IND vs NZ | 5th T20I - Today I Learnt - Jasprit Bumrah still No.1 and Shivam 'not Hardik' Dube
From needing 66 runs off 60 balls, New Zealand delivered their third straight choke against the visitors India to lose the series 5-0. However, that was not the only thing I learnt today. What I learnt included Samson's failed experiment at the top of the order and Bumrah's comeback with the ball.
Sanju Samson is not a T20I opener
Had Sanju Samson performed, the Indian selectors would have been reeling away with as many as five openers for two slots, all in good form. However, for India, Samson did not perform in his brief run as a T20I opener, scoring just two runs in the innings. Moreover, he got the two runs in the first over that he faced, after which he struggled to find momentum. And, when he did find the form needed in the powerplay, he was back in the pavilion, after a glorious cover drive that found the short-cover fielder, Mitchell Santner. This comes after he scored 8 runs in the only opportunity that he got in the fourth T20I where he failed in a similar circumstance. His intent has surely been positive, however, the result is not what India would have hoped for, from the right-hander. Despite averaging 27 at the top of the order in the format, he is not the right fit for the Indian team in the current setup, especially with three well-established openers waiting. It was an easy take for the New Zealand spinner but with that, could Samson’s possible experiment at the top of the order be coming to an end?
Manish Pandey and Shreyas Iyer together a bad ploy
After Shreyas Iyer’s heroics in the first three games, India would have thought that the No.4 slot and the issues were solved. Manish Pandey, too, picked it up from where the right-handed Mumbaikar left in the third T20I, with a well-paced 50 in the fourth T20I. However, when the duo bat together, that is where India struggle, and struggle very badly. After the dismissal of KL Rahul and a departing Rohit Sharma due to an apparent calf-injury, the onus was on the duo to strike a tempo for the Blues. That is exactly where they failed, failing to get a move on later in the innings with both of them striking under run a ball during the middle phase. And, it was only in the 20th over where the duo scored 15 runs in the over, which is criminal in the T20 format despite them playing over two overs. In the end, Iyer scored 33 runs in 31 balls which, in this format of the game, is not sustainable. Both of them have had their issues in the middle overs, trying to up the ante, and while Pandey failed to do that in the fourth game, Iyer now doing the same in the fifth has given India a new headache.
Shivam Dube is not India’s solution to Hardik Pandya
Mumbaikar and all-rounder Shivam Dube was starting to become more and more consistent with match-winning displays against West Indies and Bangladesh. However, that was all done and dusted in 2019 as he carried the worst of forms into 2020 both with the bat and ball. Despite all the talks of Dube being the next big thing from Mumbai, his performance has come crashing down in this series against New Zealand. When called upon to bat in the first innings, Dube scored just five runs off 6 balls and that was it for him with the willow. And then, he backed his first innings performance with an amazing over, where only 34 runs was conceded. Remember Stuart Broad’s 36-run over against Yuvraj Singh, ya, this is just second next to that in terms of runs conceded. Oh, a no-ball, too was part of the 34-run package, and with that Dube might have just gone down the pecking order in the Indian team. With Hardik Pandya’s return around the corner, it is only a matter of time before the all-rounder goes back to the T20 leagues and gets his form back. Back to you RCB, time to shape the all-rounder into form.
Jasprit Bumrah still is India’s No.1 bowler
After his long-stint away from cricket, nursing his back, Bumrah got himself back on the field in the series against Sri Lanka. While he was getting back into his grave throughout the series, by the time Australia landed in the country, Bumrah was back into his best form. Instantly, he bowled the yorkers and the slower deliveries that were missing from India’s arsenal for a long time after the pacer was ruled out due to injury. He came back into the rhythm, however, was yet again broken by Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson in the 3rd T20I, who took him by his horn. Then, Bumrah looked down and out with batsmen attacking him in plenty. But when it mattered, however, Bumrah was back to his best in the final game, conceding just 12 runs from four overs, picking up 3 wickets. Talk about impact, the right-handed bowler was dynamic and even bowled a maiden over, which is astonishing to watch in T20Is, And with that, India cruised home with a 5-0 whitewash.
New Zealand’s worry with the T20I balance
Well, if you are New Zealand and Kane Williamson, this series, and in particular this game, would be a deja-vu of the nightmares suffered in the 2019 World Cup. Then, they lost against England in the super-over, after which they did the same twice in a row against India in the five-match T20I series. They have to blame themselves for their loss against India, as the decisions that they took, including the inclusion of Colin Grandhomme in the middle order, causing them a few games. Further, in the final game, Southee’s captaincy was pretty much on the wrong side, including the bowling changes that he brought on towards the death overs of the innings. With the batting, they have themselves to blame for the collapse, choking for the third-straight time in the series. From 66 needed off 60 deliveries, you have the easiest of chances to get a win against India. However, they lost from there. After scoring 34 runs off Shivam Dube, they lost the game when all that was needed was 6 runs every over, eventually ending up 7 runs short of the target. Pretty poor from the home side against India, who were not at their best throughout the series.
