What India's experimental night revealed about Shivam Dube

In the tenth over of India's run-chase, Shivam Dube launched his first ball for a 101-meter six against left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner. Instead of turning to a seamer—often considered Dube's weakness—Santner brought on part-time offspinner Glenn Phillips, hoping to spin the ball away on a gripping Vizag pitch.

That decision highlighted Dube's evolution. Oppositions no longer see him as a batter who can simply be quieted with pace. There are more layers to his game now, making him a crucial part of India's T20I lineup.

This didn't happen overnight. Precedents include his 27 off 16 in the 2024 T20 World Cup final and 33 off 22 in the Asia Cup final, where he also bowled with the new ball in Hardik Pandya's absence.

But this chase in Vizag, though lower in stakes, demanded something different. India, already 3-0 up in the series, experimented: they played with only six batters, pushed Rinku Singh to No. 4, and used five frontline bowlers without fallback options.

"We purposely played six batters today," Suryakumar Yadav said. "We wanted to have five perfect bowlers and challenge ourselves. For example, if we're chasing 200 and we're two or three down, how does it look?"

The experiment unfolded quickly. Abhishek Sharma fell first ball. Ishan Kishan was absent. Sanju Samson struggled, and Suryakumar departed to a return catch. Dew didn't arrive, slowing the pitch and making timing difficult.

When Dube arrived in the ninth over, India's win probability was two percent. By the time he was run out, it had climbed to nine. India never seized control and suffered a heavy defeat, but the chase only looked alive with Dube at the crease.

He reached a 15-ball half-century—India's third-fastest in T20Is—briefly overlapping New Zealand's scoring rate. It was the only time that happened.

Shivam Dube scored 36 off 9 against spin and 29 off 14 against pace
©BCCI

Dube finished with 65 off 23 balls. He scored 36 off 9 against spin at a strike rate of 400, but his 29 off 14 against pace was equally important, preventing New Zealand from shutting down one avenue easily.

Santner, whose first ball was hit for six, summed it up: "When you flip it to Dube, he's very clear about what he wants to do. When the spinner comes on, he knows that's a good match-up for him… if he's going like that, it's pretty tough to stop."

Dube attributes this clarity to repetition and trust. "I'm getting better with my mindset because I'm playing all those matches now," he said. "I know what the bowler is going to come at me with. I've learned how to understand my strengths and where I can target them. It's about match-ups. They want me to hit spinners. That's my role, but I try to do that against fast bowlers as well."

Ironically, he didn't bowl at all by design that night.

On an experimental night for India, where answers mattered more than the result, Dube faced a clear ask. With little batting depth behind him, New Zealand's tactics—like persisting with spin after being hit—revealed where they saw the threat. The chase slipped away, but the image of Phillips being handed the ball to bowl to Dube lingered. It captured Dube's new standing: no longer a batter teams wait to expose, but one they actively plan to stop.