India vs South Africa T20I Series: Five Talking Points - From Ishan Kishan's Batting To Bhuvneshwar Kumar's Bowling

22.06.2022 - 06:25 sports.ndtv.com

The recently-concluded India vs South Africa series saw an anti-climax as the decider match got washed out due to rain. However, by then, the spectators had already witnessed a neck-and-neck contest between the two sides that saw the series being drawn 2-2.

It started with the Proteas' authority and concluded with a memorable comeback by Team India. Though the final match couldn't take place, the series gave a good opportunity to both the sides to test themselves ahead of the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.

It is worth noting that the Indian team missed its key players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami in the series and hence it was a great opportunity for the side to test its bench strength.

While some players grabbed the opportunity with both hands, others failed to live up to the expectations. Here we have listed five talking points from the series from India's point of view. 1.

cricket South Africa Cricket Team India Cricket Team Talking Points FIVE Hardik Pandya Dinesh Karthik Shreyas Iyer Ishan Kishan Bhuvneshwar Kumar Australia South Africa India

India defeated Ireland by seven wickets in the first T20I of the two-match series between the sides on Sunday. Chasing a target of 109 runs in a rain-curtailed game, India reached home with 16 balls to spare. The 12-over-a-side match in Dublin also saw pace sensation Umran Malik making his India debut. While everyone was expecting an exhibition of fast bowling from Umran, it was Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who hogged limelight for his pace.

ICC T20I Rankings: Dinesh Karthik Makes Massive Jump, Ishan Kishan Breaks Into Top 10

On the back of his recent exploits, veteran Dinesh Karthik jumped a massive 108 spots to 87th on the latest ICC T20 rankings for batters, even as young opener Ishan Kishan broke into the top 10. Kishan finished the series with two half centuries against South Africa and was the leading run scorer with 206 runs at an average of 41. That form catapulted the left-hander up one spot to sixth on the latest T20 rankings for batters. Karthik has been in excellent form since IPL 2022 and had a few blazing knocks in the T20 series against South Africa.

India vs South Africa: Hits and misses for Team India

Team India coach Rahul Dravid has gone on record to say that he wants to identify his core team for the tournament as soon as possible and by the end of the England T20Is in July, wants to have a fair idea about the 18 to 20-odd players he would be looking at ahead of the World Cup in Australia. Some of the regular players were rested for the series against South Africa. Captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah were all rested. Surykumar Yadav was nursing an injury. KL Rahul was initially named the captain of the series before he got injured and Rishabh Pant was asked to lead for the first time. TimesofIndia.com here looks at players who were given a full run in the series, that is, they played all the five matches against South Africa and how some of them capitalised on the chances, while others failed to make the most of the opportunities - the hits and the misses. First a look at the players who made it count:

Bhuvneshwar Kumar was special through the series: Mark Boucher

Mark Boucher termed India seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar's performance in the series as "special" while ruing the absence of Aiden Markram, who he feels could have made a lot of difference for the Proteas over the course of the five T20Is. Bhuvneshwar, who now only plays white-ball cricket, got six wickets in four completed games and gave away only 85 runs in 14 overs at an economy rate which was just a shade above six runs per over. "Bhuvi was special in this whole series as we came up against some quality bowling. He put us under pressure in Powerplays and barring one game (Delhi), where we got off to a good start, they have dominated us with both ball and bat in Powerplays," Boucher said after the series ended in 2-2 despite Proteas going 2-0 up at the onset.

South Africa captain Keshav Maharaj 'disappointed' with 5th T20I against India getting abandoned

The fifth and final T20I between India and South Africa at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru was abandoned due to rain. With this, the series stays level at 2-2 and will be shared by both sides. "Very disappointed we didn't get a full game for the end of an exciting tour.

India vs South Africa: Bhuvneshwar Kumar looking forward to getting back stronger after T20I series against South Africa

Bhuvneshwar Kumar said that he will be looking forward to getting back stronger physically and with my bowling, after the fifth and the final T20I against South Africa got abandoned. The fifth and final T20I between India and South Africa at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru was abandoned due to rain. With this, the series stays level at 2-2 and will be shared by both sides. "Really proud. Body feels good, but I don't want to talk much about it. Just want to focus on getting back stronger physically and with my bowling. Most of the times I bowl two at the top and two at the end," said Bhuvneshwar after the match got abandoned. "Being a senior, I also think about how to help the youngsters. I have been lucky that the captain gave me the free hand to do whatever I wanted. Pretty blessed in that way," he added.