Arshdeep worried ‘being the culprit’ if last-over vs AUS didn’t go as per plan | Cricket

Arshdeep Singh on Sunday gave a timely reminder as to why he was being shaped as India’s go-to death bowling option last year in T20Is during the absence of Jasprit Bumrah. The left-arm quick bowled the perfect final over to defend 10 off it against Australia captain Matthew Wade to give India a convincing 4-1 series win. Arshdeep bowled two dots, gave away three singles and picked up a wicket to deny Australia the consolation prize and take a huge step in solidifying his place for the T20 World Cup at the West Indies and United States in six months from now.

Having conceded 37 off his first three overs, not many would have placed their bets on Arshdeep, but the icy-cool quick proved the detractors wrong. Wade had struck 15 off the 18th over and Australia got 7 off the penultimate one, bowled by Mukesh Kumar. But with 10 to get and Wade on strike, Australia were comfortably placed to get over the line. Arshdeep, however had other plans. Starting the over with two dots, he took out Wade making it that tough for the Aussies to knock off 10 off three.

After the match, Arshdeep admitted that he was worried about becoming ‘the culprit’ had things not gone as per the plan. Last year, Arshdeep was in the firing line many times in T20Is for India – most remarkably while bowling the last over against Sri Lanka and Pakistan at the Asia Cup, both of which India lost – but one year later, the 24-year-old showed once again that he’s still got it.

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“I guess for the big part of the game, for almost the first 19 overs, I was thinking that I gave away too many runs and would be the culprit of the game. But god gave me another chance and I believed in myself. Thanks to god that I defended it and thanks to the staff as well who believed in me,” Arshdeep said while speaking to the host broadcaster after the match.

Given the dimensions of the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru due to which no total is safe. That India defended 160 is a pretty big achievement in itself. While bowling the last over, Arshdeep’s mind would have harked back to Dubai and Abu Dhabi, where despite bowling a tidy final over, he couldn’t help India. This time around though, he was a lot more composed and speaking to captain Suryakumar Yadav went a long way in helping Arshdeep maintain his poise.

“To be honest, nothing was going through my mind. Surya [Suryakumar Yadav] bhai told me that whatever happens, happens. The credit goes to our batsmen as well. They gave us a really good total here on a tricky wicket and we had a cushion of an extra 15 to 20 runs. According to the standards we have set as a bowling unit in the Indian team, it was not even near par. But a lot of lessons learnt and, in the future, I will make sure to rectify those mistakes and come back stronger,” he added.