IND vs SA 2022: "We can take a lot of positives from that" - Keshav Maharaj feels Proteas did well to reach 106 after batting collapse
Proteas' spinner Keshav Maharaj feels getting to 106 after collapsing to 9-5 was a monumental effort in the first T20I against India in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
Maharaj, who top-scored for the tourists, feels they have to show improvement against swing bowling in the next two games.
Deepak Chahar and Arshdeep Singh ran riot with the new ball, reducing South Africa to 9-5 within three overs.
Maharaj, who scored a 35-ball 41, was amongst the three batters to reach double figures alongside Aiden Markram and Wayne Parnell. He added 33 runs each with Parnell and Kagiso Rabada.
RESULT | INDIA WIN BY 8 WICKETS
🚨 RESULT | INDIA WIN BY 8 WICKETS
An unbroken 93-run third-wicket partnership hands India a 1-0 lead in the T20I series as they chased down the 107-run target with 20 balls remaining.
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Speaking after the eight-wicket loss, the left-arm spinner acknowledged South Africa's character. Maharaj believes they have to be better at dealing with swing bowling.
He said, as quoted by News24:
"I don't think we want to dwell too much on what has transpired, but it is something that we can address going forward and hopefully we can rectify that. To come back and get 106 and sort of make a game of it, I think we can take a lot of positives from that."
He added:
"But I think something we need to address is the new ball and the way we're playing it. There is a lot of swing, so maybe it's adjusting our plans and mindset and building from there. When you're put under pressure early on, it's very difficult to come back, but the boys showed a bit of fight and character and I think we can build from that."
It's worth noting that Temba Bavuma, Rilee Rossouw, Tristan Stubbs, and David Miller registered ducks.
While the tourists dismissed Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma cheaply, Suryakumar Yadav and KL Rahul struck half-centuries to give India an eight-wicket win.
"If you go five down in the powerplay, it's very difficult to come back from there" - Keshav Maharaj
The 32-year-old observed how the swinging deliveries troubled the Proteas but backed them to recover from it ahead of the second game.
He added:
"The ball did swing prodigiously in the first couple of overs. If you go five down in the powerplay, it's very difficult to come back from there. Maybe it was a bit of rustiness by the boys, but hopefully we can come back a lot better and make the second T20 a lot more exciting."
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The second T20 will take place on Sunday (October 2) in Guwahati, and the tourists will want to level the series.