India’s stand-in skipper Rishabh Pant on Friday (17th June) talked about his side’s win over South Africa in the fourth T20I in Rajkot. He lauded Dinesh Karthik for his innings under pressure, saying that the senior batter went in for a kill.
India completed a comfortable 82-run victory in the fourth T20I to level the T20I series 2-2 against South Africa. Asked to bat first, the hosts lost wickets in quick succession and were reduced to 81/4 with Ruturaj Gaikwad (5), Ishan Kishan (27), Shreyas Iyer (4) and Pant (17) back in the hut.
However, after that Hardik Pandya (46 off 31 balls) and Dinesh Karthik (55 off 27 balls) stitched together a crucial 65-run stand and took the Proteas bowling attack to the cleaners. On account of their knocks, the hosts posted a total of 169 runs on the board after a sloppy start.
Defending the target, Indian bowlers were spot on and never let South African batters settle. Avesh Khan starred with the ball and returned with the figures of 4/18 whereas Yuzvendra Chahal (2/21), Harshal Patel (1/3) and Akshar Patel (1/19) combined to pick 4 wickets as the hosts bundled out the opposition for just 87 runs to level the series.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Rishabh Pant said that after losing the first two games they talked about executing plans and playing better cricket. He lauded Pandya and Karthik for the show the duo put up.
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“We talked about execution and playing better cricket and here are the results. Whichever team plays better cricket wins the game. Maybe I will toss with the right hand in the next game and be positive. Really happy with the way Hardik put up a show. DK went for the kill right away and that gave us the positivity,” Rishabh Pant said.
Pant said that although he’s not concerned much about his low scores, he will look to improve certain areas. He said that his side will give their 100% in the decider in Bengaluru.
“As an individual, I can look to improve in certain areas. Not too concerned though; looking to take the positives and looking to improve. Let's see what happens in Bangalore. Looking forward to give our 100%,” he said.
The fifth match of the series, which will also be the decider, is slated to take place on Sunday (19th June) at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
(Star Sports inputs)
