The Indian bowler’s poor display of bowling was taken a full toll with some powerful hitting of the South African batsmen as eased past the target of 152 in just 13.5 overs. The South African Batsmen came all guns blazing from the first ball of their innings as they reached 50 in just 3.4 overs against a depleted Indian side. If not for some late blows they would’ve won the match even more comfortably.
Suryakumar Yadav lost the toss for the fifth consecutive time as captain and India was asked to bat under overcast conditions. India got the worst possible start losing both the openers Gill and Jaiswal for ducks. But fifties from Captain SKY and Rinku Singh and useful contributions by Tilak Varma and Jadeja helped India to reach 180. The rain interrupted the match in the final over of the Indian innings as India ended with 180-7 in 19.3 overs.
South Africa’s batters on a roll
South Africa was given a revised target of 152 in 15 overs. Mohammad Siraj opened the bowling for India and hit decent lengths got some outside edges. But he was unlucky as the edges fell safe. What is more frustrating is that those edges ran away for the boundaries as SA got 14 of the first.
Arshdeep Singh who has been in questionable form in the recent past, bowled poorly going off the radar and the South African Openers happily belted him around the park for 24 runs. Seeing the onslaught the Indian Skipper introduced spin in the third over.
The SA batsmen didn’t need to take much risk and were happy to take singles. Team India got lucky as Breetzke got run out searching for a non-existent second. Not taking anything away from the SA batsmen the pitch also got better for the batting in the second innings.
India would’ve loved to tighten the screws after the timely wicket but the SA batsmen had other plans. They kept on attacking the Indian bowlers and didn’t spare anyone. The Indian Pacers continue their flop show offering freebies to the South African batsmen.
The duo of Markram and Hendricks completed their fifty-run partnership in just 29 balls and were looking to run away with the game. But some mistimed shots and some good bowling by the Indian bowlers helped India to hang in the game. But with 13 runs to get in the last two overs south African batsmen were at ease and reached the target with 7 balls to spare.
Points to Ponder for India
The form of the Indian Pacers especially Arshdeep Singh is a worrying factor for the Indian Management. Arshdeep has been a regular starter and delivered some good performances including that opening spell against Pakistan at the 2022 T20 WC. But his form has been dipping off late and he is not able to hit desirable lengths consistently. With T20 WC approaching fast it will be interesting to see how the Indian management deals with this issue and back him.
With several left pacers available to try from the domestic circuit Arshdeep should soon find his feet and start delivering performances. The likes of Mohsin Khan, Chetan Sakariya, and Khaleel Ahmed are doing well in the IPL and domestic cricket and if they manage to put good performances in the coming IPL season Indian callup might not be too far, selecting at least one of them will put Arshdeep under the pressure he may start doing well in the fear of competition. Will Arshdeep be picked for the T20 WC? Seeing his current form it is a big no but let’s hope he gets his mojo back soon and starts performing better.
Also Read: IND vs SA: Is Yashasvi Jaiswal Going The Right Way?