Rishabh Pant and Keshav Maharaj pose with the series trophy in Bengaluru.
Highlights
- The India-South Africa series ended in a 2-2 draw
- Rain played spoilsport in the decider at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium
- Rishabh Pant hailed his side for bouncing back after suffering initial setbacks
Rishabh Pant praised the Indian unit for bouncing back in the series against South Africa after initially losing the first two matches. The decider at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru got washed out as the series ended in 2-2 with both India and South Africa sharing the honours.
Pant, who was leading the side said the team showed character and that there are a lot of positives to take from the series.
"It might get a little bit frustrating, but there are a lot of positives, especially the way the whole team showed character after the series was 2-0. We are trying to find different ways of winning matches, we are trying to play in a new way," Pant said.
"Mistakes will happen, but we are going in the right way. I think this is the first time I've lost this many tosses at the same time, but it's not in my control, so I'm not thinking about it too much," he said.
On his personal form, Pant said: "From a personal point of view I would like to contribute more to making my team win. I can only think about giving my 100 per cent as a player and captain."
Player of the series Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who finished with six wickets for 85 runs with a best of 4/13, said it's always a proud moment to win the honour in a T20 series.
"When you get Man of the Series, it's always a proud moment, and as a bowler in T20, it's even better. I'm always focused on getting back stronger, whether it's my bowling or my fitness. I'm playing for years now, my role has always been the same. Bowl two in the powerplay, bowl two at the end. These things are always the same, but as a senior I always think about helping the youngsters,"Bhuvneshwar said.
"I've been lucky that the captain has given me the full hand and said do what you want. In that regard I've been blessed," he signed off.
India and South Africa shared the trophy after the last game was called off with only 3.3 overs of play possible.
After being put in to bat, a steady downpour delayed the game by 50 minutes. It started raining just when the game was about to start.
The curtailed match did start at 7:50 PM but was called off after only 16 minutes of play in which India managed 28 runs for the loss of two wickets.
South Africa skipper Keshav Maharaj, who stood in for injured regular captain Temba Bavuma, said it was disappointing to draw the curtains on such an exciting tour in this fashion.
"Very disappointed we didn't get a full game for the end of an exciting tour. We tried a few combinations. Still a work in progress for Australia. You may still see changes. I am sure the future series against India will be interesting like this one. We carried our confidence from past tours and at the same time we didn't want to take anything for granted," he said.
(Inputs PTI)
