India’s fast bowler Arshdeep Singh didn’t have a great series against Australia but he was able to deliver in the final T20I. Singh had 10 runs in the bank with Matthew Wade on strike in the final over but he conceded only three runs to help India win by six runs and seal the series by 4-1 at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru on Sunday.
Singh was lucky to get away with the first ball as the square leg umpire didn’t signal a wide when the ball had gone above Matthew Wade’s head. The left-arm seamer then nailed his yorker and accounted for Wade on the third delivery of the over.
In fact, Singh had conceded 37 runs in his first three overs but he was able to pull up his socks when it mattered the most in the final over. Singh gave gratitude to Suryakumar Yadav and the team’s support staff for backing him.
Singh said after the game, “I was thinking that I gave away too many runs (in the first three overs) and was hoping for another chance, and thanks to God, I defended it and also thanks to the staff that they believed in me. Surya (before bowling the final over) told me whatever happens, happens, and credit goes to the batters as well.”
He added, “We had a cushion of 15-20 runs and it was definitely more than par. According to the standards we have set as an Indian team, it was not near par (speaking about his performances in this series) but there are a lot of learnings to take and hoping to come back stronger.”
On the other hand, Shreyas Iyer played a crucial knock of 53 runs off 37 balls to help India post 160 runs on the board. Iyer was delighted to play a vital role in the team’s win and he also gave credit to Arshdeep Singh for holding his nerves in the last over.
He said after the game, “Elated to see everyone chipping in and the way these guys stood up from game one, especially in the batting department is mesmerising to see. I could see the calmness in him (Arshdeep) when he was bowling the last over, kudos to the way he composed himself.”
The first T20I between India and South Africa will be played at Kingsmead, Durban on 10th December.
