Tearing off the edge of the cliff, India crawl to breathe again and take the series to the final game in Bangalore. Big credit for the series-level 82-run win in Rajkot goes to the unmatched big-hitting brilliance of Dinesh Karthik and Hardik Pandya, whose 65 runs in 5.3 overs propelled India to 169 on a hard surface as well as synchronized utility. did. Own bowling firm.
Give these sets of bowlers a position that advances their craft remotely, they make life impossibly difficult for foreign batsmen, let alone prosper. The surface was not as conducive to stroke-play as other locations in this series. Some balls stalled, some skidded, some jumped off good-length areas. The boom was spongy instead of a trampoline. Both the fast bowlers and the spinners cleverly matched their pace, stalling a part of the advantage that South Africa were trying to get. Indian bowlers just tied him in knots.
,@DineshKarthik Brilliant performance with the bat and won the player of the match award #teamindia I defeated South Africa in Rajkot
Scorecard ️ https://t.co/9Mx4DQmACq #INDvSA , @paytm pic.twitter.com/RwIBD2OP3p
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 17, 2022
There is no hero for South Africa. Quinton de Kock worked before being run out, Temba Bavuma suffered a shoulder injury and retired; Harshal Patel dismisses David Miller with a slippery ball; Yuzvendra Chahal took revenge on his harasser, Heinrich Klaasen, with a straight ball; Avesh Khan enjoyed his best night in international cricket by taking four wickets. He was bundled out for 87, as India held on (169/7).
There were many heroes for India. Most prominent among them was Dinesh Karthik, whose innings of 55 off 27 balls gave the impression that he had batted alone on a different pitch. He certainly batted on a different plane, batting fluently on a surface where most of the batsmen consistently struggled to time the ball and find boundaries.
,@Avesh_6 Took 4⃣ wickets and was our top performer from the second innings of the 4th @paytm #INDvSA T20I. I #teamindia
summary of their performance pic.twitter.com/4ExtPvIlTB
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 17, 2022
The backdrop was perfect for him to flourish—the team’s reeling, series at stake, the last of the specialist batsmen, it was time to play not only a winning hand, but also make him an essential player. At his peak, he let golden opportunities pass by, but at the age of 36, perhaps at the end of his career, he is counting half the chance.
He made the count with a knock of matchless coolness and gleaming stroke-play.
Between the reverse pull and sweep, the sheer wattage of destruction accelerated by Karthik, a straight drive parked out. South African left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj hit one on his pads after being caught fiercely from midwicket. Karthik could have bent down and swung his wrists over the ball and swung it over long-on. His design seemed that, before the last moment, he changed his mind, as if suddenly bound by a classical bat. He simply pressed his front-foot forward and threw the ball between the bowler and the long-on fielder, aerial but pure, a stroke of antiquity. For this stroke alone, he maintained posture, blinking at the front-elbow ink sky, the name of the bat-maker staring proudly at the onlookers after tracing a delightful arc.
He completed his maiden T20I half-century with eight other fours and sixes to take India to a capable score, but a picture of this stroke is most likely to adorn the walls of his drawing-room. This stroke took my breath away; Most of the others ran blood. Karthik was in full flow, in monsoon the furious currents started flowing like a river. There was a sweep-six from Dwayne Pretorius, in which he just went outside the off-stump and bowled the ball to deep midwicket. Fast feet, fast hands and even more so, a sharp mind. The ball was not too full for the slog, but he extended his bat, came under the ball and placed it over the drops.
for clinical victory #teamindia In Rajkot! I
@RishabhPant17The led unit beat South Africa by 82 runs to level the series 2-2. I
Scorecard ️ https://t.co/9Mx4DQmACq #INDvSA , @paytm pic.twitter.com/fyNIlEOJWl
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 17, 2022
In such a mood of carnage, he could have been invincible. The range of his stroke—and crucially his eye for boundaries—is astonishing. Shot even the slightest, he goes back with the intensity of an electric wave, and often cuts to the front of the square. Anything filled, it has a whole canvas to find a boundary. The ball can go to any corner of the field. Length balls can go missing at deep square leg; He could do reverse pull, reverse sweep, and if necessary, ramp and scoop (there was no need for such improvements). He builds up the length that suits him, like sprinting down the track and hitting Andre Nortje on the ground. The shot, his second boundary, shook the South African pacer. Maybe even the whole team, as they suddenly seemed deflated, and let the game go away from them for the next 30 minutes.
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premiumAfter the penetration and planning they showed in the opening exchange, this would be the exact moment for South Africa. By then, he had disrupted the hosts and picked up the last wicket of Rishabh Pant. India were at this point 81 for 4 in 13 overs and had already lost Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shreyas Iyer. Adding to his woes, Hardik Pandya had also hit the straps with some sharp strikes, the trademark back-cut and flick-slog, where he wrists the ball at the last moment of contact, leaving the crowd cheering. . This burst of boundaries made all the difference – from teetering on the edge of the cliff to taking the series to the last match in Bangalore.
