The momentum shifted decisively in India’s favour during the 6th over of the Netherlands chase in the T20 World Cup 2026 game when Varun Chakaravarthy produced a delivery that ignited the Narendra Modi Stadium.
Varun Chakaravarthy’s cracker of a delivery sends Max O’Dowd’s leg stump flying
Facing the dangerous Max O’Dowd, who had just broken the shackles with a six off Washington Sundar, Chakravarthy delivered a deceptive, skidding googly that completely flummoxed the batter. O’Dowd, attempting a forceful cross-batted heave into the leg side, misread the length and the trajectory entirely.
The ball darted back in sharply, sneaked past the gap between bat and pad, and crashed directly into the leg stump, uprooting it in spectacular fashion. The sight of the timber flying provided the breakthrough India desperately needed, ending O’Dowd’s stay at 20 and breaking a steady opening partnership. Chakravarthy’s immediate impact in his first over, conceding just three runs and taking a wicket, once again proved why he is India’s “X-factor” spinner heading into the Super 8s.
Here’s the video:
Shivam Dube’s brutal onslaught resurrects the Indian innings against Netherlands
The narrative of Indian innings was completely rewritten by Shivam Dube, who produced a savage 66 off just 31 balls to propel India to a massive total. Entering the fray at a point where the scoring rate had dipped following the dismissal of Suryakumar Yadav, Dube unleashed a barrage of six towering maximums that left the Dutch bowlers without answers.
He found a perfect partner in Hardik Pandya, who played a calculated cameo of 30, and together they orchestrated a 76-run partnership that dismantled the Netherlands’ death-overs strategy. Dube was particularly ruthless against Logan van Beek and Roelof van der Merwe, targeting the straight boundaries with brute force and reaching his half-century in just 25 deliveries. Even though he fell on the second ball of the final over while attempting another big hit, the damage was already done, as India had successfully converted a precarious 110/4 into a daunting 193.
His performance stood in stark contrast to the top order’s struggles, where Abhishek Sharma unfortunately equaled the record for most ducks by an Indian in T20 World Cup history after falling for a three-ball zero. The late-inning surge ensured India scored 75 runs in the final five overs. The Netherlands’ response has been a struggle for survival against the world-class Indian attack, as they reached 110/4 after 13.3 overs, still needing a monumental 84 runs from just 38 balls.