, but the odds were against them in the World T20, 2012 summit clash, considering that hosts Sri Lanka were their opponents. And a difficult pitch made their task even tougher. Opting to bat, West Indies seemed to be going no where - Johnson Charles got out for a duck while Chris Gayle (3 off 16) fell after a struggle.

During a half-century stand with Dwayne Bravo, Samuels took the attack to Lasith Malinga, scoring three sixes off Sri Lanka's premier quick in the 13th over to help West Indies get a move on. While Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell departed in quick succession, Samuels was unperturbed with the procession of wickets, continuing his onslaught. He scored two more sixes off Malinga, in the 17th over, before he finally got out. However, he made sure that West Indies, who were reeling at 48/2 after 12 overs, crossed the 100-run mark.

Darren Sammy made sure to utilize the platform provided by Samuels, helping West Indies finish with 137/6 - a total that proved to be sufficient in the end. However, had it not been for Samuels's efforts, West Indies may not have even come close to clinching their first World title in 33 years.

5. Stephan Myburgh (63 off 23) vs Ireland, Sylhet Stadium, 2014

A target of 190 in 20 overs in itself is a tough ask. To make the task an even taller one, Netherlands needed to get to the target set by Ireland in 14.2 overs or lesser if they had to get past the qualifying stage in the 2014 edition of World T20. From the outset, the Dutch had to be positive, and that they were, thanks to Peter Borren and Stephan Myburgh. The latter was particularly in a punishing mood, sending Ireland on a leather hunt as he hit the ball to all parts of the park. McBrine was hit for four sixes in the second over - three were scored by Myburgh - before the left-hander hit Cusack for three more maximums. He went on to register a 17-ball fifty - now the joint third-fastest in T20I cricket - as Netherlands managed 91 in the powerplay.

Although Borren and Myburgh fell after their superb opening stand, the left-handed opener had ensured that Netherlands stood a good chance of pulling off the improbable chase. Wesley Barresi and Tom Cooper ensured that Myburgh's efforts did not go in vain.