Ahead of the second India-Australia T20I on Wednesday, Krunal Pandya said that the hosts have taken a lot of heart from “almost defending” 126 in Visakhapatnam.
Pandya was the best spinner in the game while pacer Jasprit Bumrah bowled brilliantly to take the match into the final over after a pedestrian batting performance.
“It was a great bowling effort. Everyone chipped in and we almost defended the low total. We just have to be more cautious about our batting,” said Pandya on Tuesday.
“Tomorrow [Wednesday] is a very important game as we are 0-1 down but I would not say that we have lost momentum. We lost the other night but we are not losing consecutive games. I am sure we will do well tomorrow,” he said.
Pandya has become a regular in the Indian playing XI in the shortest format ever since making his debut in November.
He has played 10 games, taking 11 wickets at 30.00 with best figures of 4/36 coming against Australia in Sydney. He has batted only five times in the 10 games, scoring 70 runs at 23.33.
Of his preferred batting position, he said, “Honestly, I am not thinking about where I want to bat. I am just focused on what is in my hands irrespective of the situation. I want to contribute with both bat and ball.”
Pandya said it would be nice to have some part-time options in the team considering India played only five specialist bowlers in Visakhapatnam.
“All the five bowlers, who played are quality bowlers. All are match winners on a given day. If you have options it is good but whatever is there we are fine with that.”
The Indian team had an extensive training session on Tuesday. Captain Virat Kohli was the first one to bat in the nets alongside Shikhar Dhawan.
Mohammad Shami, Kuldeep Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who were rested for the series and have been training at the National Cricket Academy, joined their teammates briefly in the nets.