458 runs were scored across 40 overs in Guwahati. Only six wickets well. There was a centurion, three half-centurions and then Virat Kohli who was within touching distance of one of his own. A high-scoring affair. The margin might give an impression it was a close contest. It wasn’t. But again, it wasn’t one-sided either.
For South Africa, despite the defeat, the contest brought a couple of positive developments. David Miller dazzled with a century and Quinton de Kock huffed and puffed his way back into form with a fifty. For India, despite the win, it was another wake up call – a call that seems quite late now. They posted well in excess of 200 and still at one stage there appeared a faint but real possibility of them failing to defend the total and again their lack of teeth in death-overs was exposed.
Also Read: Miller, De Kock Exposes India’s Fragile Bowling
Here are the major talking points from the contest:-
The Top-order Show
The contest showed what India are capable of unleashing the bat when their top-order fires in unison. KL Rahul struck a quickfire fifty, Suryakumar Yadav dazzled with a blistering half-century, Kohli was classy as ever, hitting an unbeaten 49 while Rohit Sharma played a solid knock. And then there was the finisher – Dinesh Karthik who did exactly what was expected of him. The top-order ticked all the boxes. A solid start, ascendancy in the middle overs and then all guns blazing in the death. Perfect.
The Twin Interruptions
Wondering why the contest dragged on for over four hours then? Well two major and one minor. Let’s talk about the majors first. So after the end of the 7th over of the Indian innings, few South African players pointed out the presence of an uninvited guest on the field – a snake. Yup. And promptly the match was halted. The ground staff rushed to the field to capture and get this ‘guest’ out of sight. After a few minutes, the field was cleared of the reptile and the game resumed.
The second interruption came after the 2nd over of South African innings. The culprit this time was technical in nature. One of the floodlights at the stadium malfunctioned and went off. It took nearly 15 minutes for it to be restored to its full glory. India fielders used the time to take an unscheduled break as Rohit chatted with coach Rahul Dravid in the dug-out.
And then there was the case of India being a couple of overs short as well – the third reason.
Karthik Gets Time But Only so Much
India captain Rohit has spoken about giving time to Karthik and Rishabh Pant – with the bat of course. While Rishabh didn’t get to bat on Sunday, DK did face 7 deliveries and made full use of them, hitting two sixes and a four. But are 7 deliveries enough? Well, it’s nobody’s fault that he got to bat so late considering how well the others before him batted but now, there’s just one international match before the T20 WC in which India have a chance to give Pant and Karthik a fair run. With the series in their pocket, will there be changes in the playing XI and a little shuffling in batting order for the third and final T20I?
In Pictures: SKY, Rahul And Kohli Star as IND Clinch Series in Guwahati
Miller Weaves His Magic
If it wasn’t for Miller, South Africa might not have come so close to the target. The left-hander has been in superb form this year stretching back to IPL 2022 where he took Gujarat Titans over the line on several occasions with his power hitting. The crowd gathered at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium witnessed his brute force as he peppered the boundary with plenty of fours and sixes. Miller brought up a second T20I hundred. The manner in which he hugged his teammate Quinton de Kock in the final over after reaching the milestone was enough proof of how much relieved he’s with the revival of his international career and what the knock means to him.
Oi, Where’s The Death-overs Specialist?
Now we head to the big question: With Jasprit Bumrah not a certainty for the world cup owing to an apparent stress fracture that has seen him return to the National Cricket Academy, who will shoulder the responsibility in death overs for India? The team has a major gap to fill. They keep on putting 200-plus totals but don’t seem to have the bowlers to defend them. Well, on Sunday they did but remember the Mohali T20I when Australia overhauled the target of 209 with relative ease?
A big cause for concern is their death-overs bowling. On Sunday, they conceded 78 runs in the final five overs. Harshal Patel continued to leak runs. Deepak Chahar primarily is a new-ball bowler but he’s part of the traveling reserves. However, on Sunday he did bowl one over in the death and allowed just eight runs. Could he be the answer? Bhvuneshwar Kumar has been given responsibility in recent past but to no avail. Arshdeep Singh bowled the 19th over during the 2nd T20I vs South Africa but was clobbered for 26 runs. Who do they turn to then? Mohammed Shami? Will he be as good as Bumrah in the slog overs?
Mohammed Siraj? Prasidh Krishna? Umran Malik?
Candidates aplenty but who fits the bill?
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