Australia vs India 2020: India Squad Performance Ratings For The T20I Series

After having lost the ODI series comprehensively, Team India came back brilliantly to notch up a T20I series win over Australia.

India won the first two T20I at the Manuka Oval in Canberra and at the Sydney Cricket Ground, taking their winning streak to ten games in a row before eventually dropping the final rubber by 12 runs on Tuesday.

India had plenty of positives from the series but there are still a few areas that they need to work on, fielding, middle-over batting against spinners, and the lackluster form of their prime spinner in Yuzvendra Chahal to name a few.

Here’s a look at Team India’s squad ratings for the T20I series:

KL Rahul – 6/10

KL Rahul looked in pristine touch during the T20I series but unlike his stint with Kings XI Punjab in the 2020 IPL, he was not able to convert his starts into big knocks.

In the first game, KL Rahul top-scored for India with a brilliant 40-ball 51. After a rather slow start, Rahul shifted gears brilliantly to score yet another T20I fifty but the lack of any resistance from the other end eventually led to him holing out against Moises Henriques.

In the second game, Rahul, along with Shikhar Dhawan gave India a blazing start in their pursuit of 195 before he failed to pick-up a slower delivery from Andrew Tye, eventually falling for a 22-ball 30. The last T20I proved to be a nightmare for KL as he not only faltered with his DRS calls but he also registered his first single-digit score in T20I cricket since 2018.

Shikhar Dhawan- 5/10

Shikhar Dhawan had an indifferent T20I series. The southpaw top-scored with 51 in India’s six-wicket win in the second T20I but he failed to make any sizeable contribution in the first and third T20I.

While he was knocked over by a pacy fullish length delivery for a 6-ball 1 in the opening match, he failed to convert his start into a score of substance in the 3rd T20I, scoring a 21-ball 28.

Virat Kohli- 8/10

After having struggled in the first game where he was once again dismissed by a leg-spinner, Virat Kohli came back brilliantly to register scores of 40 (24) and 85 (61) in the next two games.

Kohli played some outrageous strokes during his twin knocks at the SCG- none better than the ABD-esque scoop over fine-leg off Andrew Tye- but the one thing that the champion batsman failed to do was close off the run-chase.

While Hardik Pandya’s assault in the second game ensured that him getting out did not really matter, the second instance of him closing off the run-chase- not to forget the lack of support from the other end- led to an eventual Indian defeat.

Sanju Samson- 2/10

If ‘flattering to deceive’ is an art then Sanju Samson is its Picasso.

Samson, as he has done throughout his career, looked a million-dollar before succumbing tamely on all three occasions

Samson registered scores of 23 (15), 15 (10), 10 (9) in the three-match series and it is fair to say that the Kerala swashbuckler once again bottled a golden opportunity to assert a permanent place in the T20I set-up.

Shreyas Iyer- 3/10

It is fair to say that Shreyas Iyer had a fairly disappointing white-ball campaign in Australia.

After having lackluster outings in ODIs, he was benched from the first T20I and was eventually drafted in the side for the second game.

He stroked a crucial four and a six off Adam Zampa in the second game but then eventually failed in the final game, registering a golden duck.

Manish Pandey- 1/10

Manish Pandey warmed the bench throughout the ODI series and when he did get an opportunity in the first T20I, he struggled his way to an 8-ball 2.

Unfortunately, that was the end of Manish Pandey in the T20I series as he wasn’t picked for the next two games due to elbow injury.

Hardik Pandya- 10/10

After smoking two 90-plus scores across three games, Hardik Pandya carried that form in the three-match T20I series, smashing a match-winning 22-ball 42 to help India chase down 195.

Pandya had come to bat when India still needed 75 runs off the last 6.3 overs. After having initially played second-fiddle to Virat Kohli, the all-rounder teed off in the last few overs and ensured that India scored the desired 25 runs off the last 12 balls.

Pandya was at it again in the third T20I, in which he played some lusty blows during his 13-ball 20 before he unfortunately top-edged off Adam Zampa. Nevertheless, Hardik Pandya was adjudged as the ‘Player of the Series’.

Ravindra Jadeja- 10/10

He might have played just one innings in the whole series, but, boy, didn’t it prove to be the most impactful knock for India?

Jadeja, braving hamstring niggle and a hit to his head, smashed a whirlwind 23-ball 44*- an innings which included five fours and one six, to help India post a competitive and eventual match-winning 7/161 in 20 overs.

Not only did Jadeja’s innings help India post a defendable target, but his unfortunate blow on the head also proved to be a blessing in disguise for the visitors as they invoked Chahal as a concussion substitute, who in-turn, produced a match-winning performance.

Washington Sundar- 8/10

The off-spinner once again displayed why he is one of the hardest bowlers to score runs off in a T20 match.

Sundar was absolutely brilliant in the first game as he stifled Australia’s batsmen by giving just 16 runs in his quota of four overs. His disciplined bowling forced the Aussies to attack other bowlers, which eventually led to their downfall.

In the second game, Sundar went for a few runs (0/35) but he could have easily taken the prized scalp of Steve Smith but for Virat Kohli to drop an easy catch.

He came back brilliantly in the last T20I as he claimed the wickets of Aaron Finch and Steve Smith, eventually ending with figures of 2/34 in four overs.

T Natarajan- 10/10

It is fair to say that T Natarajan has proved to be the find of the tour for Indian cricket.

After having pulled off an impressive ODI debut, T Natarajan made giant strides in the shortest format of the game throughout the three-match rubber.

Whether it was his defensive line and lengths that stifled the Australian batsmen or the perfectly pitched length deliveries to dismiss Glenn Maxwell and D’Archy Short or his brute of a yorker to knock over Mitchell Starc, Natarajan showed it to the hilt that there is more to him than just a yorker.

Overall, the southpaw registered figures of 6/83 in 12 overs across three games and one has to say that he was the one really deserved to be adjudged the ‘Player of the Series’

Shardul Thakur- 6/10

Shardul Thakur wasn’t originally a part of the T20I squad and was only drafted in the set-up after Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out from the 2nd and 3rd T20I due to hamstring injury.

His figures of 1-39 and 1-43 might look ordinary but in reality, Shardul showed signs of improvement as a T20 bowler. Yes, he went for runs, but his subtle variations during the middle-overs often troubled the batsmen.

He could have picked Glenn Maxwell’s wicket on two separate occasions during the 3rd T20I but for dropped catches from Deepak Chahar and Yuzvendra Chahal.

Deepak Chahar- 3/10

Deepak Chahar got off to the worst possible start to his T20I campaign as he was smashed for 14 runs in his first over of the series. But Chahar came back brilliantly in his second and third spell, conceding just 15 more runs besides taking the crucial wicket of Moises Henriques.

However, with the last two games played at the SCG- a venue that offered him no movement- Chahar struggled to make an impact, conceding 0/82 in his 8 overs.

Yuzvendra Chahal- 4/10

Yuzvendra Chahal was dropped from the playing 11 in the first T20I but he forced his way back as a ‘concussion substitute’ for Ravindra Jadeja. And, he made it count by registering match-winning figures of 3/25 in four overs, which included prized scalps of Aaron Finch, Steve Smith, and Matthew Wade.

Chahal was adjudged as the ‘Player of the Match’ and was subsequently drafted in the playing 11 for the next two games. But, u unfortunately, he wasn’t able to emulate the same performances and was taken to the cleaners by the Australians, eventually ending with figures of 1/51 [4] and 0/41 [4].