India’s power-packed batting and disciplined death bowling secured a 30-run victory over South Africa in the fifth and final T20I on Friday. The win allowed the "Men in Blue" to wrap up the series 3-1, ending the year with their eighth consecutive bilateral T20I series win.
Pandya and Varma Power India to 231
After being invited to bat first by Aiden Markram, India’s openers Sanju Samson (37) and Abhishek Sharma (34) set a blistering pace, putting on 63 runs in just five overs. However, the real fireworks began when Hardik Pandya joined an in-form Tilak Varma.
- Hardik Pandya’s Blitz: Pandya smashed a sensational 63 off just 25 balls, reaching his half-century in a mere 16 deliveries—the second-fastest by an Indian in T20I history (trailing only Yuvraj Singh’s 12-ball record).
- Tilak Varma’s Consistency: Varma continued his stellar run, top-scoring with a fluent 73 off 42 balls, including 10 boundaries and a six.
- The Partnership: The duo added 105 runs for the fourth wicket, propelling India to a massive total of 231/5.
De Kock’s Valiant Charge
Chasing a mountain of 232, South Africa started aggressively. Quinton de Kock looked in ominous form, smashing 65 off 35 balls. Alongside Dewald Brevis (31), he took the Proteas to 118/1 by the 10th over, keeping the visitors well within the hunt.
The momentum shifted dramatically in the 11th over when Jasprit Bumrah returned to the attack. He deceived De Kock with a slower delivery, taking a sharp return catch to break the partnership.
Chakravarthy’s Spin Web
Once the set batters departed, Varun Chakravarthy dismantled the South African middle order. Despite going for runs early on, he finished with a brilliant 4/53, including two wickets in two balls in the 13th over to dismiss Aiden Markram and Donovan Ferreira.
Key Bowling Figures:
- Varun Chakravarthy: 4-0-53-4
- Jasprit Bumrah: 4-0-17-2 (An economy of 4.25 in a high-scoring game)
- Arshdeep Singh: 4-0-47-1
South Africa eventually finished at 201/8, falling 30 runs short of the target.
The five-match series concludes with India as the dominant side. After a rain-washed fourth T20I in Lucknow due to fog, India maintained their composure to win the decider in Ahmedabad. Hardik Pandya was named the Player of the Match for his all-round heroics.
