“Rishabh Pant Made A Small Mistake”: Former India Star Surprised Yuzvendra Chahal Bowled Only 2 Overs In First T20I vs South Africa

India’s 12-game winning run in the shortest format came to an end after they lost to South Africa in the first T20I of the five-match series at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Thursday. India failed to defend a target of 212 as Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller played sensational knocks to take South Africa home. While analysing the game, former India pacer Ashish Nehra questioned India captain Rishabh Pant’s decision to utilise Yuzvendra Chahal for just 2.1 overs.

“First of all, the other team chased down 212-run target and Yuzvendra Chahal only bowled two overs. It’s not like he gave away 22 runs in one over. You’re constantly seeing that the runs are flowing. So, it was quite surprising to see a bowler like Chahal bowl just two overs,” Nehra said on Cricbuzz.

“Even if you’re considering the right-left combination, you should’ve given the ball to Chahal, especially considering the fact that you gave two over to Axar at that time,” he added.

Nehra, who had coached Gujarat Titans to the IPL 2022 title, also said Pant missed a trick or two by not bringing in Chahal while Miller and van der Dussen were hitting boundaries with ease.

“There was a point when you were thinking that although we’ve not taken wickets, we’ve managed to contain the flow of runs. However, once Miller started hitting boundaries, and the equation came down to 11 or 12 RPO, you should’ve brought Chahal in. That’s where I thought Rishabh Pant made a small mistake,” he stated.

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van der Dussen and Miller remained unbeaten on 75 (46) and 64 (31), respectively, as South Africa chased down the total with seven wickets and five balls to spare.

The second T20I will now be played at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack on Sunday, June 12.