Gros Islet (St. Lucia): India defeated Australia by 24 runs in their final Super Eight match here on Monday with the help of captain Rohit Sharma's explosive inning of 92 runs in 41 balls and qualified for the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup.

Batting first, Rohit attacked on all cylinders and hit eight sixes and seven fours during his brilliant innings, helping India post 205 for five.

In reply, Australia was restricted to 181 runs for seven wickets in the stipulated 20 overs. For Australia, Travis Head played an inning of 76 runs in 43 balls.

Among the Indian bowlers, Kuldeep Yadav (2/24) was brilliant in the middle overs, while Arshdeep Singh finished with figures of 3/37.

Earlier, undaunted by Virat Kohli's early dismissal, Rohit went at fast bowler Mitchell Starc and dismissed him for 29 runs in his second over, setting the stage for India.

Starc, who was taken to the cleaners by Rohit, returned to dismiss the India captain and provide some relief to the Australian camp.

But Suryakumar Yadav (31 off 16 balls) and Shivam Dubey (28 off 22 balls) kept the momentum going with their big hits before Hardik Pandya (27 off 17 balls) ended India's innings in style.

Brief Score:

India: 205/5 in 20 overs (Rohit Sharma 92; Josh Hazlewood 1/14).

Australia: 181/7 in 20 overs (Travis Head 76; Kuldeep Yadav 2/24, Arshdeep Singh 3/37).