‘We planned to keep things tight’: Arshdeep Singh reveals India’s strategy to stop Shai Hope
Arshdeep Singh (PTI Photo) NEW DELHI: India’s bowlers had a clear plan to stop Shai Hope’s impressive run against them and left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh was delighted to see it work in the third T20I against West Indies in Indore on Sunday.Hope was in sensational form across the ODI and T20I series, scoring back-to-back runs in the 50-over format before producing a half-century in the opening T20I and an unbeaten 102 in the second. However, the West Indies captain managed just five runs in Indore when Arshdeep bowled the second over as India restricted the visitors to 209/7 and defended 223.India won by 14 runs to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series with Arshdeep finishing with three wickets, including crucial dismissals of Hope, Sherfane Rutherford and Keemo Paul.“Before the match we planned to stick to it and when you execute that plan in the match, it feels good to get the result. I am thankful to the coaches for working on the plan and they told me that I can use it in the match and it worked,” Arshdeep said in a video posted on bcci.tv on Monday.
“All six pitchers signed up”
Arshdeep credited the entire bowling attack for maintaining the pressure while defending a formidable total, pointing to the collective effort that helped India bounce back after West Indies chased down 250 in the previous match.“I bowled very well. Mayank kept the pressure from the other end and all six bowlers, they all chipped in and bowled very well. It’s a good feeling when you get a bit of pressure to execute the plans. So it’s good fun,” he said.Arshdeep also had a light-hearted moment as he apologized to Axar Patel for a mix-up in the middle overs that resulted in the all-rounder being run out.“I would like to apologize Axar bhai. Sorry, Axar bhai. I let you run out,” he said.Temper said he is continuing to work on his batting as India look for useful contributions from the lower order.“I keep trying in batting. The results are rare. But today it just connected well. As the coaches trust us, we have to do it in batting and get a few runs down the order. So it’s important to work on batting like this,” he added.
Ian Bishop praises India’s bowling plans
Former India pacer Ian Bishop also praised India’s execution, highlighting their use of yorkers and wide lines, Arshdeep’s leadership of the attack and Naman Dhir’s support. He also pointed to the absence of dew as a factor that helped the bowlers.“First of all, congratulations to India. West Indies found a bit of range with the ball after about number eight through Roston Chase, then Springer, then Motie, but those runs at the back end from Prince Yadav proved to be key. Then we saw the yorkers. Shreyas Iyer mentioned at the toss that he got the Prince Yadav guys and bowling back into the team for the first time in the series to play with Prince Yadav and bowling.” these are critical plans.“Arshdeep is the leader of the attack and with a bit of help from Naman Dhir he sorted it out pretty quickly. The critical factor of course was that no dew formed. All in all, it’s good to see the bowlers having a better day in a batsman-dominated series. West Indies will be looking to do a few things from that bowling perspective next time,” Bishop told JioStar.Arshdeep, meanwhile, said the relaxed atmosphere in the Indian dressing room and his willingness to learn continue to help him improve.“It’s a very cold environment in the dressing room. There’s no one there who acts like they’ve played more or less games. The atmosphere is very cold,” he said.“I’m always trying to learn something and get into a different skill set. There’s always a willingness to learn and improve my game and I feel like if I’m willing to learn then I’m going to keep improving my game and I’m always trying,” he added.
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