New Delhi: Indian team is 2-0 down against the Proteas in the ongoing T20I series. The next game is a do-or-die game for India in the 5-match series. South Africa won the last game in Cuttack by chasing the score of 148 and took a two-to-nil lead in the series.
Head-to-head
The T20I record between India and South Africa has been 9-8 in favour of India even after facing two consecutive losses in the series. But, at home, India has failed to tame the Proteas as the record stands 5-1 in favour of South Africa.
Series so far
Rishabh Pant was made the captain as Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul were not available to lead the team. There is a question mark on Pant’s captaincy as he failed to rotate the bowlers properly. The pressure he is feeling while leading the Indian side can be seen on his face. For India, the plans have not gone their way. Yuzvendra Chahal, who won the purple cap in IPL 2022, has failed to bring a worthy performance in the series against South Africa. Heinrich Klaasen, who scored 81(46) at Cuttack, said in the presentation that he knew he had to target the spinners.
Indian team’s lack of wicket-taking ability in the middle overs is costing them games. In the second T20, Bhuvneshwar Kumar gave an excellent start to India in the second innings where South Africa was 29 for 3 in the powerplay. The spinners lacked the initiative in the middle overs and went for runs. On the other hand, Bavuma has used his spinners well. He gave the ball to Keshav Maharaj to open the bowling in Delhi while he held the spinners until the 9th over in Cuttack.
While there have been good individual performances for India, the team has failed to convert them into wins. Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer have been good with the bat and Pandya in the first game and Karthik in the second gave India a fine finish as well. On the other hand Bhuvneshwar, Harshal and Avesh Khan are bowling some fine overs to contain the Proteas.
The 3rd T20I
The third T20 will be played in Vishakhapatnam where the pitch will be assisting the bowling. It has been a low-scoring pitch where in the 2 T20Is played the team chasing the score won. South Africa has been unbeaten when it comes to the white-ball series in India for 12 years now, India needs a better strategy or a few changes to face South Africa on June 14.