"I decided to keep it simple" - India's Arshdeep Singh narrates his thoughts during last over of IND vs BAN match in T20 World Cup 2022
Arshdeep Singh was the hero of Team India's thrilling five-run win over Bangladesh at the Adelaide Oval on Wednesday. The left-arm pacer kept his cool and defended 20 runs off the final over, despite the wet conditions making it tough to control the ball.
The 23-year-old didn't start the over that well, though. With 19 runs needed off five balls, he was smashed for a six over square leg by Nurul Hasan. But he showed why he is known to be a quick learner as he promptly changed his plans and was back to nailing the yorkers.
Speaking to Yuzvendra Chahal on BCCI's show 'Chahal TV', here's what Arshdeep had to say about his plans during the final over:
"Initially, I bowled a bouncer (in the final over) since I thought he (Nurul) could scoop it over fine leg. But that wasn't a good idea. So I decided to keep it simple and trust my yorkers for the rest of the over."
Arshdeep also spoke about how he used the long boundaries down the ground to his advantage, which was one of the reasons why he ended up with a couple of wickets.
On this, he said:
"I decided to bowl straight and use the longer boundaries. They did connect a few but the ball didn't travel the distance because of the long boundary and they were dismissed."
Players were willing to field in the wet outfield: India's fielding coach
Chahal also spoke with India's fielding coach T Dilip about their incredible fielding that helped them turn the game on its head against Bangladesh.
On being asked about the instructions given to the Indian players, Dilip claimed that they themselves were professional enough to understand what needed to be done. He stated:
"To be honest, I didn't tell them anything (during rain break). Whatever happened was a result of the preparation that went on behind the scenes, not just before this game, but even before the World Cup began. The players themselves were willing to field in the wet outfield and this is the result of the practice and preparation."
India will not only qualify for the semifinals of the T20 World Cup but will also top the group if they beat Zimbabwe on Sunday.