IND vs SA 2022 | Scratchy India need to regroup to keep themselves in driver’s seat, suggests Zaheer Khan
India are currently 2-0 down in the five-match T20I series vs South Africa.
|BCCI
After back-to-back defeats against South Africa in the first two T20Is, Zaheer Khan has suggested India's team management, led by Rahul Dravid, regroup to keep the control of the remaining matches. Zaheer has also highlighted that India looked in control at some point in both games, but lost mojo.
Rishabh Pant had a poor start as India captain as he failed to guide his side towards the victory in the opening two matches in charge, against South Africa. Pant-led India suffered a seven-wicket defeat in the T20I series opener, where they failed to defend a gigantic target of 212. Still, they named an unchanged playing XI for the second game in Cuttack with the aim to change the fortune. However, the move did not work out as they endured a four-wicket defeat to go 2-0 down in the five-match series.
India will now have to win all three remaining matches to win the series, with the third T20I between the sides will be played on June 14 at Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam. Speaking on Cricbuzz, Zaheer Khan, India's former fast bowler, suggested they must regroup and rectify their errors as fast as possible to roar back into the contest.
"When the (Klaasen-Bavuma) partnership was building, you could feel that the drive in the India team was going down. It was evident on the field. Those are the things Rahul Dravid and Co. need to address and do it quickly because there is only one day in between (before the 3rd T20I). They need to regroup, have some tough conversations and identify what it is going to take for them to fight for 40 overs," Zaheer said during a conversation on Cricbuzz.
Further, Zaheer highlighted an important aspect of India's mentality so far in the series. He pointed out that Pant and Co. were in control in both matches at some point, but they could not able to keep the pressure on the opponents. He also particularly lauded Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who returned excellent figures of 4-0-13-4 in the second T20I.
"Even in the first match, you thought India were in the driver's seat. Today again, they had the ideal start with the ball. Bhuvneshwar Kumar was outstanding, but they have not been able to close out games. Some concerns for India going forward in the series and a lot of pressure," Zaheer added.
