IND vs SA: 3rd T20I Review – Clinical Proteas level series with 9-wicket win
A stunning performance by the Proteas bowlers followed by Quinton de Kock’s smashing 79 helped South Africa win the 3rd T20I by 9 wickets. De Kock scored his second successive fifty, while left-arm pacer Beuran Hendricks ended with a match-winning spell of 2/14 in his first game of the series. The 3-match series is drawn 1-1.
Check out the full scorecard here.
Kohli’s surprise decision at the toss
At a ground like the M. Chinnaswamy, in a T20I match, chasing a target is almost always a no-brainer. Except when the Indian captain says he wants to ‘test’ the team’s weaknesses, which is to bat first and defend a total with an eye on the 2020 World Cup. Considering the fact that Kohli rooted for bowlers who could bat, this should’ve gone well. But it didn’t, because the real South Africa turned up to disrupt their plan.
The toss did play a significant role as batting became easier in the second half courtesy dew. It didn’t help that India lost opener Rohit Sharma early on, even as his partner Shikhar Dhawan activated his ‘attack mode’ from ball one. Rohit’s weakness against left-arm seam was very well exploited by Hendricks, who was far too disciplined in his line and lengths. Though, Dhawan continued to take advantage of the Powerplay, often stepping out of his crease. His 36 off 25 balls included four fours and two sixes.
The middle-order collapse
But as soon as Dhawan got out, the hosts were dealt another big blow in the form of Kohli. The skipper went for the big one over deep square leg but failed to clear the ropes and was caught by Andile Phehlukwayo, who made a brilliant effort to get to the ball. At 68/3, it could’ve gone either way, except that it only went downhill.
Rishabh Pant, who once again walked in to bat at no.4, couldn’t sustain Bjorn Fortuin’s left-arm spin and departed for a quickfire 19. The conditions were turning out to be perfect for the spinners, who were extracting all kinds of turn, while the fast bowlers could easily vary their pace. Shreyas Iyer (5), Krunal Pandya (4), Ravindra Jadeja (19) all fell cheaply as the bowlers tightened their grip. Hardik Pandya (14) stayed till the last over but couldn’t revive the dry boundaries. India managed to score just 58 runs in the final 10 overs, putting up a miserly 134/9 on the board.
De Kock’s form continues
The Proteas skipper was in terrific touch, dominating the Indian bowlers as they tried to keep the lid on. Continuing his form from the previous game, de Kock brought up his second fifty of the series, his 4th in T20I cricket. With Reeza Hendricks, he stitched a valuable 76-run partnership for the first wicket. Later, he added 64 runs for the second, alongside Temba Bavuma (27*) who continued to impress. The Indian bowling attack looked listless, to say the least. Their only success came at the start of the 11th over, when Hendricks got a little too ambitious and went for a pull. Kohli at mid-on dived in front to take a screamer of a catch.
India also didn’t use the DRS effectively, with Deepak Chahar wasting it on Hendricks as early as in the 6th over. Later, a tentative de Kock on 28 missed a sweep off Washington Sundar and the umpire turned down the appeal. However, ball-tracking suggested that the South African captain would’ve made his way back, had India not wasted their review. Making the most of his reprieve, de Kock ensured there was no further hiccup and got South Africa over the line in just 16.5 overs.
