T20 World Cup 2024: Top 4 Batting Performances from the Group Stage - Cricket Winner

With the conclusion of the 2024 T20 World Cup’s group stage, an enthralling 20 teams have given their best, out of which the top 8 have emerged into the Super-8 stage of the tournament. One such aspect of this tournament would be the batters who have displayed their game with the willow, while there have been instances where the bowler’s performance has overshined the batters.

But, in a few matches, memorable impacts were made with the hard willows, which made a mark in the timeline of the shortest format. So, here is a list of the four memorable batting highlights from the group stage of the T20 World Cup.

1. Nicholas Pooran (West Indies) vs Afghanistan: 98 runs off 53 balls

Nicholas Pooran has acted as the central pillar for a comeback pull-off of the co-host team, West Indies. One such instance would be their last group-stage match, which showed the team’s strong intent in the upcoming Super-8 stage.

In their final group-stage match against Afghanistan, Pooran displayed a power-hitting show on its home soil, where he scored a humongous 98 runs off 53 balls, with six fours and eight sixes, at a strike rate of 185. Also, this has earned the highest score in the 2024 T20 World Cup tournament.

2. Aaron Jones (USA) vs Canada: 94* runs off 40 balls

The tournament’s first match was a T20I cricket spectacle, with the USA and Canada going head to head. In a display of sheer skill and precision, Aaron Jones unleashed a barrage of over-the-park shots in a clutch partnership with Andries Gous.

His swashbuckling approach saw him amass an impressive 94* runs off just 40 balls, including four boundaries and ten sixes, at a staggering strike rate of 235. This batting masterclass allowed them to chase the innings with style, finishing with 14 balls to spare and etched their names in the annals of successful run-chases in T20I cricket.

Also Read: T20 World Cup 2024: Team-wise Performance Ranking (Group Stage)

3. Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Afghanistan) vs New Zealand: 80 runs off 56 balls

This doesn’t make it to the top of the table regarding the numbers, but it has created a benchmark on how there has been a massive spike of improvement in its performance. Afghanistan was made to bat first against a formidable New Zealand side.

The opener, Gurbaz, gave the team a strong start and a target of 160 runs thanks to his batting performance of 80 runs off 56 balls at a strike rate of 143. But Afghanistan has outshined the Black Caps with the ball and won their first group-stage match by a massive 84 runs, indicating their promising performance in the ongoing tournament.

4. Rishabh Pant (India) vs Ireland: 36* runs off 26 balls

Though this inning might not be a century or even a half-century, this inning deserves to be one of the batting highlights from the tournament’s group stage. But this inning is a testament to resilience and a worthy-to-remember player comeback.

After facing a life-threatening accident, Rishabh Pant’s cricketing future was under the clouds of uncertainty. But his never-give-up mindset has led him to return to such a level. Starting with his commendable performance in the IPL, the wicket-keeper batter displayed his skills of quirky shots and was the batting pillar for the team in the first match against Ireland, where he scored 36* runs off 26 balls at a strike rate of 138. Also, he is the tournament’s highest run-scorer from the Indian team, scoring 96 runs in three matches.