The Indian cricket team’s next destination on their ongoing five-match T20I series against South Africa is the picturesque Visakhapatnam where they will hope to end their losing streak against the opponent in 2022. The Rishabh Pant-led India have lost the opening two matches to concede a 0-2 lead and will be under pressure to keep the series alive when they face South Africa for the third T20I at the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium.
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The BCCI shared a stunning video of Indian cricket team’s journey from Cuttack, where they played the 2nd T20I, to Vizag – the venue of the crucial 3rd T20I – on their Twitter handle on Monday night. A bunch of India stars can be seen leaving the team hotel for the airport before the video cuts to their flight taking off followed by a welcome from the hotel staff in Vizag.
Watch the video below:
Vizag – we are here! 👍 👍
See you in the Stadium tomorrow. 👏 👏#TeamIndia | #INDvSA | @Paytm pic.twitter.com/fQlamvOyHn
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 13, 2022
In 2022, India are yet to beat South Africa in any format. Their streak began in early January when they lost the second Test in Johannesburg before losing the third and final match of the series as well in Cape Town. The hosts then clean swept a three-match ODI series.
South Africa then landed in India and defeated them in the T20I series opener in Delhi before making it 2-0 when they won the second contest in Cuttack. To keep the series alive, the India find themselves in a must-win situation tonight.
Pant’s captaincy has come under fire. In the first T20I the likes of Ashish Nehra and Aakash Chopra were critical of him for not bowling Yuzvendra Chahal’s full quote of four overs. And then in the second match, he was again taken to the task for playing Axar Patel ahead of Dinesh Karthik in the batting order.
Shreyas Iyer said the team is looking at the big picture i.e. T20 World Cup rather than focusing on the results of bilateral series.
“Our main aim is obviously the World Cup, so we have to see to it that we plan towards it,” Iyer said after India’s defeat in the 2nd T20I. “So we have that sort of mindset where we are completely free and not thinking about anything else. These are the actual games where we can practise what we were lacking in the past. That’s what we keep discussing in the team meeting as well. No matter what happens, whatever plans we discuss in the team meeting, we have to execute those. Even if we fail, we will learn from that and grow as a player and grow as a team. So that’s more important till we reach Australia.”
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