(Cricket news) The playing eleven for India’s second Twenty20 international match against South Africa startled a few former cricketers. Raising eyebrows, Suryakumar Yadav chose to exclude a number of prominent players from their Playing XI, including the newly crowned World No. 1 T20I spinner Ravi Bishnoi. In addition, benching players like Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Shreyas Iyer made room for Jitesh Sharma and Tilak Varma in the playing XI.
The likes of Sanjay Manjrekar, Piyush Chawla, and Gautam Gambhir were perplexed by India’s strategies and the argument only heated up when South Africa managed to reach a rearranged goal of 152 in just 15 overs. Despite India’s impressive batting performance of 180/7 before rain stopped their innings with three balls remaining, their bowlers struggled as South Africa scored 78 runs in the Powerplay.
Arshdeep Singh scored 31 runs in just two overs, while Mukesh Kumar managed to score 2 wickets. Bishnoi, who was India’s standout player against Australia but was substituted for Kuldeep Yadav, was sorely missed.
Sanjay Manjrekar: “Yeah, the crew is back on screen. I have something really fascinating to show you. One is that Tilak Varma is ranked third and Shreyas Iyer is not playing. You may recall that there were six right-handers in the World Cup batting lineup. Presently, there are individuals who are right-handed, left-handed, right-handed, and so on.
That represents a significant departure from the batting methods used by India. I’m not sure if they are attempting to address it or if players are simply being chosen based on their worth in two separate formats. Iyer’s exclusion from the team surprises me, and I am picky about Ruturaj Gaikwad.”
Piyush Chawla: “Ravi Bishnoi ought to have played based on his performance in the previous series. Since he recently won the ICC rankings, he would undoubtedly be destroyed.”
Gautam Gambhir: “I have no idea what might be going on [behind Shreyas’ exclusion].” In the most recent match in Bengaluru, he recently scored fifty runs. Only team management can speculate as to why, such as whether they were looking at left-handers or Iyer has a niggle.
However, as PC mentioned, if your Playing XI does not include the top-ranked T20I bowler in the world, then additionally, remember. You’re giving young players opportunities here; this isn’t your starting squad. Clarity can only be offered by Suryakumar Yadav and the team management.”
“Any news on Iyer and Bishnoi’s availability?” tweeted Aakash Chopra. In the previous series, Iyer served as vice captain. Furthermore, Bishnoi was the series’ star player. It appeared like I was missing something.
After winning by five wickets last night, South Africa has grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first Twenty20 International. To maintain their winning record in bilateral T20I series in South Africa and to draw the series, India must win tomorrow’s third and final T20I. Expect India to bring in a few changes, one of which will probably be Bishnoi’s comeback, now that the action is in Johannesburg.
Also read: Markram and Shamsi”s middle-over spells became turning point, feels Tilak Varma
