Ravi Bishnoi’s selection in India’s T20I squad for the South Africa series was a clear indication of his position in the think tank’s long-term plans for the T20I World Cup next year. With only six T20Is remaining for India until the World Cup, it can be presumed that the 23-year-old leg-spinner has surpassed veteran Yuzvendra Chahal in the pecking order, at least for the time being. Chahal has played nine T20Is this year, taking nine wickets, while Bishnoi has played 11 matches and taken 18 wickets. The distinction is there for anyone to see.

Bishnoi was India’s go-to bowler in the recently concluded T20I series against Australia, and he returned the trust placed in him by emerging as the ‘Player of the Series,’ taking nine wickets from five matches. It wasn’t just about the wickets, but his overall attitude towards bowling in whatever condition or situation was commendable.

In reality, Bishnoi had a terrible first match in Visakhapatnam, allowing 54 runs in four overs. But the young spinner fought back with zeal, and his run rate never above eight after that. Seven of his 20 overs against Australia were in the Power Play period and he took five wickets at a superb economy rate of 6.45 while bowling 20 dot balls during this phase.

Australian skipper Matthew Wade admitted that batting against Bishnoi even on some of the batting-friendly tracks was difficult. Bishnoi has been great throughout the four games. He has been quite hard to get a hold of. Some of our guys with less experience will learn a lot from facing him, Wade said.