Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Former South Africa captain Shaun Pollock shared his assessment of India’s Super 8 defeat to the Proteas, saying the co-hosts failed to adjust to the conditions in Ahmedabad and did not recognise the “new ball challenge with the seam moving around.”South Africa ended India’s 12-match unbeaten run in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup with a commanding 76-run victory at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday.
India made an early impact as Jasprit Bumrah delivered a superb opening spell of 2/7. However, the Proteas bounced back strongly through a 97-run stand off just 51 balls between David Miller and Dewald Brevis. Tristan Stubbs then provided the finishing touch with an unbeaten 44 off 24 deliveries, powering South Africa past 180.“India didn’t adapt well to the conditions in Ahmedabad. South Africa had played three matches here already, so they knew what to expect. Yes, they struggled at first when they lost the wickets of Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton early, but they did not stop adjusting as per the conditions. It was only when Brevis and Miller batted together that things worked for them.“Tristan Stubbs put his batting power to good use in the end to help South Africa reach 187. India’s chase would have been simple had they played carefully in the beginning,” Pollock said.In reply, India never found momentum in the powerplay and slipped to 31/3 after six overs. South Africa maintained control over the strong Indian batting unit, eventually bowling them out for 111 in 18.5 overs.“The first six overs was the toughest because the ball wasn’t coming onto the bat nicely. Instead, they went after the bowlers from the very first over. You can’t do that on this kind of a pitch while chasing a big total. They lost two early wickets and were under pressure right away. Sometimes, you have to be smart and patient. India didn’t change their approach. They didn’t realise that the new ball would be the biggest challenge with the seam moving around,” he added.India must now win their remaining matches against Zimbabwe and the West Indies to keep their semi-final hopes alive, especially with their net run rate slipping to -3.8.
