IND vs SA 3rd T20I: India went on to win the 3rd T20I comfortably by 8 wickets and got there without much fuss, even if the finish came a touch later than expected. Winning the toss turned out to be a massive advantage, and the Indian quicks made full use of the early help on offer.
Indian bowlers rattles Protean batters
With the new ball swinging around in the Powerplay, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana were right on the money, hitting probing lengths and keeping the batters guessing. The result was a South African top order that never really settled, with wickets tumbling regularly inside the first six overs.
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Markram played a captain’s knock
Aiden Markram was the lone exception. While chaos unfolded around him, the skipper held his nerve and tried to anchor the innings. India, though, never eased off. Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube kept chipping away with timely breakthroughs, and once the spinners came into play, the scoring dried up further. South Africa kept losing partners, and despite Markram’s gritty 61, they could only crawl their way close to the 120-run mark, a total that always felt below par.
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Abhishek Sharma gave India a good start
The chase began exactly as India would’ve wanted. Abhishek Sharma came out swinging again, setting the tone early, while Shubman Gill played the calmer role at the other end. India surged to 68 in the Powerplay, effectively taking the game away from the visitors inside the first few overs. With such a modest target on the board, it looked like a straightforward walk in the park.
South Africa did manage to apply the brakes briefly, dragging the game on and forcing India to wait for the finishing blows. The boundaries dried up for a while, but there was never any real panic in the Indian camp. Once a much-needed boundary finally arrived, the chase rolled to the finish line, and India wrapped up a comfortable eight-wicket win to cap off a thoroughly professional performance.