The Indian team started the T20 series against South Africa with a big win. In the match played in Cuttack, the Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian team bowled out South Africa for just 74 runs and won the match by 101 runs. The second match of the series is scheduled to take place on Thursday, December 11, which will be a very special occasion as this new stadium in New Chandigarh will host men's international cricket for the first time.
India's first match in the new stadium
The second match of the T20 series between India and South Africa will be played at the Maharaja Yadavinder Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, New Chandigarh. The new stadium was inaugurated last year, but the Indian men's team is yet to play a single match there. Only two ODIs between India and Australia women's teams have been played at this stadium. So, this match will not be easy for both the teams.
Organized matches in two IPL seasons
But it is not that the Indian players do not have the experience of playing on this ground. Even though international cricket is not played there, Mullanpur Stadium has hosted several matches in two consecutive IPL seasons, including star players like Arshdeep Singh to Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya and Shubman Gill, who will also play in the match. Thus, they have some experience of playing here, but it is important to know who has performed well on this ground.
Who performed how?
As for Abhishek, he played only one IPL match here, in which he scored just 16 runs. Shubman Gill also scored only 36 runs in two innings. However, captain Suryakumar Yadav, who is struggling with poor form, has batted brilliantly here. Surya scored 111 runs in 73 balls in two innings. Tilak Verma also scored 59 runs in 29 balls in two innings. Hardik Pandya also scored 22 runs in 9 balls in one innings.
Average performance by Arshdeep Singh
Coming to the bowling, Arshdeep Singh has played many matches on this ground, but his performances have been average. The left-arm fast bowler has played a total of 10 matches at the Maharaja Yadwinder Singh Stadium, taking just 11 wickets. In the meantime, he has taken quite a beating at times.
Will Harshit drop again?
Apart from him, Jasprit Bumrah has bowled brilliantly here, taking 4 wickets in 2 matches. Harshit Rana and Varun Chakraborty have also played one match each at this ground, with Harshit taking 3 wickets and Varun Chakraborty taking 2 wickets. So far, all but Harshit were part of the playing eleven for the first T20 match. So, all eyes will be on whether Harshit will be selected for the second match or not.
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