Team India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate acknowledged that the bowlers had an off day in the second T20I against South Africa, suggesting they gave up too soon and allowed the Proteas’ batters to take control. In the match at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur on December 11, South Africa defeated India by 51 runs.
After winning the toss and bowling first, India conceded 213-4, with Quinton de Kock smashing 90 off 46 balls. In reply, India managed only 162 in 19.1 overs, allowing South Africa to level the five-match series. At the post-match press conference, Ten Doeschate criticized the bowlers for not sticking to their plans, stating:
“The bowlers had a poor night. We blinked a little bit early tonight. It was 10.1, Quinton hit that first ball after the break for six. We went away from our plans too quickly. We don’t mind guys trying, but you’ve got your plans and how you are executing the plans. We probably missed on both of those tonight, which is something we want to avoid.”
Arshdeep Singh had a rough day, conceding 54 runs in 4 overs with 9 wides. Bumrah gave away 45 runs wicketless, while Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube also leaked runs. Varun Chakaravarthy shone with 2-29 in 4 overs.
India Coach Justifies Promoting Axar Patel To No. 3 Following 35-3 Collapse
India’s chase of 214 got off to a poor start as Shubman Gill fell for a golden duck. In a surprising decision, Axar Patel was promoted to No. 3, ahead of captain Suryakumar Yadav. The all-rounder found it tough and scored 21 off 21 balls before getting out.
Coach Ryan Ten Doeschate explained that Axar’s promotion was aimed at testing different combinations ahead of the T20 World Cup. The 45-year-old stated:
“We are trying things combination wise. We’ve got 8-9 games before the World Cup. We’ve found ourselves being 35-3 more times that we would have liked in the last couple of months. It’s just an exploration into how we can extend the batting – the link between the openers and the guys who want to come in and smash it around when things get a little easier.”
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