Team India suffered a four-wicket defeat against England in the second T20I of the five-match series at Old Trafford, Manchester on Saturday (July 4).
Opting to bat first, the Men in Blue posted a competitive 190/7 in their 20 overs. Despite reducing England to a shaky start, with Arshdeep Singh making early inroads, the momentum completely shifted in the latter half of the chase.
The hosts overhauled the target with an over to spare, finishing at 191/6. Jacob Bethell led the way with an unbeaten 76 off 46 balls.
The match swung dramatically in the 17th over when Ravi Bishnoi leaked 29 runs, including a couple of no balls resulting in free-hits. The leg-spinner conceded 60 runs in his quota of four overs and failed to claim a wicket.
Following the game, former India all-rounder Pathan criticized Bishnoi's highly expensive and undisciplined bowling spell.
Highlighting that this wasn't an isolated incident, Pathan pointed out that Rajasthan Royals (RR) dropped Bishnoi from their playing 12 during the season precisely due to these persistent control and discipline issues.
"I felt England were in the game when they needed 49 runs in 24 balls, especially on a pitch where the ball was coming nicely onto the bat. Even if those no-balls had not come, I felt England were taking the game forward comfortably because a set batter was there. Then Jacob Bethell's wicket would have been very important for India," Pathan said while speaking on JioHotstar.
"However, the three no-balls made the job very easy. Considering the angle he has, he will cut the side line. That angle brings him into a very comfortable position. When he changed that angle, he couldn't bowl the right length. So he will have to go to the nets and work on it. Rajasthan Royals dropped him from the playing 12 because of this control only," he added.
Pathan further stated that the 25-year-old spinner needs to urgently return to the practice nets to fix his run-up alignment and regain control.
"So Ravi Bishnoi will have to bring that control. He is a seasoned bowler. I am very happy that he got an opportunity because he was the No. 1 bowler in T20Is when he got dropped. He has made a comeback now and has gotten a chance. It was a difficult game for him for sure, but he will have to work hard on the angle," he remarked.
During the same discussion, former India wicketkeeper Saba Karim mentioned that Ravi Bishnoi’s lack of pace variation made life easier for the English batters.
"There is no variation in speed. The surface was batter-friendly, and if you bowl at this pace only, it will be easy to play shots. Then you (the batters) picked the angle properly and played shots in that direction only. Until you have variation and put more revs on the ball, you won't trap the batters, and that's what we saw. I feel that's a weak spot Ravi Bishnoi needs to work on," Saba said.
"The momentum was not with Jacob Bethell. He was playing at almost a run-a-ball before Ravi Bishnoi's over. That was hurting England. Ravi Bishnoi gave that opening. You cannot afford to bowl no-balls at that critical moment, and that too to a batter who had gotten set and was waiting for such an opportunity," he added.
With this loss, India conceded a 1-0 lead to England in the five-match series. The third T20I will be played at Trent Bridge on Tuesday (July 7).
