Rishabh Pant’s journey as India’s captain hasn’t begun well. The Men in Blue have suffered back-to-back losses against South Africa in the ongoing T20Is and another failure will lead to their first series defeat at home since February 2019.
On Sunday night, a class innings from Heinrich Klassen denied India victory in Cuttack. The bowling unit, especially the spinners, seemed ordinary against a well-settled South African middle-order. The visitors chased down the target of 149 despite early hiccups with 4 wickets in hands, taking a 2-0 lead in the 5-match series.
Besides India’s poor show with the ball, what left experts surprised was skipper Pant’s tactics with the batting line-up. After a 45-run stand between Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer, India lost three wickets in quick succession. With seven overs remaining, Pant decided to send Axar Patel ahead of their most-experienced batter in the line-up, Dinesh Karthik.
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While Axar was dismissed for just 9, Karthik, returned with an unbeaten 21-ball 30 with the help of 2 boundaries and as many sixes.
Former India captain and batting great Sunil Gavaskar was left baffled by this move. Speaking with Star Sports, he said,
“Sometimes there are these labels like ‘finisher’. And when you talk about a finisher you think he will come to bat only after the 15th over. He can’t come in the 12th or the 13th over. And we have seen these happen in the IPL as well. A lot of teams have only kept their big hitters for the last 4-5 overs.”
“When actually, if they had been sent earlier, because they have the ability to work things around, they don’t necessarily have to hit sixes from the time they come in. The fact that when they get to the batting area and work the ball around, they get the feel of the wicket and they can bat accordingly in the last 4-5 overs,” Gavaskar added.
Former South Africa captain Graeme Smith, who was also a part of the discussion, had a similar reaction to the tactic. He went on to point out Karthik’s experience in international cricket and said,
“I don’t understand. When Karthik is one of the most experienced cricketers in India. Look at how many games he has played for India. Never mind the IPL. How can you send Axar Patel ahead him? This is mind-blowing,” he said.
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