Bhuvneshwar insisted that India’s bowling display in the series opener was not a true display of the bowlers’ talent. He instead chalked off the lackluster performance with the ball as an “off day” for the bowling group.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar celebrates after taking the wicket of South Africa’s captain Temba Bavuma during the first T20I between India and South Africa. Pic/AFP
Ahead of the second match of the T20I series between India and South Africa, the men in blue’s premier pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar emphasized on the home side’s chance to bounce back.
Having lost the first game despite putting up a target upwards of 200, Kumar said, “We have four games remaining in this series, we have a chance to win the series. We have to bowl better, and we need to bat in the same fashion as the previous game.”
Bhuvneshwar insisted that India’s bowling display in the series opener was not a true display of the bowlers’ talent. He instead chalked off the lackluster performance with the ball as an “off day” for the bowling group.
“We discussed what went wrong. It was the first game of the series; everyone is coming out the IPL and almost everyone who is in the team had a good IPL. So, everyone knows what needs to be done and the things we can improve on. As a bowling unit, we had an off day and we all want to make a comeback in the second T20I.
We did not bowl well, everyone knows that. It was just the first game; we still have the chance to win the series. It depends on the situation, but sometimes, you are not able to execute. When you are defending, generally the mindset is defensive.
If you get a wicket, it works very well. But generally, you have a defensive mindset when you are defending a total.”
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The second game will take place at the Barabati stadium in Cuttack. South Africa will enter the game full of confidence thanks to the devastating form of David Miller who played a key role in the Proteas’ chase on Thursday.
Kumar was wary of Miller’s threat having also seen the Gujarat Titans batsman light up the recent IPL. He said, “It is difficult (bowling to Miller). He is in such good form. I would want South Africa to drop him but they would not do so (laughs). He batted so well in the IPL; we know his calibre. Bowling to him would be a challenge.”
With the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami rested for the series, Kumar remains India’s only first choice pace bowler. As such, he is tasked with leading a quintet of pacers with little to no experience at the international level.
Kumar is looking to lead by example and wants to impart as much knowledge as he can to the other pacers in the squad. He said, “The senior bowlers are not here, there are some new bowlers here so I try to take the responsibility. You always try to talk to other bowlers and I try to keep talking with them. Focus is on bowling very well in each game.”
The pressure will now be on team India to come up with a fitting reply in the second game. Another inefficient bowling display could see the hosts go 2-0 down to a full strength South Africa side who’ll be raring to wrap up the series as soon as possible.
(With inputs from ANI)
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