During the second T20 International match between India and South Africa on Tuesday, a strange thing happened when the umpires called for a strategic timeout leaving cricket fans baffled.
The incident occurred during the 8th over of the first innings of India which was played in St George's Oval, at Geqberha.
Batting first, India lost three wickets in the match's powerplay overs. Through their social media pages, the fans expressed their confusion over the timeout.
One user wrote “Strategic timeout in IND vs SA T20I. First time I am seeing it in international cricket.”
"What's a timeout at end of 8 overs doing in a T20I game," wondered another user.
Taking about that match, India was asked to bat in breezy conditions in Geqberha where India was under pressure losing both Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill for ducks. Then Captain Surya Kumar Yadav's (56) and Rinku Singh (68*) counter-attacking approach took India to 180/7 before rain intervened.
During India’s 1st innings, Captain Surya Kumar Yadav equals Virat Kohli’s record of quickest batter to cross 2000 T20 runs. Both Yadav and Kohli achieved this milestone in 56 innings.
As the rain continued for a brief period, the match was shortened to a 15-over game where South Africa needed 152 runs to win.
In reply, South Africa batsman went off to a blistering start by putting pressure on the Indian bowlers. The pitch was sort of eased out in the evening because of the dew factor. Reeza Hendricks (49) and Aiden Markram (30) ensured South Africa won the second T20 match.
The third T20 between the two sides will be played in Johannesburg on December 14.