Proving yet again why he is cut out for the big league, swashbuckling southpaw Rinku Singh struck a belligerent, unbeaten 39-ball 68 in the second India vs South Africa T20I in St George's Park, Gqeberha, on Tuesday, December 12, 2023. (Match Blog | Streaming | Key Battles | 1st T20I Highlights)
Rinku's typically enterprising knock, along with captain Suryakumar Yadav's stroke-filled half-century took India to a strong score of 180/7 in 19.3 overs, before it began pouring down and the covers had to be brought on with just three balls remaining in the innings.
The 26-year-old Rinku came in for special praise from the commentators on air for his match awareness and ability to play the field at every instance. The attacking left-hander mixed ones and twos with his trademark big hits to entertain all those watching. The most striking one of them was the six Rinku hit off the last ball of the 19th over.
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After smashing the part-time off-spin of South Africa captain Aiden Markram over wide long-on into the stands, Rinku followed it up with a superb lofted shot, straight down the ground over the bowler's head. The ball went sailing over the rope and into the media box, where it broke the glass with its force. You can watch the video of the incredible strike below.
Earlier, South Africa captain Aiden Markram won the toss and chose to bowl first in the second T20I of the three-match series against India. In a decision that surprised many, India left out Ravi Bishnoi, who was recently crowned the world No. 1 T20I bowler, in favour of left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav.
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Middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer was left out of the XI too. Meanwhile, India opener Ruturaj Gaikwad was unavailable for selection due to illness and Shubman Gill came into the side in his place. Tilak Varma, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Siraj also made their way into the XI as Axar Patel and Avesh Khan were left out of the line-up.
After relentless rain washed out the first T20I, it seemed like downpour in Gqeberha will impact the toss in the second game too. But even though there was a steady drizzle before the toss, it thankfully subsided just in time as Markram spun the toss in the middle. However, the threat of rain does loom large for the rest of the day.
The Suryakumar Yadav-led India are fresh from a 4-1 triumph over Australia at home, and will be raring to replicate the feat in challenging South African conditions.
Playing XIs
India: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Tilak Varma, 4 Suryakumar Yadav (capt), 5 Rinku Singh, 6 Jitesh Sharma (wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Arshdeep Singh, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Siraj, 11 Mukesh Kumar
South Africa: 1 Reeza Hendricks, 2 Matthew Breetzke, 3 Aiden Markram, 4 Heinrich Klaasen (wk), 5 David Miller, 6 Tristan Stubbs, 7 Marco Jansen, 8 Andile Phehlukwayo, 9 Gerald Coetzee, 10 Lizaad Williams, 11 Tabraiz Shamsi
