Live Score
Cricket Teams
Cricket Players
'Wouldn't have made this mistake': Harbhajan Singh reveals two 'tough calls' India have to take after loss to SA
India relinquished the top spot in the Group 2 of the 2022 T20 World Cup after a five-wicket defeat to South Africa in Perth.
India were made to wait in their quest to cement a spot in the semi-finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup when they lost to South Africa by five wickets on Sunday in Perth. Suryakumar Yadav's masterful 68 off 40 balls guided India to a score of 133/9 after Lungi Ngidi and the rest of the South African pacers wrecked the Indian top five in the first 10 overs. While India stretched South Africa to their limit in the chase, half centuries from Aiden Markram and David Miller saw the Proteas over the line.
This helped South Africa leapfrog India to the top spot in the group table. Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh feels that while this is not the time to panic, the team should consider changing the opening combination considering KL Rahul's continued struggles. Rahul has been dismissed for single digit scores in three consecutive innings in the tournament.
“They may have to take some tough calls, the team has to think about it going forward. KL Rahul is a great player, we all know that, he is a match winner. But if he is struggling with his form like this, I think you should bring in Rishabh Pant,” Harbhajan said on Sports Tak.
Also Read: Rohit Sharma defends giving Ashwin the 18th over
Wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik limped off during the South African innings and Pant had taken his place behind the stumps. Harbhajan said that while Pant can continue being the wicketkeeper, India can bring in Deepak Hooda to take Karthik's spot in the lower middle order, thus providing the team with an extra spin option.
“Karthik looks injured, I don't know what his status is. If he is not, Rishabh Pant can open the innings with Rohit Sharma. You get a left-right combination like that. You can also bring in Deepak Hooda and he can even bowl a few overs,” he said.
Harbhajan also said that India need to bring in Yuzvendra Chahal in place of Ravichandran Ashwin and that it was a mistake to leave out the former. Chahal is yet to play a match in the tournament and Ashwin ended up conceding 43 runs in his four overs.
“I also feel they should bring in Yuzvendra Chahal in place of Ashwin. He is a bowler who takes wickets. You don't mind giving away runs as long as you take 2-3 wickets. Chahal is a big match-winner and he is among the highest ranked T20 bowlers in the world,” he said.
“They might be going with experience and that's why they may be selecting Ashwin. Their team also had a lot of left-handers and they may have looked at that factor as well. But I feel that if you have a good bowler, he will bowl well regardless of whether it is a left-hander or right-hander on strike. This is just about the thought process. Chahal has made his reputation by taking wickets, he has proven he is a big-match winner in these smaller formats. I don't think there is a better leg-spinner than him. It is a mistake to not let him play and if it was in my hands, I wouldn't have let this mistake happen in the first place because I would have included him in the squad."
