India vs South Africa 2022: 2nd T20I – Who Said What

India have finally managed to get over the line in a T20I series at home against the Proteas as Rohit Sharma's men defeated the visitors by 16 runs in the second T20I. The Men in Blue were given a huge scare by the veteran southpaw David Miller, who recorded a sensational second T20I century amidst carnage in Guwahati.

Rohit Sharma's side started off the innings with a belligerent 96-run opening stand between KL Rahul and the skipper himself. India were scoring at a brisk rate, but the in-form Suryakumar Yadav, who recently became India's leading run scorer in T20Is in a calendar year, took up the scoring rate to another level.

His record-breaking partnership with Virat Kohli put the visitors on the backfoot as India finished with 237 runs, the fourth highest T20I total of all time. India were the favorites to win the game from thereon and a terrific powerplay from the bowlers almost sealed the deal for the hosts.

But David Miller had other ideas as he came out all guns blazing in pursuit of a potential record-setting chase. The southpaw looked a cut above the rest and complied a memorable ton to take South Africa as close as he could have. His unbeaten 174-run partnership with Quinton de Kock was the highest fourth-wicket partnership in the history of T20Is.

Losing Captain, Temba Bavuma said: 

It probably wasn't our best performance with the ball. Different conditions and different plans were needed. Execution is our plans is where our conversation is going to be. With 220, we were thinking as batters would be good. But 240 was too high. It shows why David Miller is one of the best T20 batters going around. He is looking good, feeling good and we can draw a lot of confidence from his performance today. Their bowlers got the ball to swing at the top and once it stopped swinging, we saw how easy it was to bat.

Winning Captain, Rohit Sharma said:

It is something that all of came together and said was what we wanted to do as a team. It might not come across at times, but we want to stick to it. What I have seen in the last 8-10 months is individuals putting their hand up and getting the job done for the team. Guys without too much experience did this as well. The team wants to play and bowl in a certain way and we want to give them that confidence. Yes, we have not bowled well at the death in the last five or six games. We are doing the same to the opposition as well. To bowl and bat at the death is very tough. That is where the game is decided. It is not concerning, but we need to pick ourselves and get our act together. I am thinking of not playing Surya anymore and play him directly on 23rd. This is how is game is and we just want to keep him happy.

Player of the Match, KL Rahul said:

It is important as an opener to understand what is required on a day and give it your best. It is the mindset I have always played in and will continue to do the same. Satisfying to test yourself in different conditions. Quite honestly, after the first two overs, the chat between me and Rohit was that the pitch was gripping. We thought 180-185 would be a good target. But the game surprises us. I am surpirsed I am getting the Man of the Match award, Surya should have gotten it. He changed the game. Having batted in the middle order, I have realized that it is difficult. DK doesn't always get too many balls to face, and he was phenomenal, and so were Surya and Virat. The back foot punch off the first ball set me up. When I play both sides of the wicket, I know my balance is good. It tells me my head is stable. The crowds always turn up in India. It has been a while since cricket has been played in full stadiums. Phenomenal to see.