India sealed a 3-1 victory over South Africa in the five-match Twenty20 series on Friday, winning the final match by 30 runs.
Second fifties from Tilak Varma and Hardik Pandya powered India to a total of 231-5. South Africa’s chase faltered from 120-1 to 201-8. Jasprit Bumrah triggered the collapse by catching and bowling Quinton de Kock for 65 and finished with figures of 2-17 from four overs.
Leg-spinner Varun Chakravarthy conceded 23 runs in one over but bounced back to finish with 4-53. This marks India’s eighth consecutive T20 series win since December 2023. The team will host New Zealand in January before co-hosting the Men’s T20 World Cup with Sri Lanka in February.
Captain Suryakumar Yadav struggled again, scoring only five runs, extending his T20 average to 14.20.
Sanju Samson, replacing the injured Shubman Gill, opened with Abhishek Sharma and scored 63 runs in six overs, reaching 97 after nine. Samson even struck umpire Rohan Pandit on the shin with a drive.
Varma and Pandya combined for 105 runs in 7.2 overs, extending the fast-paced start by Samson and Abhishek, before both fell in the final over. Varma reached his fifty off 30 balls, while Pandya hit 63 off 25 deliveries, earning a standing ovation upon dismissal.
Quinton de Kock, despite a thumb injury, scored 65 off 35 balls, and Dewald Brevis added 31 off 17, keeping South Africa in contention until the 10-over mark. However, Bumrah’s decisive bowling after the halfway point derailed the Proteas’ chase and secured the series for India.
Leave a Reply