Shikhar Dhawan's 73 (retired not out) went in vain as India fell short by just 4 runs while chasing South Africa's 196-9 in 20 overs in the second warm-up match of the ICC World T20 at Wankhede
Shikhar Dhawan on his way to a 53-ball 73 against SA at Wankhede Stadium on Saturday
Shikhar Dhawan's 73 (retired not out) went in vain as India fell short by just four runs while chasing South Africa's 196-9 in 20 overs in the second warm-up match of the ICC World T20 at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.
Shikhar Dhawan on his way to a 53-ball 73 against SA at Wankhede Stadium on Saturday. Pic/Atul Kamble
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India were slow off the blocks, managing only 47-2 in the Powerplay overs. However, Dhawan and Suresh Raina (41 retired not out) stitched together a 94-run fourth wicket partnership which not just upped India's scoring rate but also steadied the ship after losing Rohit Sharma (10), Virat Kohli (1) and Ajinkya Rahane (11) inside 50 runs.
India keen to test its finishers, skipper MS Dhoni (31 not out) and Yuvraj Singh (16 not out) walked in when the Men in Blue needed 55 runs in the last four overs amidst 'Dhoni Dhoni' chants.
Dhoni took 12 and 15 runs off Chris Morris and Dale Steyn's overs, needing 28 to win off two overs. Yuvraj too joined the party as he hit some lofty shots, bringing the margin down to 14 off the final over. Morris, bowling the final over, conceded only four runs in the first four balls.
Dhoni hit the penultimate ball for a four that was followed with a wide. Needing five to win off the last ball, Dhoni hit it straight to the midwicket fielder.
Earlier, India missed the experience of Ashish Nehra and R Ashwin as the relatively inexperienced bowling line-up failed to stop the flow of runs.
Early wickets of Hashim Amla (5) and skipper Faf du Plessis (12) did not deter South African opener Quinton de Kock from playing his natural game. The southpaw hardly put a foot wrong in his 33-ball knock that included seven boundaries and two sixes. He eventually retired so that other batters could be tested.
De Kock and Duminy posted 77 runs for the third wicket as the game started drifting away from India's hands. While De Kock hit some big blows to off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, Duminy targeted Jasprit Bumrah and Pawan Negi.
Brief scores
South Africa 196-9 in 20 overs (J Duminy 67, Q de Kock 56; H Pandya 3-36, M Shami 2-37) beat India 192-5 in 20 overs (S Dhawan 73, S Raina 41, M Dhoni 31*; D Steyn 1-36, K Abbott 1-32) by 4 runs
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