India vs South Africa: India were looking to win their 8th successive T20I series at home but the series finale against South Africa was called off due to rain in Bengaluru on Sunday.
India’s T20I series-winning streak at home ends after finale vs SA called-off (AP Photo)
HIGHLIGHTS
- India and South Africa T20I series ended in 2-2 draw
- India were looking to win their 8th successive T20I series at home
- Pant’s first stint as India captain had mixed results
India missed out on an opportunity to win their 7th successive T20I series at home as rain played spoilsport in the series finale against South Africa in Bengaluru on Sunday, June 19. Only 3.3 overs were bowled in the final T20i as the decider was called-off due to rain at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium even as fans waited patiently for the action to resume but a steady drizzle did not stop until the cut-off time of 10:02 pm IST.
India last failed to win a T20I series at home when a 3-match T20I series against South Africa ended in a 1-1 draw after the first match in Dharamsala in September 2019 was abandoned without a ball being bowled.
India defeated Bangladesh (2-1), West Indies (2-1), and Sri Lanka (2-0) in the 2019-20 season in T20Is at home. India outclassed England (3-2) in a T20I series at home last year before hammering New Zealand 3-0 last year. India continued the winning run, clean sweeping West Indies and Sri Lanka earlier this year before the start of Indian Premier League 2021.
Notably, India’s 12-match winning streak in T20I cricket came to an end when they lost the series opener against South Africa in New Delhi on June 9. India were in danger of losing the T20I series when they lost the 2nd T20I in Cuttack.
However, under stand-in captain Rishabh Pant, India showed character to bounce back and make it 2-2 before the series finale in Bengaluru.
“There are a lot of positives. The way the team showed character from 0-2 down was a huge positive. We are in a nice spot as we are finding different ways to win the game,” captain Rishabh Pant spoke of India’s bounce back in the T20I series.
SA CONTINUE UNBEATEN RUN
On the other hand, South Africa continued their 11-year streak of not losing a white-ball series in India. The last time they lost a white-ball series was when they lost an ODI series 2-3 in 2010.
Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar Kumar became the only Indian pacer to win the Player of the Series twice in T20I series. He was handed over the award in 2018 in an away series in South Africa and won the award again for his exploits in the drawn series at home this year.