2nd T20I: Pressure mounts on Gill as India look to press advantage in Mullanpur

Yet to stamp his authority in the shortest format, Shubman Gill would be eying major gains on home soil when a well-rounded India look to extend their dominance over South Africa in the second T20 International in Mullanpur on Thursday.

With only a travel day separating the first two games of the five-match series, Gill won't mind getting straight into the middle in search of a substantial knock. India steamrolled South Africa in the series opener but the middling returns from Gill, since his T20 comeback in Asia Cup back in September, remains a talking point.

Following an impressive debut as Test captain in the UK, Gill was brought back into the T20 setup. Even though Sanju Samson and his Punjab teammate Abhishek Sharma were doing the job at the top of the order, the team management showed immense faith in Gill's abilities as a T20 opener.

The batter from Kerala was displaced and he has since then struggled to find a place in the playing eleven. The Test and ODI captain can seamlessly perform the role that Virat Kohli performed for India till the T20 World Cup last year but the team, with batting options till number eight, has doubled down on its fearless approach since the triumph in Barbados, leaving little room for an anchor.

Gill certainly can't go hammer and tongs like Abhishek Sharma in the powerplay and therefore needs to figure out what works best for him.

Besides Gill, captain Suryakumar Yadav, who has failed to find consistency over the past 12 months, is also facing additional scrutiny. Couple of months down the line, Suryakumar would be leading India's World Cup defence at home and considering the added responsibility, flow of runs from his bat form a crucial piece of the puzzle heading into the ICC showpiece.

In the colder environment of New Chandigarh, India are unlikely to tinker with the winning combination. Returning to national duty from injury, Hardik Pandya reaffirmed his status as the leading all-rounder in the game. His 28-ball 59 made a massive difference on a sticky wicket while it took him one ball to make an impact with the ball.

The selection on Tuesday also indicated that two strike bowlers, Arshdeep Singh and Kuldeep Yadav, will not be part of the same eleven due to the need for batting till number eight. Arshdeep got the nod on this occasion and India's leading wicket-taker in the format was once again able to provide the early wickets bowling alongside Jasprit Bumrah.

South Africa, on the other hand, would be looking for a drastically better outing with the bat after being bundled out for 74 in the run chase of 176. There is no time to reflect on the scale of the defeat and that can only be a good thing for the visitors.

"Nowadays in T20 cricket, there's not much time to look around and absorb. But the biggest factor was obviously not being able to build partnerships, settling after losing wickets and getting some momentum on our side. So yeah, we'll have brief conversations," said skipper Aiden Markram.

The venue would be hosting its first ever T20 International after hosting two women's ODIs back in September. During the last IPL, the pitches produced were not the easiest to bat on with scores ranging from excess of 200 to as low as 101.

On the sidelines of the fixture, stands named after Yuvraj Singh and Harmanpreet Kaur would also be unveiled.

Squads:

India: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson.

South Africa: Aiden Markram (captain), Quinton de Kock (wk), Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Donnovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Lutho Sipamla, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, Reeza Hendricks, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Ottneil Bartman.

Match starts at 7pm IST.