India switch up bowling plans with Hardik Pandya

Suryakumar Yadav could only watch resignedly as Donovan Ferreira swatted Jasprit Bumrah for a six. It was the fourth time Bumrah was hit over the ropes in the innings—a personal record for him in a T20I.

Earlier, Arshdeep Singh’s ninth wide of the night drew a cold, exasperated look from his captain. Arshdeep conceded 54 runs, the second-most expensive spell of his T20I career.

It was a rare off day for India’s pace duo, who moved from the spicy pitch in Cuttack to the flat track in Chandigarh within 48 hours. There was some early bounce and movement, but they couldn’t capitalise. Once the dew set in, South Africa’s batters punished their errors in length and line.

The visitors posted 213/4, and with their own pacers ripping through India’s top order inside four overs, the contest swung firmly in South Africa’s favour.

India lost a T20I with both Bumrah and Arshdeep playing together for the first time in 14 matches. The team is in an exploratory phase, clearly preparing for the T20 World Cup, as seen with Axar Patel’s promotion to No. 3 in the chase.

A key part of this experimentation is Hardik Pandya’s role with the ball. Used in the middle overs, Pandya surprisingly relied heavily on slower balls on a pitch that didn’t offer much hold. He did manage to fox Quinton de Kock, who was in sublime touch, but was also hit for boundaries and a six.

Bowling well below full pace—exceeding 134 kmph only three times in his spell—Pandya proved expensive.

Despite the off day, India’s pace attack looks more balanced on paper with Pandya supporting Arshdeep and Bumrah. His overs provide a cushion at the death and prevent the frontline duo from being overused if a partnership builds. Having all three chip in during the powerplay gives India a strong chance to break the game open early.

This is a position of luxury for India—three pace options who can operate in all phases. But it comes at the cost of leaving the in-form Kuldeep Yadav out of the XI. It’s a recent change for the Suryakumar Yadav-led side, and the perfect blueprint is far from settled with the World Cup in mind.

Pandya, who had bowled 32 overs in the powerplay since the start of 2024, has not been used in that role in the first two games of this series.

“For this series, and the conditions on offer, we are playing two out-and-out seamers who are going to take the new ball,” explained India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate. “Varun [Chakaravarthy] has been very good at the back end of the powerplay. We want to use the right tools at the right time.”

Despite the wealth of resources, the defeat raises questions. The scrutiny may not be on Pandya, Arshdeep, or Bumrah individually, but on how long India will persist with this new combination.

Even as conditions warrant three pace options, India have preferred to trust their spin arsenal in recent months across various venues. If the desired results don’t come by the series end, a return to more familiar ways can’t be ruled out—a decision that would directly shape Pandya’s bowling role heading into the World Cup.