India assistant coach Ryaqn tes Doieschate revealed the reason behind sending Axar Patel to bat at the No.3 spot during the second T20I of the five-match series against South Africa. The all-rounder surprisingly came out to bat after the side's first wicket fell in the form of Shubman Gill. This experiment didn't quite go well for the Men in Blue as Axar only managed to score 21 runs from as many deliveries before getting dismissed by Ottneil Baartman.
According to ten Doeschate, they elevated Axar in the batting order just to try to new combination. With only a few games left until the 2026 T20 World Cup, the team wants to explore as many batting options as they can.
"We are trying things combination-wise. We have eight or nine games before the T20 World Cup, and we have found ourselves three down at 35 over the last couple of months more times than we would have liked. So we are just exploring to extend our batting, the link between openers and the guys who we want to come out and smash around when things get easier," ten Doeschate said in the post-match press-conference.
De Kock helps South Africa post a mammoth total
Coming to the match, India invited South Africa to bat first after winning the toss. This decision didn't quite go their way as Quinton de Kock played a phenomenal knock of 90 runs, carrying the Proteas to a formidable total. The likes of Aiden Markram (29), Donovan Ferreira (30*) and David Miller (20*) also contributed well as the visitors posted a total of 213/4 in 20 overs.
India's poor batting display
In reply, India had a poor start and went on to lose three wickets within the powerplay itself. Tilak Varma was the only Indian batter who managed to cross the 30-run mark and went on to play a gritty bknock of 62. It proved to be a dismal batting display from India as they only managed to put 162 runs on the board before being bundled out. This saw them suffer their biggest T20I defeat by runs (51) at home. It was also the first time that they lost by a margin of 50 runs or more on home soil.