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India was involved in a gruelling opening T20I against South Africa on Thursday. The hosts lost by seven wickets, with the visitors putting on a show with the bat.
It was tough luck for India, as it was deprived of a chance to create an exclusive world record in its opening Twenty20 International (T20I) against South Africa. Played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Thursday, the hosts suffered a seven-wicket defeat and were denied a win in what would have been their world record of winning 13 successive T20I ties. It is currently tied at 12 with Afghanistan and Romania. While the Men in Blue handed a stern total of 212, the Proteas put on a superb batting display, aided by Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller, to draw first blood in the five-game series. Nonetheless, the netizens applauded the South Africans for the same.
Winning the toss, South African skipper Temba Bavuma opted to bowl first. India was off to a decent start, with openers Ishan Kishan (76) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (23) putting on 57 runs before the latter departed to pacer Wayne Parnell in the seventh over. However, it did not panic India, as Kishan continued his onslaught along with Shreyas Iyer (36), with the duo contributing 80 for the second wicket before the former scored his third T20I half-century and was dismissed by orthodox spinner Keshav Maharaj in the 13th.
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While Iyer was knocked over by pacer Dwaine Pretorius in the 17th, at 156, it was followed by a 48-run partnership between skipper Rishabh Pant (29) and Hardik Pandya (31*) before the former departed to pacer Anrich Nortje in the final over, as India finished the innings on a top note, putting on 211/4. For SA, Parnell happened to be the most economical one.
In reply, South Africa lost a wicket early in the third over of the powerplay, with 22 runs on the board, as Bavuma fell to seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The Proteas kept up with the tempo, keeping in mind the required run rate, and 39 for the second wicket before Pretorius (29) was cleaned up beautifully by pacer Harshal Patel in the sixth. It was down to 81/3 at the ninth, with opener Quinton de Kock (22) falling to leg-spinner Axar Patel.
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However, van der Dussen (75*) and Miller (64*) changed the entire complexion of the chase, despite the soaring required rate. The two settled down and began attacking every bowler as the pursuit drew towards the end. Some luck favoured the former, too, as Iyer dropped him while the two slammed their seventh and fourth respective T20I 50s.
Eventually, India was out of luck, as the Proteas got the job done by seven wickets, with five balls to spare, while for the Men in Blue, pacer Avesh Khan was the most economical one. As for the records:
- It was South Africa's highest T20I partnership for the fourth wicket (131*).
- It was South Africa's highest successful chase in the format.
- It was also the highest successful chase T20I chase vs India.
Brief scores: IND 211/4 (Kishan- 76, Iyer- 36, Pandya- 31*; Parnell- 1/32) lost to SA 212/3 in 19.1 overs (Van der Dussen- 75*, Miller- 64*; Axar- 1/40) by seven wickets.