Varun Chakaravarthy proved to be the nemesis for Namibia batters in Delhi.
India recorded their biggest ever T20 World Cup victory by a margin of 93 runs against Namibia on Thursday (February 12) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
Opener Ishan Kishan (61 off 24) and all-rounder Hardik Pandya (52 off 28) produced aggressive half-centuries, propelling the hosts to a formidable total of 209/9 after being put in to bat first.
In reply, Namibia’s innings folded for 116 in 18.2 overs, with Varun Chakaravarthy (3-7), Hardik (2-21) and Axar Patel (2-20) doing the bulk of the game. Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Shivam Dube shared the remaining three scalps.
After being outclassed by India, Namibia skipper Gerhard Erasmus conceded that their batters had no clue while facing the mystery spin of Chakaravarthy.
Varun Chakravarthy was introduced into the attack just after the powerplay ended and he struck on the very first ball with a googly. The mystery spinner picked up three wickets in 12 balls, prompting Erasmus to say that the game was done there.
"It's mystery bowling. Yes, there's leg spin googly every now and again that you face, and people have become accustomed to that. It's only in a few countries that they have guys like Varun, Mujeeb and these types of guys.
"I don't think there's anyone in the associate cricket that bowls it. Honestly, I have to say that that was the game-breaker right there. It was really just a new skill that we've never seen," Erasmus said in the post-match presser.
Erasmus also stated that the margin of defeat was not a fair reflection of how his team played against the defending champions.
"Through periods of that bowling performance (Chakaravarthy's spell), guys stuck up, especially towards the back end of the game of their batting innings. So that's kind of something that you have to really get accustomed to is when you play in big stadiums in front of crowds and against big teams.
"It's not to be overawed as a first step. Then you can express your skills better. I felt that some guys did it in patches, but unfortunately some of those big overs that leaked and also that period of batting when we went three or four wickets straight," he added.
According to Erasmus, the players must learn to perform on the biggest stage to graduate to the next level.
"If you want to be a high-class cricketer, then you have to have courage, but you also have to have calmness and the presence of mind to perform your skills under that pressure. For example, my shot was just a little bit way too far away from the ball. I have to get it closer to the ball.
"How can you, under the exposure that you have there with 40,000 fans and high-quality bowling, how can you access the same skills that you do when you play your peers, I guess, when you play in associate cricket and play in front of no crowds," the captain remarked.
(With PTI Inputs)