We did not lose because of one player: Ishan Kishan after a seven-wicket loss to SA in first T20I
Jun 10, 2022
New Delhi [India], June 10 : After his side's seven-wicket defeat to South Africa in the opening match of the five-match T20I series at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, Indian batter Ishan Kishan said the side did not lose the game because of one player.
Top-knocks by Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller took South Africa to a seven-wicket over India, in the first T20I of the five-match series, here at Arun Jaitely Stadium.
"We did not lose the game because of one player. We were going well till 10 overs when they (South Africa) had only 86 runs on the board. We would like to work on where we have gone wrong," said Kishan during a press conference.
The batter said the wicket was not easy to bat initially. "My target was to just attack the loose balls. You have to respect the bowlers," he added.
Kishan admitted that Miller is in great form right now. "We need to address the mistakes we did in this game. They (Van der Dussen and Miller) are world-class batters," he added.
Miller continues his great form with the bat. The batter also had a brilliant IPL 2022 in which he was instrumental in Gujarat Titans' maiden title win in their first season. In his 16 games, he scored 481 runs at an average of 68.71. He has scored two half-centuries, with the best score of 94*.
The batter said that KL Rahul and all-format captain Rohit Sharma are world-class players and he would not ask for his place when they are in the side.
Talking about the match, chasing 212 South Africa lost wickets at regular intervals and were 81/3 when Miller and Van der Dussen came in for the rescue. While van der Dussen struggled to play at the start, Miller continued his red-hot form and dominated Indian bowlers.
The two batters eventually put up an unbeaten partnership of 131 runs for the fourth wicket and brought up their fifties.
With only four runs left to win in the last over, van der Dussen sent the very first delivery of Chahal for a boundary and claimed a historical seven-wicket, with five balls remaining.
Earlier, after being put to bat first, India posted 211/4 in 20 overs. Ishan Kishan smashed 76 off 48 while Hardik Pandya also played the quick-fire knock of unbeaten 31 off 12.
South Africa has taken a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. The second T20I will take place on June 12.
