Team India hit back hard after a disappointing loss in the second T20I to take the lead in the five-match series against South Africa. In chilly conditions at the picturesque Dharamsala, the Indian bowlers ran through the Proteas line-up for a comfortable win.
For the fourth T20I between India and South Africa, here we present our preview and predictions.
The hosts chose to bowl under the lights in Dharamsala, and in seamer-friendly conditions the likes of Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, and Hardik Pandya had a ball.
In the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, who missed the game due to personal commitments and whose participation in the remainder of the tour is uncertain, captain Suryakumar Yadav and coach Gautam Gambhir will be happy to see the way Singh and Rana stepped up with the new ball. Both struck in tandem, not only taking wickets but making sure the Proteas didn’t get easy runs, something Singh in particular struggled with in the game before.
After Rana and Singh had struck to have South Africa reeling at 7/3, Varun Chakravarthy kept the pressure on in the middle overs, again showcasing why he has become the team’s go-to man in all conditions.
While the bowlers had a stellar day, there wasn’t much for the batters to chase. That said, it was crucial for the openers, Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill, to get going together, which they did.
Despite not being at his fluent best, Gill spent some time in the middle and got some runs under his belt, while Sharma continued on his merry way, making light work of the bowlers. The only blip in the batting line-up remains captain Yadav’s form. The veteran T20 specialist had the perfect opportunity to see home the chase but failed again, something that must have added to the management’s worries, especially given Gill’s recent inconsistencies at the top as well.
The visitors, on the other hand, simply had a night to forget. The batters just couldn’t get going, especially after a big outing in Chandigarh. Captain Aiden Markram seemed to be batting on another pitch as he put up a fighting 61, but the rest of the order had no answer to the Indian seamers.
Markram won’t be too worried, though. South Africa have both experience and explosive talent in abundance in Quinton de Kock, Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, and David Miller. Stubbs was brought in for the experienced Miller in the middle, a move that didn’t work out, and we may see Miller return to the starting XI for a trickier Lucknow pitch.
The South African bowlers didn’t have much to defend, and while Abhishek Sharma took them apart at the top, it was a fighting effort from the likes of Lungi Ngidi, Marco Jansen, and Corbin Bosch.
The Lucknow ground has been a nightmare for batters, with spinners usually enjoying themselves. With the likes of Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, and Axar Patel in their arsenal, the hosts start once again as our favourites in what should be a spin-friendly game and see the Men in Blue seal the series.
Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (vc), Marco Jansen, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Lungi Ngidi
Venue: Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
Winners Prediction: India
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