With India trailing 0-2 after the first two matches in Delhi and Cuttack, Rishabh Pant led India suprised South Africa to a blowout in Vizag and then beat the Proteas by an even bigger margin in Rajkot. Who knows how things would have turned out in Bangalore with the hosts in full swing. Remember, South Africa captain Temba Bavuma was ruled out of the final game due to injury.
The leader of the bowling attack, Bhuvneshwar took big wickets in three out of 4 innings. In the opening overs, the inswing and outswing kept the reins on the South African batsmen. Bhuvi bowled with pace, troubling the batsmen in the powerplays, consistently trailing them at least from his end. Result – He finished with 6 wickets and best economy rate among Indian bowlers. His best bowling performance came in the second game, which India lost. Bhuvi took four for thirteen as India looked to defend just 148 runs.
Harshal Patel picked up wickets in every game, and his many variations got the Proteas into all kinds of trouble. Particularly in Vizag, where he shattered the bails of the South African batting order and picked up 4 wickets, helping India survive the series and get a kick start.
His ability to keep things tight as always played a big role in restricting South Africa in the third and fourth T20Is.
One of the most talked about players ahead of the series, DK’s form as a finisher with RCB in the recently concluded edition of the IPL forced him to return to the national team. He scored only 92 runs, but this includes his first half-century in T20Is, which he scored in the fourth game, which India won by 82 runs.
In four games, Karthik finished with the highest strike rate among the Indian team’s batsmen with 158.6, and was instrumental in leveling the series. Not only this, he also helped India get close to 150 in the second game, as the South African bowlers had to face all kinds of trouble. The DK finisher was given a chance again, and he took it with enthusiasm.
Kishan gave his side a good start in all the games, putting together a very important opening stand with Ruturaj Gaikwad in the third game. Kishan’s trouble with pace and short deliveries remains a concern, however, his scoring range can more or less balance it.
Yuzvendra Chahal conceded a lot of runs in the first few games, especially in the second. But took 3 wickets in the crucial game in Vizag and two in Rajkot to help India control the middle phase of the innings. Once Chahal came back to trouble the batsmen and pick up wickets, there was no way out for the Proteas batsmen, as they failed to keep up with their moves. Chahal finished with 6 wickets and was a vital part of the Indian bowling.