Who is Navneet Dhaliwal? 5 interesting facts about Canada batter who scored 61 in T20 World Cup 2024 opener vs USA

The opening match of the T20 World Cup 2024 between the USA and Canada was a high-scoring affair. Canada scored 194 runs in their allotted 20 overs courtesy of a brilliant attacking half-century by opening batter Navneet Dhaliwal.

The Canadian opener scored 61 runs from 44 balls, including six boundaries and three maximums. He set the momentum for the innings and guided his team to a respectable total.

USA chased the target with ease courtesy of a match-winning innings by Aaron Jones (94*).

Dhaliwal will have the distinction of scoring the first half-century of the T20 World Cup 2024. Here are 5 interesting facts about the Canada opener who was in the limelight during the inaugural game of the T20 World Cup 2024:

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#1 Dhaliwal was born in India:

The first half-centurion of the T20 World Cup 2024 was born in Chandigarh, India on October 10, 1988. He is one of the many cricketers born in India, but shifted to Canada and made a career for himself in the sport in that part of the world.

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#2 Made his T20I debut for Canada in 2019:

It rarely happens that a cricketer gets an opportunity to captain his team on his debut. Dhaliwal is one of the rare breed of cricketers who captained Canada on his T20I debut.

He achieved this feat against Cayman Islands on August 18, 2019, and scored 23 runs at a strike rate of 191.66 in the said game.

Canada scored 196 in their innings and won the game by a margin of 84 runs. Dhaliwal also bowled a solitary over during the said game and conceded just one run from the said over.

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#3 Made his List A debut in 2015 and ODI debut in 2024 and was dismissed for six runs in both matches:

Dhaliwal made his List A debut for Canada in 2015 against the Netherlands. Batting at number five, he failed to get going and was dismissed scoring just six runs off 12 balls.

Almost nine years after making his List A debut, the Canadian batsman made his ODI debut in 2024 against Nepal. Co-incidentally, he scored six runs on his ODI debut also, the same as he had made on his List A debut.

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#4 Has an impressive record as a captain in T20Is

Dhaliwal has an impressive track record as a captain of Canada in T20Is. In 23 matches as a captain of Canada in the shortest format, the Indian-born opening has won 16 matches and lost only five. Out of the remaining two matches, one ended in a tie and the other did not produce any result.

Dhaliwal enjoys a healthy record of winning 69.56% of T20I matches as a captain of his team. He captained Canada in T20Is from 2019 to 2022.

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#5 Averages above 49 in matches won by Canada:

Prior to the T20 World Cup 2024, Dhaliwal played 30 T20Is and Canada won 20 of the said matches. In the games that ended in a win, he scored 738 runs at an impressive average of 49.20 and strike rate of 140.57. He has scored six half-centuries in winning causes for his team.

This is in sharp contrast of matches that he has played and his team has not won. In nine such matches, the opener has scored just 132 runs at an average of 14.67 and strike rate of 95.65.

The above stats reveal that the team is heavily dependent on Dhaliwal and wins majority of the times the opener scores runs for his team.