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After Batting Dominance over Aussies, Bowlers Shine in First Win over Proteas!

After a narrow series win against the Aussies, India began with a dominant victory in the first encounter against the Proteas. While Indian batting flourished through the matches against Australia, experts felt that Indian bowling was a major chink in the armour with the T20 World Cup just a month away. After the Asia Cup debacle, fans hoped that the return of Jasprit Bumrah would turn the tide and as he hit peak form, he would help other bowlers to find their best rhythm. On Wednesday evening in Thiruvanathpuram, however, it was young left arm seamer Arshdeep Singh who pegged the Proteas back with 3 quick wickets in his very first over which left South African batting in tatters. Eventually, the Proteas could set just a modest challenge of 107 runs which the Men in Blue knocked off with comfort. India won the match with 18 balls and 8 wickets in hand and that too without their superstar pacer - Bumrah! Indian bowling came under heavy scrutiny after India’s shockingly early exit in the Asia Cup. Even in the series with Australia, Indian fast bowling was quite ordinary. Team India suffered a setback before the first game with the South Africans as Bumrah was injured and needed rest. Skipper Rohit Sharma still chose to bowl at the Greenfield Stadium, which was hosting an international match after a gap of 3 years. But a stunning display of swing bowling by Arshdeep and Deepak Chahar rocked the Proteas who crumbled badly, losing 5 wickets for 9 runs in just 3 overs.

Besides Arshdeep and Chahar’s brilliant spells, Ravi Ashwin was extremely economical giving just 8 runs in his 4 overs. Though he couldn’t pick up a wicket, the wily offie tied the Proteas batting down which led to wickets at the other end. Harshal Patel who struggled in the series against Australia, was back in form and took 2 wickets at an economy of under 7. A brief resistance from Wayne Parnell and Keshav Maharaj ensured that South Africa were not bowled out and managed to reach a modest total of 106 for 8. But it was Axar Patel who broke their growing partnership when he got Parnell caught at deep midwicket region. Patel has been in amazing form and was the Player of the Series against the Aussies. He carried the form against the Proteas and conceded just 16 runs in his tight spell of 4 overs and even picked up a wicket. While the bowlers ensured that the Indian batting had an easy target to chase, South Africa sent jitters in the Indian dressing room by dismissing Rohit and Virat cheaply and the score was just 17 runs after 6 overs. India’s new sensation -Suryakumar Yadav- now stepped to the crease and hit 2 sixes of his first 3 balls to calm Indian nerves. India could afford to play slowly with no run-rate pressure and KL Rahul did just that as he picked momentum taking cue from Suryakumar’s book. Both of them ensured that there were no more hiccups and as they reached their respective fifties, India sailed through to a comfortable win. All matches of Aussie series were high-scoring thrillers. In contrast, the game with the Proteas was a low scoring but absorbing contest on a sticky wicket. Suryakumar was simply superb even on a tough surface where all other batters struggled. He now has the highest number of runs in a calendar year and has risen to No2 in T20 Batting rankings. He is India’s standout batter in the shortest format this year and the team, fans and experts all expect big things from him at the World Cup!

At the end of Australia series there were many unanswered questions about Indian bowling. Now, in case Bumrah is ruled out of the World Cup, India will need an incisive fast bowler and Mohammad Shami could well get the nod. He was in fine form during the IPL and could lead the bowling attack in Bumrah’s absence. Besides the Bumrah uncertainty, the Indian squad is looking settled and there are no major problem areas. Axar has filled in Jadeja’s shoes quite well and Karthik has cemented his place in the eleven as a finisher. The batting unit is now firing like a well-oiled machine with King Kohli also back in form. The remaining matches with the Proteas could be used to give more game time to the World Cup squad as India look to iron out all flaws before the big event!

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

SIDDHAARTH MAHAN  The writer is a specialist on Sports and Cinema who works as an actor in the Hindi film industry

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