Published: Oct 06, 2015, 10:42 AM (IST)
Edited: Oct 06, 2015, 10:42 AM (IST)
The second Twenty20 International (T20I) between India and South Africa at Cuttack was a low-scoring affair which saw South Africa emerge victorious to clinch the three-match series. India’s batsmen displayed a shoddy effort to some good bowling, while South Africa managed to ease past the chase despite India’s bowlers showing resilience. The match was marred by a restive Cuttack crowd that began hurling bottles in direction of the pitch when India were in a losing position due to which play was halted. Rishad D’Souza presents you the highlights of a forgettable game.
South African bowlers dominate: The South African bowlers vindicated the skipper Faf du Plessis’ decision to elect to bowl first after winning the toss by putting their best foot forward. The attack fired up Kagiso Rabada, Albie Morkel, Imran Tahir collectively, causing frequent breakthroughs. They were assisted by some brilliant work in the field, with two Indian batsmen even getting run out. Cricket Scorecard: India vs South Africa 2nd T20I at Cuttack
Albie Morkel’s amazing comeback show: In the man of the match speech, Morkel revealed that a couple of months ago, he had relinquished hopes of ever playing a game in South Africa colours again. Morkel’s inclusion in the side came as a replacement to the injured David Wiese. Morkel gave evidence of why he continued to remain such a valuable asset in the T20 format. In his four overs, he conceded a mere 12 runs, while also picking two important wickets of MS Dhoni, Akshar Patel and later tail-ender Bhuvneshwar Kumar. VVS Laxman: Rohit Sharma, JP Duminy set tone for historic tour
Indian batsmen capitulate: The Indian batsmen couldn’t face the might of the South African bowlers combined with some superb fielding skills. Wickets fell frequently and there was not a single partnership worthy of mention. Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina were the joint top-scorers with 24-ball 22s. There were four ducks in the innings and three other scores in single digits. India were skittled for 92 in 17.3 overs as a result.
Ravichandran Ashwin shines: Ravichandran Ashwin showed his class by picking three wickets in his four overs. He, however, didn’t receive similar support from any other bowler and was unable to single-handedly tie South Africa down. He clean bowled AB de Villiers, got Hashim Amla caught at leg slip and skipper du Plessis caught at mid off. READ: Ravichandran Ashwin becomes highest T20I wicket-taker for India
Crowd hurling bottles on ground: A section of the crowd became unruly whence it became clear that India were going to lose the game. They started hurling bottles towards the playing area and would not relent. Play was temporarily suspended and the players came back on after the situation was under control. However, just after another over the crowd went berserk again and administrators were compelled to force the upper tier spectators to evacuate or take seats in the lower tier for player safety. The finishing rites were then conducted in an almost empty stand. READ: Play disrupted as spectators resort to hooliganism
JP Duminy again plays to situation: Duminy displayed exemplary maturity and sense of match awareness in the first game when he triggered and took South Africa to victory from a seemingly hopeless position. He displayed similar maturity in his unconquered knock of 30 from 39 balls. Realising that another couple of wickets could prove costly for South Africa, he was determined to stay on till the end to see his team home. He was not lured into going for unnecessarily expansive shots in quest to finish the match like a hero. Instead, he kept a cool head and played another sensible knock. READ: JP Duminy becomes 2nd batsman to complete 1,500 T20I runs
(Rishad D’Souza, a reporter with CricketCountry, gave up hopes of playing Test cricket after a poor gully-cricket career. He now reports on the sport. You can follow @RDcric on Twitter)
