A hand injury to regular wicket-keeper Quinton de Kock gave Heinrich Klaasen an unexpected chance to play in the second T20I against India.Â
As difficult as the 211-run chase on the Barabati Stadium surface was, this 148-run chase necessitated a counter and had as many as six hitters dismissed in the process.
An outstanding Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who for the first time since his debut back in 2012, got three wickets in his first PowerPlay innings and set up a middle-overs fightback for the rest of the bowlers, also hampered South Africa’s pursuit.
The plan was doomed from the start. Temba Bavuma and Heinrich Klaasen staged a stunning counterattack. First, a slog-swept six off Yuzvendra Chahal was followed by an inside-out four over extra cover.
Hardik Pandya struck two boundaries before Axar Patel was demolished for 19 runs in the 12th over by him. With the help of those three overs, South Africa was able to lower their target from 9.2 to a more manageable 60 off 48 balls.
After that, India didn’t have any answers to the Heinrich Klaasen blitz, and the keeper-bat concluded with his greatest Twenty20 International total while struggling with cramps.
Heinrich Klaasen studded his innings with five sixes and seven fours. South Africa was without a specialist batsman, so Bavuma’s 35 was critical in the fourth-wicket partnership of 64.
Indian spinners Chahal and Axar failed to help the quick bowlers on a surface that the fast bowlers really enjoyed.
There was just one wicket shared between them, and they gave up a total of 68 runs in their five overs. In the first innings, Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj were similarly under-bowled, but they were able to salvage a more acceptable performance by finishing with 1 for 33 from their four combined overs.
India’s PowerPlay bowling has been underwhelming, with few wickets being taken. The fact that Bhuvneshwar was able to bowl three overs with the field up and strike in each of them was a significant boost for the team, in my opinion.
He swung the ball both ways before deciding on a six-meter length that also took into account the ball’s varying bounce.
His inswinger dismissals of Reeza Hendricks and Rassie van der Dussen were also reminiscent of his debut nine years ago in Bengaluru against Pakistan.
To give India a chance to bowl, Dinesh Karthik smashed 30 off the last two overs. Indians were dealt a crushing blow by an accomplished South African attack that utilized its customary power of speed to frustrate India’s batsmen as early as their first over when Kagiso Rabada softened Ruturaj Gaikwad with four fast deliveries before getting his man by the the the broader and wider delivery.
The adventures of Ishan Kishan was a major factor in the PowerPlay’s success in scoring 42 runs for India. Nevertheless, he was beaten for 34 off 21 by Anrich Nortje.
Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer were India’s best hope to take on a spin through the middle, but Keshav Maharaj outplayed them both, forcing the Indian skipper to hit his huge shot wide outside off-stump and getting him caught at the the the sweeper cover.
As India fought back from 90/3 to 112/6 in four overs, Karthik’s cameo sparked optimism. This is India’s second defeat in a row.
Scores: India 148/6 in 20 overs (Shreyas Iyer 40, Ishan Kishan 34; Anrich Nortje 2-36) lost to South Africa149/6 in 18.2 overs (Heinrich Klaasen 81, Temba Bavuma 35; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 4-13) by4 wickets
