Abhishek Sharma and Kuldeep Yadav during practice ahead of the third T20 International cricket match. (Image: PTI Photo) DHARAMSHALA: By the time the Indian team arrived at the HPCA Stadium on Saturday night, the temperature had started dropping in the hills here. As the three-and-a-half-hour practice continued in the chilly weather, the nervousness in the Indian camp was palpable. South Africa have managed to expose India’s flaws in more ways than one would expect on this tour. Rarely does an Indian team undergo such extensive and intense practice on the eve of a match as on the eve of the third T20I on Sunday.As is customary with this team, it was officially an optional practice. But only Tilak Varma and Arshdeep Singh missed the session. The South African team, on the other hand, took a day off and went hiking in the hills. They feel they are in a better space with the series tied at 1-1.
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The T20 team under coach Gautam Gambhir seemed to be on autopilot for over a year. However, two months into the T20 World Cup, there have been problems. It starts with the struggle of captain Suryakumar Yadav and vice-captain Shubman Gill and spills over into some incomprehensible strategies and choices.Saturday was more about getting back to basics. As Washington Sundar climbed to the top, Hardik Pandya approached him and warned him: “This is a pitch where you have to be brave.” The course here has historically yielded big scores. But you can never discount the amount of movement and rebound space it offers to pitchers. The focus of the net session was on polishing each batter’s technique. Once Sanju Samson and Washington Sundar finished batting in the nets, Surya and Gill grabbed the spotlight for the rest of the evening. They jumped all four nets. Surya actually batted for well over 90 minutes – that’s how long an entire team’s T20 innings lasts. They went through drills that are seen more at the academy level, where the nuances of batting technique are worked on. Gill and Jitesh joined Pandya only after some thorough old-school batting into the nets under lights at the center square.Surya, for example, avoided his typical collection ramp and drove past the square on the opposite side to the pacer. Vertical batting and compact defense were the order of the day. He got to the stage where he was giving away runs and shots on the wheel against the spinners. When he started getting beat a lot, he switched to playing on the ground and practicing inside-out shots through cover.Surya is tagged at No. 3 in this batting line-up. But Axar Patel, who came into bat at No. 3 in the second over in the previous match, must have bruised the egos of the front-line batsmen. Tilak Varma predictably attributed this to the team’s much-loved flexibility. “I told the team that I can bat in any situation. But we want to be flexible. Axar has done a good job for the team in the T20 World Cup. So one has to be ready for whatever the team needs. But I don’t mind doing that,” Varma said on Saturday.Playing the moving new ball was a big challenge. Gill just sticks to the ball off the back foot. His weaknesses against good length new pitches are well documented. Deliveries outside started catching the outside edge more often. Thus, one saw him working overtime on the backfoot awl square the goal and upper cuts to exploit the field in the power play. As Surya retired to the dressing room, Gill stayed behind for a long and intense conversation with Gambhir and assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate. For someone obsessed with his bat, Gill must be aware that he doesn’t have much time to iron out the gaps in his bat. As India struggle to find their best T20 game, South Africa seem to be in more control. “It might look like we’re a little unsure with the amount of changes, but we have a pretty good idea of what our World Cup squad will look like,” South Africa coach Shukri Conrad said.
