India advance at T20 World Cup after beating spirited USA

India navigated yet another tricky New York pitch to defeat hosts United States on Thursday morning (AEST) and book their spot in the next round of the T20 World Cup.

In what was another niggly, low-scoring affair, India put the home side in to bat first.

Once again, runs were hard to come by in the Big Apple, with the United States eking out 110 runs from their 20 overs. In response, India were cautious, but ultimately they dragged down the total with ample breathing room.

The victory takes them to three wins from three matches, ensuring that they’ll finish in the top two of Group A.

Valiant USA unable to pull off another upset

It was a big ask for the United States to be competitive against India.

Top cricket bookmakers had them at an enormous +920 to win the match, while India were paying just -1666.67 to book their spot in the Super Eight.

And yet, when faced with similar odds against Pakistan, they pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport.

T20 WORLD CUP NEWS: USA PULL OFF MASSIVE UPSET AGAINST PAKISTAN

This time, it wasn’t to be. The bowling of Arshdeep Singh, who went for 2.25 runs per over while taking four wickets, combined with the New York wicket to make runs scarce.

The United States made a valiant effort still, with Stephen Taylor (24) and Nitish Kumar (27) their primary runscorers.

Early wickets in their defence of 110 gave the home side hope. Both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were back in the sheds quickly, followed by Rishabh Pant soon after.

However, the batting of Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube saw them over the line, with the pair putting on a 67-run partnership to close out the match in 18.2 overs.

India pull clear as title favourites at T20 World Cup

The win gives India an edge at with the T20 World Cup bookmakers, with Australia their only real competition at this stage.

India are now paying +175 to win, followed by Australia on +275. The next best is South Africa, well behind on +600.

In their final match of pool play, India will come up against Canada in a dead rubber. With two losses, the Canadians are all but out of the tournament already, while India’s qualification to the Super Eight is confirmed.

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