Team India cruised into the finals by crushing South Africa in 82 runs in the 4th T20I. India dismissed South Africa for 87 runs in 16.5 overs and registered a comfortable win of the series by drawing the line equal. Now it is a 2-2 score-line.
By winning the toss, South Africa decided to bowl first, and India with the exceptional skills of Dinesh Karthik and Hardik Pandya scored 169/6 in 20 overs. South Africa managed to reach only 87 runs while chasing the target. With the unchanged side, team India nailed a series-level win in Rajkot.
India just gathered 50 runs in the first ten overs before Dinesh Karthik and Hardik Pandya kept the scoreboard moving. Hardik perished after hitting 46 runs out of 31 balls. By showing age as just a number, Dinesh Karthik’s career-best and maiden T20I fifty came out of 27 balls changed the pace of the game. By hitting 9 fours and 2 sixes, Karthik becomes the hero of the battle. Ishan Kishan’s 27 out of 26 deliveries added to the line of victory.
“Really happy with the way Hardik put up a show. DK went for the kill right away and that gave us the positivity. Let’s see what happens in Bangalore. Looking forward to giving our 100 percent”, says the captain Rishab Pant.
While Karthik shone with the bat, Avesh Khan trembled the crowd with the ball. He snapped four wickets in 4 overs, which included 15 dot balls to crush South Africa. This is South Africa’s lowest score in T20I.
“The plan was to bowl up and attack the stumps, it was a two-paced wicket with the ball bouncing and keeping low, so use the odd bouncer and bowl good lengths,” says the pacer.
The Proteas made changes to the team by replacing Kagiso Rabada, Wayne Parnell, and Reeza Hendricks with Marco Jansen, Quinton de Kock, and Lungi Ngidi while India opted for an unchanged side. But the changes in the team didn’t make any difference in the performance. They leaked too many runs in the last overs and they lost wickets at regular intervals. The match didn’t go according to the plan.
The Captain, Temba Bavuma, was on strike on the third over, and the unexpected bounce of the ball hit on his left shoulder forced him to retire hurt in the next over. It was also a big blow for South Africa.
After the two consecutive losses of team India in 1st two matches, the Proteas were at the winning end to own the trophy. But the third and fourth matches made the situation upside down. India’s unexpected comeback makes them the favorites of the series. Now both are on the equal line, everyone is looking forward to the final match at Bengaluru, Chinnaswamy Stadium. India is a tough place for the spinners to bowl with the small grounds. Even though the ground is slightly bigger in Bangalore, the pitch is much flatter. There will be a lot of buzz on the ground and it may reflect in the match. Let’s wait for the series decider at Bengaluru on Sunday.
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