IND vs SA | 'I'd want South Africa to drop Miller': Bhuvneshwar Kumar's epic remark on Protea batter

Following a high-scoring thriller in Delhi in the series opener on Thursday (June 9), India and South Africa will lock horns against each other in the second match of a five-match T20I series on Sunday (June 12) at Cuttack's Barabati Stadium. 

The Men in Blue, despite putting up a mammoth target of 212 runs, ended up on a losing side as the South African batter David Miller, who is in the form of his life, along with Rassie van der Dussen, took the Indian bowlers to the cleaners to register a seven-wicket win with five balls to spare.

David Miller's journey in 2022 has been nothing less than an inspiring tale. He initially went unsold in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 mega auction but was later picked up by Gujarat Titans in the accelerated auction, and since then, there has been no looking back for the Protea batter.

The 33-year-old stepped up for the Titans and helped them finish the game on several occasions on the back of his brutal death over hitting. Miller, who smacked 481 runs in 16 matches at a strike rate of 141.72 in IPL 2022, continued his excellent form with the bat, aiding South Africa in sealing the first T20I against India.

Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who is currently leading the pace attack of team India in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, while speaking in a pre-match conference ahead of the second T20I, admitted that the left-hander was tough to bowl against.

"It is difficult bowling to Miller. He is in such good form," the medium-pacer said.

The Indian speedster was further asked about the plans against the hard-hitter Miller, to which Bhuvneshwar laughed and joked that he would want South Africa to drop him.

"I would want South Africa to drop him, but they would not do so. He batted so well in the IPL; we know his calibre. Bowling to him would be a challenge," he added. 

Replying to a question regarding the team's bowling during the match, Kumar admitted that the bowling in the opening T20I against South Africa wasn't up to the mark. Still, he will hope for a better show in the second T20I in Cuttack on Sunday.

"As you said, the bowling was not up to the mark in the first game so we are expecting that we bowl better in the second T20I and we can win to level the series. We have four games remaining in this series, we have a chance to win the series. We have to bowl better, and we need to bat in the same fashion as the previous game. We discussed what went wrong," Kumar added.

India are facing South Africa in the second T20I in Cuttack, where they have struggled with the bat at a rigid surface as the Rishabh Pant-led unit could put 148/6 in the first innings.