'Pitch Was Flat, It Was Two-Paced': Sundar Contradicts Shubman Gill's Insights On Harare Pitch
Shubman Gill and Washington Sundar were key for India's win the third T20I Vs Zimbabwe (X)
India defeated Zimbabwe in the third T20I to take a 2-1 lead in the series, bouncing back after losing the first match. India batted first and posted 182-4 in 20 overs, while Zimbabwe could only manage 159-6 in their chase. India won the game for 23 runs.
Indian captain Shubman Gill was as the top scorer for India with 66 runs off 49 balls, supported by CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad who contributed 49 runs off 28 balls.
Contradiction in 'pitch evaluation' between Gill & Sundar
Initially, India appeared to be on course to reach 200 runs, but India were unable to accelerate enough in the latter stages of their innings.
Indian captain Shubman Gill said post game that, the pitch looked like a 2 faced surface, suggesting it was not as favorable for batting as perceived.
"Feels good going 2-1 up in the series, it was a crucial game for us. Yeah definitely it looked like we will go over 200. Slightly two-paced surface. The odd ball was gripping. It was not easy to hit the length ball, that is what me and Ruturaj were talking in the middle. That is the message we gave to our bowlers and they executed it," Shubman Gill (India Captain).
However, in contrast to Gill's assessment, Washington Sundar, the player of the match, described the wicket as supportive to batting.
"It was definitely a better wicket. In the first two matches, there was something in it for the bowlers. Today, it was much better for batting," Sundar said in the post game.
Washington Sundar, the player of the match was highly effective with the ball, taking 3 wickets for just 15 runs in his spell of 4 overs.
His scalps included Sikandar Raza, who completed 5000 T20 runs, Jonathan Campbell and Clive Madande.