India captain Suryakumar Yadav was all praise for how the batters approached the pitch at the Carrara Oval in the 4th T20I against Australia, which they won by 48 runs. India took a 2-1 lead in the series with the win. They thus ensured that they won’t lose the series with only one match left in it.
Gill and Abhishek saw out most of the powerplay and put up a 56-run opening stand off 40 balls. Gill went on to be India’s highest scorer with 46 in 39 balls. “I feel credit goes to all the batters. The way Shubman and Abhishek started, they knew this was not a 200-220 wicket. They batted very smartly. It was a complete team effort from the batters,” Suryakumar said at the post-match presentation.
Suryakyumar said that it was an all-round effort that led to India’s clinical performance with the ball. Australia were all out for 119 runs chasing a target of 168. “The messages from outside were also clear. Me and Gauti (Gautam Gambhir) bhai, we are on the same page. There was a little dew but the bowlers adapted quickly,” said Suryakumar.
The 35-year-old also said it is good to have all-rounders in addition to his full-time bowlers who can contribute with a few overs and remain a wicket-taking threat. It was all-rounders Shivam Dube (2/20) and Axar Patel (2/20) who made the ealry inroads and put India on their way to victory. Washington Sundar (3/3) then took wickets off back to back deliveries to trigger Australia’s collapse after the first 10 overs. “Always good to have bowlers give you 2-3 overs. This combination suits us. People chipping in, raising their hands, bailing their side is great,” Suryakumar said.
Axar was the star of the show with his all-round performance and won player of the match. In addition to his two wickets, the 31-year-old also scored an unbeaten 21 in 11 balls which pushed India past 160. “If I have an impact for my team, I think that’s the best game for me. I don’t think that number 6 or 7 is my preferred position. I just go there and think what my team needs now, I’ll do that,” said Axar in the post-match presentation ceremony after receiving his award.