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Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf is banking on his knowledge gained from the Big Bash League to outsmart Indian batters in the marquee clash of the T20 World Cup at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on October 23. The arch-rivals, who don't play bilateral series due to geo-political tensions, will clash for a fourth a time in one year at the MCG.
Former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif was all praise for Suryakumar Yadav after the star batter scored a quickfire half-century in the first T20I against South Africa at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday. Despite chasing a below-par total of 107, the hosts were under pressure after losing the wickets of captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. However, he and KL Rahul stitched an unbeaten partnership to take India home with eight wickets to spare. Taking to Twitter, Kaif suggested that Suryakumar has cemented his place at no. 4 in the Indian team.
The arch-rivals, who don't play bilateral series due to geo-political tensions, will clash for a fourth time in one year at the MCG. "If I give my best, they won't be able to play me easily. For the upcoming World Cup match, I'm very happy because it is at the Melbourne Cricket Ground," Rauf, who plays for Melbourne Stars in the BBL, said in the post-match interaction after their six-run win over England.
Team India had a night to remember on Wednesday, after they registered a magnificent eight-wicket win over South Africa in the first T20I of the three-match series at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram. The pacer duo of Arshdeep Singh and Deepak Chahar rose to the occasion and scalped three wickets and two wickets, respectively, to restrict the Proteas to 106/8. Later, KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav brought up their respective half-centuries to take India across the line in just 16.4 overs, despite initial setbacks.
Suryakumar Yadav's status as India's best T20I batter in recent times has been reaffirmed as he became the highest scorer in a single calender year with 732 runs, surpassing Shikhar Dhawan's 689 back in 2018. Suryakumar, who scored one of his finest T20I half-centuries against South Africa on a seaming track in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday, is only 24 runs short of completing 1000 runs in the format.
The Indian T20I team combination has seen a distinct trait in the last few matches. The veteran Dinesh Karthik is being preferred more over Rishabh Pant in the wicketkeeper-batter's role. Karthik's ability as a finisher in the No. 6 position seems to be working in his favour. Pant, however, brings his left-handed batting prowess to the table - a quality which is important for Team India, especially after Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out of the T20 World Cup in Australia.
India captain Rohit Sharma is happy that his team got to "learn a lot" in their eight-wicket victory over South Africa in a low-scoring chase on a "tricky track" in the first T20 International. Suryakumar Yadav's unbeaten 50 off 33 balls ensured that India didn't face too many hiccups despite KL Rahul's struggles on a track where South Africa were left tottering at 9/5 at the start of the game. "The wicket was tricky. You learn a lot playing such a game. You understand what the team needs to do in tough conditions. It was nice to play a game like that. We knew the bowlers will get something seeing grass on the pitch, but we didn't expected help for the full 20 overs," Rohit said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
It was a night of many positives for Team India against South Africa in the first T20I on Wednesday in Thiruvananthapuram. First, Arshdeep Singh (3/32) and Deepak Chahar (2/24) rattled the opposition to reduce them to 9/5 in 2.3 overs. South Africa, however, recovered to post 106/8. India lost skipper Rohit Sharma for a duck and star batter Virat Kohli for 3 before the hosts achieved their target with 20 balls to spare and take a 1-0 lead.