'That game against ENG...': DK reveals impact of T20 World Cup 2022 semifinal loss on Rohit Sharma

India and England are slated to play in the second semifinal of the current T20 World Cup 2024. On Thursday, June 27, the eagerly anticipated match is scheduled to occur at Providence Stadium located in Guyana.  This game is a relive of the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final, in which England defeated Pakistan in the championship match to win the title after humiliating India with a 10-wicket loss. When the side lead by Rohit Sharma plays England again today, they would want to get back at them.

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Dinesh Karthik made a huge statement ahead of the India vs England semifinal match in the T20 World Cup

Former Indian wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik was a member of the team led by Rohit Sharma that lost the T20 World Cup semi-final in Adelaide by ten wickets against England in 2022. Karthik said Rohit was really affected by this loss.

Karthik detailed how Rohit was resolved to play cricket in an extremely aggressive manner. Rohit led by example in the 2023 World Cup, scoring 597 runs and guiding the Men in Blue to the championship game, where they lost to Australia.

Dinesh Karthik offered his observations in an ICC Instagram video:

“That was the turning point I feel in Rohit Sharma's captaincy. That game against England, he felt we scored below par and that's when he decided this is not the way to play. We need to play a lot more aggressively. From then on, there's been a very conscious effort to bat differently.”

“What has been so impressive so far in the last two World Cups, the 50-over World Cup and the T20 World Cup that's happening, is the intent with the bat, especially if they are batting first. That has been India's biggest change. Now can they follow it in a semifinal when the game is on the line, when they know that one mistake here would mean taking the flight back home. That is the biggest challenge.”

In particular, Dinesh Karthik complimented Rohit Sharma and his group for their aggressive batting during the T20 World Cup leg in the West Indies. India proved they can often set large scores when batting first with totals of 181/7 against Afghanistan, 196/5 against Bangladesh, and 205/5 against Australia.

Karthik, though, thinks the Men in Blue's biggest obstacle would be to keep up this aggressive attitude in the knockout match against England.

With 191 runs with a strike rate of around 160, Rohit Sharma has been in stunning form during the competition. Though he only scored 27 runs off 28 balls in the disastrous semifinal against England two years ago, he will have the chance to atone against the same team on Thursday.