00:06A stunning performance from the men in blue especially when they were tested in their moments
00:10where the inexperienced bowlers were really really put on the line but they came out thriving there
00:16with especially that phenomenal performance from Deepak Chahabras. It was set up by the batsmen
00:20particularly Keir Rahul and Shreyas Iyer contributing. India winning the three match series against Bangladesh.
00:30Thank you so much for joining us here on Match Point with VVS Lakshman and Mitch McLennan.
00:35A phenomenal performance from Team India especially when the stakes were high, the series were on the line
00:40and we have to come away talking about Deepak Chahabras. I mean the figures will of course
00:46he'll be something he'll be so proud of but he might be more proud about the fact that he helped
00:50India seal the series
00:51when they needed him to. Absolutely and especially in the absence of Bumrah and Buna Shukumar
00:55two established fast bowlers and what was really impressive, yes, first Indian to take an hat-trick,
01:01you know, best figures in T20 International but he bowled the tough overs. You know, we know Deepak Chahabras
01:06has the ability to pick up wickets with the new ball but in this series and even today's game what
01:11we saw
01:11is him using his variation, deceiving the batsmen with pace, you know, finding out what the batsmen are doing
01:18and then changing the line, the length he's bowling to them and he's got a lot of variation up his
01:23sleeve
01:23and he knows when to use them and how to use them. So I think I'm really impressed with the
01:28hard work
01:28he's put in to become more versatile and now he can bowl the tough overs not only in the power
01:33play
01:33but in the middle and at the end of the innings. An extraordinary record. He'll take that match ball
01:39and he'll put it in a trophy shelf. He will remember that but what Lakshman spoke about is the evolution
01:44for Deepak Chahabras because it was a largely untested Indian bowling line-up. He had to be the senior.
01:49He had to be ready to bowl those tough overs when the conditions were also a little tough. The ball
01:53was wet.
01:54Yeah, he took the senior bowler mantle on very, very well. I thought he was outstanding. He led that attack.
02:01The smarts he showed in terms of bowling, wide slow balls and fast straight Yorkers mixing it up
02:07and changing his length as well. He bowled some beautiful slow ball bumpers and a couple of quick ones in
02:12there
02:12throughout the whole series. I thought he was incredibly impressive and showed that the experience
02:17he's gained over the last two years under MS Dhani have obviously put him in good stead to perform
02:22in international cricket. Understandably man of the series but someone else who put such a great showing
02:27was Shreyas Iyer. You look at India's progression. Now we've always spoken about that the middle order
02:32is a little suspect in recent times in T20 internationals. You lost both your openers early.
02:37You lost Rohit Sharma, the man in form, incredibly early on. But the stability that you see
02:42in those middle overs is because of what Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul did. And particularly for Shreyas,
02:47he has made a statement in the series. Yeah, he's made a statement and I'm sure that he's established
02:51himself as a number four batsman leading up to the T20 World Cup. But what was again very impressive
02:56was the situational awareness he has shown. You know, when KL Rahul was batting alongside him,
03:02he was playing the second fiddle role. And the moment KL Rahul got out and Rishapun,
03:06who was under pressure, who was not timing the ball well, he took the, you know,
03:11he showed the intent of putting pressure on the Bangladeshi bowlers. The way he transformed
03:17his role, became the aggressor, suddenly his strike rate skyrocketed. And I think some of the
03:23shots he played was sublime. But even though he was playing those big shots, they were all high percentage shots.
03:30Down the ground, with the turn, he knew which bowler to attack. The moment the sixth bowling option came,
03:35he went big three consecutive sixes against him. And that shows that he's a mature player. Yeah,
03:39he's done well for Delhi Capitals as a captain. And that maturity was very clearly, you know,
03:46on exhibition today.
03:47In recent times, Mitch, India's top three don't have the most impressive strike rates, you know.
03:52But then you have players like Rohit and Virat who go on and bat deep into innings.
03:56But when you put KL Rahul as an opener, it changes the complexion. The way that he batted today,
04:01would you feel that he's made a case for himself as an opener?
04:04Well, I definitely think he has. He was impressive today. I thought, under pressure,
04:09losing Rohit early, who had such a fantastic game last game and almost single-handedly won that game
04:15for India last game. I thought to come out under that pressure, play the strokes he did,
04:20played nice and late, hit gaps. When he needed to step up the gears, geez, he took the bowling on.
04:25I was super impressed with the intent he showed, knowing full well that he's in a bit of a battle
04:31for that opening spot. So I thought it was a great way of showing that he's up to the mark
04:37and that he wants to be on that plane to Australia in 2020.
04:39In shorter formats, KL has just adapted to those sort of situations wherever he's asked to bat.
04:44But speaking of standing up and making it count, Shivam Dubey in a series decider
04:49when India were playing with a bowler short.
04:51Yeah, I mean, there was a lot of pressure on him. And I thought Rohit handled him really well.
04:56The first two overs was very expensive. What I really liked was after the dismissal of Methun,
05:01there was a chat Rohit had with all the bowlers and the entire team.
05:06And immediately, there was a huge transformation in the way Shivam Dubey approached his third over.
05:12There was a lot of change-up deliveries. He got Mushfikur Rahim and then he got two more wickets.
05:17And it shows that he's got the ability to perform not only as a batsman,
05:21not only as a striker batting at number six, number seven,
05:24but he's also got an ability to contribute to the team as a bowler.
05:27So very impressed. And I hope that the selection committee and the team management invests in this all-rounder
05:32because in the absence of Ardik Pandya, this skill set is very rare in India.
05:36And he's got that ability to hit those big shots. Now, you've seen he's electric on the field
05:40and he's got the ability to pick up wickets and contribute in bowling as well.
05:44Mitch would know a thing to go about those chats from Rohit Sharma.
05:47I think Dubey responded. I think as an all-rounder, I think you've got to be super adaptable.
05:53Adaptable is probably the biggest word when it comes to being an all-rounder in T20 cricket.
05:57You've got to float between three to six or seven sometimes.
06:01And with the ball, you're going to come in when your team's on top and when you're behind.
06:04And I thought the way he adapted and changing his plans, changing his lines, changing his deliveries
06:09was exceptional for such a young man in his third international cricket game
06:13to come out and change his plan midway through when he wasn't going well,
06:16do what Rohit's asked him to do. Outstanding.
06:19Certainly made a difference in India. Walk away victorious here with the series in the back.
06:24But now they shift their focus to test cricket.
06:27Really looking forward to the first test match, which will be in Indor.
06:30We start on the 14th with our coverage. It's going to be so exciting.
06:34Hoping for a more competitive series before we move on to what will be the second test match,
06:39the first ever day-night test match.
06:41But Indor is where we begin and looking forward to seeing your company again.
06:45Gentlemen, thank you so much for joining us on Matchpoint with all your insight.
06:48We will see you next time. Bye for now.
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