Shivam Dube responded well to Team India captain Rohit Sharma’s proposal during Sunday’s (January 14) 2nd T20I match in Indore, Bhopal, against Afghanistan. In the game’s first innings, the lanky pace bowling all-round player took a wicket as soon as he followed Rohit’s suggestion.
When Shivam Dube entered the field to deliver his first over of the match, the incident took place in the seventh over. The 30-year-old and Rohit had a brief conversation after the fourth ball of the over as the latter was returning to his run-up.
Shivam Dube dismissed Afghan batsman Azmatullah Omarzai with a stunning slower ball from his back of the hand on the very next delivery. With a jog towards his fellow countryman, Rohit expressed his happiness with the outcome and showed that their strategy had succeeded.
The following video captures the conversation between Rohit Sharma and Shivam Dube following the wicket:
Shivam Dube’s unbeaten 63 powers India to a six-wicket win in 2nd T20I
Afghanistan scored 172 in 20 overs, having been asked to bat first on an even ground. Gulbadin Naib (57), in third place, hit a dynamic half-century. Meanwhile, a couple of others made small, yet vital inputs.
India’s second inning opened with Rohit Sharma (0) out. Yashasvi Jaiswal (68) and Virat Kohli (29) teamed up for a speedy 57-run in the powerplay. This helped lessen the impact of the early loss.
Virat left in powerplay’s final over. Shivam Dube (63*), coming at number 4, showed up strong against Afghanistan’s spinners, pushing India forward in the chase.
After the game, Rohit Sharma spoke about how India played. He discussed their strategy and result in a presentation. He said:
“We’ve been very clear with what we’ve wanted to achieve. Very clear message to the team as well. When you see a performance like that you can feel proud about it as well. It’s one thing to talk about it but another thing to go out there and execute it. That’s a good positive for us. The last two games we’ve ticked almost every box, trying certain things in the powerplay, certain things in the middle-overs and the back end as well.”
Rohit Sharma
On Wednesday, January 17, Bangalore’s Chinnaswamy Stadium will play home to the third and final Twenty20 International of the series.
