Despite recent concerns about his form, Adil Rashid’s performance in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final demonstrated his irreplaceable value for England, and showed him at his very best, writes Katya Witney.

Bowling his first delivery in his third T20 World Cup semi-final, Adil Rashid was slog-swept for four by Rohit Sharma. Rashid had given the ball plenty of air and it was on a good length, but it was dispatched by Rohit through backward square with ease. With India on a modest 31-1 off the first five, England needed Rashid to fulfil the role in the middle overs which he has made his own for the past ten years. The rest of his bowling in the semi-final showed him at his absolute best in an England shirt.

He followed up the boundary with two dots, Rohit not able to beat the fielders in the ring as Rashid dragged his length back a fraction. Three singles off the final three balls including a googly to Virat Kohli meant Rashid got out of what could have been an expensive final over of the powerplay having conceded only seven. It was the same over Rashid bowled in in his player-of-the-match performance against Sri Lanka, going for only two runs on that occasion. The end of the powerplay is an area where England have increasingly used Rashid in the past year, calling on him as the first change bowler six times since October 2021, a position he hadn’t previously been put in previously in his 13-year career.

Following up in his second over, Kohli prodded Rashid for another single of the first ball. The rest of the over was a mix of tricks, combined with a variation in line and length that left India unable to attack. Just five singles from it. The extent to which Rashid limited Rohit and Kohli’s scoring in the first half of the innings turned out to be match-defining. The explosion from Hardik Pandya at the end of the innings and the ease with which Buttler and Hales cruised to victory completely untroubled showed England could have been facing a much bigger target. It wasn’t a minefield, but for a time Rashid made it look like one.

With Rohit dismissed by Chris Jordan looking to attack, the crucial target became Suryakumar Yadav, the most in-form batter in the world, a weapon seemingly without weakness. In the context of the impact both Kohli and Suryakumar have had for India in the tournament, their partnership was the difference for England in limiting India to a chaseable total or losing their grip on the game.

Rashid’s third over and Kohli still couldn’t connect. The grip Rashid was getting out of the pitch along with the constant small tweaks in his length drew frustration, the India legend only able to score at a run a ball against the leggie. His moments of fortune were earned, a full toss to Kohli bunted for a single demonstrating India’s wariness in attacking him.

In between Rashid’s third and final over, Suryakumar was finally able to get going, smashing consecutive boundaries off Ben Stokes. Despite how well Rashid had limited the scoring, without wickets to show for it, Suryakumar against Chris Jordan and Sam Curran in the back ten would have been an intimidating prospect. But on the second ball of his final over, Rashid bowled the most important delivery of the match. A leg-spinner which gripped in the pitch just enough to spin away from the middle of Suryakumar’s bat, which the India No.4 then miscued to Phil Salt a few yards in on the off-side boundary. In the context of the player, the match situation and what many had labelled a down-turn in Rashid’s wicket-taking potency, the wicket was huge and his spell, in the final shakedown, was the key difference between the two sides.

His final figures were 1-20 with eight dot balls, backing up his 1-16 in the final Super 12s match against Sri Lanka. After the match, he was interviewed by Eoin Morgan. The warmth between the two former teammates, the handshake between captain and strike-bowler, a familiar “well-done boss” from Morgan, showed the respect he has earnt for England as one of the few players who have been there through everything since the start of England’s white-ball re-boot in 2015.

Only Buttler in the current team gearing up for the World Cup final in Australia holds a similar position to Rashid, having been a part of the side consistently over the past seven years. Moeen didn’t make it through the 2019 World Cup tournament still in the starting XI, and the likes of Mark Wood, Chris Woakes and Stokes have been in and out with injuries. Alex Hales and Jonny Bairstow’s fortunes and positions as first choice have dovetailed. Jason Roy is sitting at home after his loss of form.

In recent times, however, his aura had begun to wane. Before the Sri Lanka game, he had conceded nearly eight runs an over in 2022, with an average nearing 40. Since landing in Australia, his first 90 balls had leaked 135 runs and taken just one wicket. In 2021, his numbers were elite – an economy a tick over seven, and 23 wickets at under 18 apiece. But the grumbles had begun that this was a tournament too far.

In the semi-final, a performance in a knock-out tournament which could only be topped in its dominance by their dismantling of Australia at Edgbaston in 2019, Rashid showed once again his worth to England’s white-ball side. Despite his continued presence being taken for granted at times, his performance against India in Adelaide was him at his very best.

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