India’s 12-game winning streak in the shortest format came to closure after losing to South Africa in the opening T20I on Thursday. It was one of the five-match series being held at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. India failed to defend a 212-run mark as South Africa won with spectacular performances from Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller. Former India bowler Ashish Nehra questioned India captain Rishabh Pant’s choice to use Yuzvendra Chahal for only 2.1 overs while analyzing the game.
“First of all, the other team chased down a 212-run target and Yuzvendra Chahal only bowled two overs. It’s not like he gave away 22 runs in one over. You’re constantly seeing that the runs are flowing. So, it was quite surprising to see a bowler like Chahal bowl just two overs,” Nehra said.
“Even if you’re considering the right-left combination, you should’ve given the ball to Chahal, especially considering the fact that you gave two over to Axar at that time,” he added.
Miller, Van der Dussen win it for SA
Pant also missed a trick or two by not bringing in Chahal while Miller and van der Dussen were slamming boundaries with ease. This is a statement according to Nehra, who coached Gujarat Titans to the IPL 2022 triumph.
“There was a point when you were thinking that although we’ve not taken wickets, we’ve managed to contain the flow of runs. However, once Miller started hitting boundaries, and the equation came down to 11 or 12 RPO, you should’ve brought Chahal in. That’s where I thought Rishabh Pant made a small mistake,” he stated.
Van der Dussen and Miller remained standing on 75 (46) and 64 (31) runs, respectively, as South Africa hunted down the target with seven wickets and five balls in hand.
The second T20I will now be held on Sunday, June 12 at Cuttack’s Barabati Stadium.
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