IND vs SA, 1st T20I Live Cricket Score: South Africa Strike Early as Kagiso Rabada Removes Rohit for a Duck
Arshdeep (3/32) and Chahar (2/24) justified Rohit Sharma’s call to bowl first as they scythed through South Africa’s top order in picking five wickets on the first 15 balls of the innings. Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl first against South Africa in the T20I series opener at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
The Indian skipper revealed that the hosts have made three changes from the eleven which won the series against Australia in Hyderabad, left-arm pacer Arshdeep and left-handed batter Pant come in as Hardik Pandya and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have been rested from the series.
After thumping the Aussies 2-1, it’s time to square off against the Proteas once again at home. Team India faces South Africa in the first game of the 3-match series in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday. The Men in Blue will be looking to round off their T20 World Cup preparation with a marked improvement in their death bowling besides providing crucial game time to its untested players.
Going forward, death bowling has been the biggest concern for Indian and captain Rohit Sharma singled it out as an area of concern. The hosts will be without two of their key bowlers, Hardik Pandya and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who have been rested ahead of the ICC event next month.
Harshal Patel did not have the best of times in his comeback series against Australia but he will be expected to get back to his best in the final three games before the World Cup. His career economy rate stands at 9.05 but he conceded more than 12 runs per over against the Aussies.
Deepak Chahar, who is also on standby for the Word Cup, did not get a game in the previous series and he could get a chance if the team decides to rotate its pacers over the three games.
Arshdeep Singh will return to bolster the team’s resources in the slog overs, making an effective combination alongside Jasprit Bumrah, who will aim to regain his full rhythm after coming back from injury.
Over the next week, India will be competing against a team they are yet to beat at home in a bilateral series. South Africa and India will face each other in a group game in Australia and though conditions are totally different here, both teams can pick out areas to target in the coming three games.
(With inputs from agencies)