2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by India in the 3rd T20I vs Bangladesh ft. Suryakumar's usage of his bowlers
Team India shattered several records in the third T20I against Bangladesh at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Saturday, October 12. On the back of Sanju Samson's sizzling century, the Men in Blue secured a dominant 133-run victory.
It was all one-way traffic from start to finish, with Suryakumar Yadav supporting Samson well in the first innings. After Hardik Pandya and Riyan Parag chipped in, the bowlers did their bit, restricting Bangladesh to a significantly below-par score on a belter of a wicket.
But it wasn't an entirely perfect display from the hosts, who still have room for improvement. On that note, here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by India in the third T20I against Bangladesh.
#3 Mistake - India bowled only one over of Washington Sundar and Riyan Parag
Given that the series was already sealed, India were expected to bowl more overs of their part-timers in the third T20I. While Abhishek Sharma and Washington Sundar bowled one over each, Riyan Parag wasn't used with the ball at all.
That was rather strange from India, who have made it a point to give their fringe options the chance to roll their arms over. The team will certainly be aware of the chances of situations where they might need to get overs from their supporting bowlers and need to work towards the same.
#2 Masterstroke - India unleashed Ravi Bishnoi
India sprung a surprise at the toss for the third T20I, announcing that Ravi Bishnoi will replace Arshdeep Singh. This left the Men in Blue with only one specialist quick in Mayank Yadav, who bowled two of the first three overs of the innings.
However, it turned out to be a terrific move as Ravi Bishnoi ran through the Bangladesh lineup to pick up three wickets. He started things by getting Najmul Hossain Shanto out in the powerplay, with the over ending in a terrific maiden. The leg-spinner followed that up with two more scalps in the middle overs.
By unleashing a bowler Bangladesh hadn't seen much of, even at the cost of a fast bowler, India pulled off a smart tactical move. Bishnoi, on his part, delivered as well.
#1 Mistake - India's powerplay bowling was off the mark in Hyderabad
Mayank Yadav started the second innings superbly as he bounced Parvez Hossain Emon out with a fiery delivery. The last over of the powerplay bowled by Bishnoi was a wicket-maiden. Between those two overs, though, India didn't cover themselves in glory.
While Mayank was a little too short in his second over, Nitish Kumar Reddy went for five boundaries in the only over he bowled in the powerplay. The young all-rounder was too wide at times, with Litton Das finding the gaps at will. Even the experienced Hardik Pandya wasn't on the money, although Washington Sundar's dropped catch in the deep damaged his figures slightly.
It didn't hurt India in the context of the game, and the exposure given to the bowlers who bowled in the powerplay was a welcome outcome. However, from a strategic perspective, the hosts weren't on point.