India was given a beating for the ages by England in the second semi-final of the World Cup 2022 in Adelaide on Thursday — a result that not only embarrassed their own fans, but also disappointed Pakistan supporters hoping for a dream final between the arch-rivals.
The Green Shirt had held their end of the deal by dominating New Zealand a day earlier to reach the final on Sunday, but Rohit Sharma and Co’s historical meltdown mean that it will be a Pakistan-England final.
Batting first, India did not have the best of starts, but recovered well to post 168, which was clearly less than what they would have liked but was still a decent total.
However, what ensued was total carnage and totally unexpected as the Indian bowlers buckled under the weight of expectations.
Alex Hales (80) and Jos Buttler (86) were unstoppable, with both finishing unbeaten and handing India a resounding 10-wicket defeat.
Earlier, Hardik Pandya smashed 63 off 33 balls to power India to a competitive 168-6.
Virat Kohli made 50, his fourth half-century of the tournament, and put on key partnerships including a 61-run fourth-wicket stand with Pandya, who tore into the opposition attack in the final overs.