November 12th 2023.
Team India gave its cricket fans the perfect Diwali gift as they crushed the Netherlands by 160 runs to register their ninth successive wins in this ICC World Cup 2023 on Sunday.
The Diwali night at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru was lit up by brilliant hundreds from Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul, who powered India to a mammoth 411 for victory. The Dutch, however, got bowled out for 250 in 47.5 overs, thus ending their campaign in the league stage.
India will now head into the semi-finals as the only undefeated team in this edition and will face New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on November 15.
The Indian team was cheered on by Anushka Sharma in the stands as Virat Kohli got himself an ODI wicket after 9 years, with his 'in-swinging wrong-footed menace'. Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj bagged a couple of scalps each while Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah also got themselves on the wickets column.
The match also saw many records being broken. Rahul's century came in just 62 balls, the fastest for India in this World Cup. Rohit also broke AB de Villiers's record for the most sixes in a calendar year with his 54th maximum. Kohli meanwhile, overtook Quinton de Kock to become the leading run-scorer in this World Cup with 594 runs.
With 9 wins out of 9, India also recorded its longest unbeaten streak in ODI World Cup history.
"I kind of had a deja vu. This had happened against Australia as well, and I threw my wicket and I came but this time I wanted to come not out. Wanted to pills I took for the cramps to kick in," said Iyer after being adjudged player of the match.
The match also saw Ian Smith leave Anjum Chopra in splits with his perfect imitation of Ravi Shastri in the commentary box.
It was truly an eventful Diwali night for the Indian cricket team and its fans. With the team being undefeated in the league stage, the fans can expect an exciting semi-final against New Zealand.
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