India managed to come back strongly in the third T20I against South Africa with a dominant performance which got them a dominant win thereby levelling the three-match T20I series 1-1.
India were asked to bat first at the toss and the openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill look to get going from ball one. Gill however was dismissed as Keshav Maharaj got him on the pads to be dismissed for an LBW. Tilak Varma also departed for a golden duck off Maharaj as well to put India under pressure.
The Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav and Yashasvi Jaiswal managed to put in a shift to help bring the Men in Blue back on track with boundaries coming at regular intervals to push the scoreboard. Both batters managed to bring up their half-centuries as they looked to push on in the final few overs.
Jaiswal looked to get going but was dismissed by Tabraiz Shamsi which dented India’s hopes of posting a good total on the board. But skipper Suryakumar Yadav had other plans as he went on to bring up his fourth T20I hundred thereby equalling the record for most hundreds in T20I which held by Rohit Sharma. India finished with a target of 202 for the South African side.
In the second innings, there was a lot of swing on offer as Mohammed Siraj started with the new ball with a maiden and Mukesh Kumar got the wicket to put South Africa under pressure. Reeza Hendricks who was in fine touch struggled on the tough track as there was a lot of movement which made him struggle and eventually was run out thanks to a brilliant throw by Siraj. Arshdeep Singh was also among the wickets as he got the wicket of Heinrich Klaasen to put even more pressure on the Proteas side.
The Indian camp was under pressure when Suryakumar Yadav picked up an injury which saw him on the sidelines for the rest of the game.
READ MORE: Team India Skipper Suryakumar Yadav Twists Ankle During Third T20I Against South Africa
The Indian spinners took the game forward with Jadeja cleaning up the Proteas skipper Aiden Markram. Kuldeep then took things to a new level as the birthday boy managed to get the wickets rolling in quick time. He got the wicket of Donovan Ferreira followed by Keshav Maharaj in his first two overs. Jadeja kept the pressure on with the wicket of Andile Phehlukwayo, Kuldeep then managed to clean up the rest of the Proteas’ batting to finish off with his career-best figures in T20Is and make his birthday more memorable with a fifer to help India level the series.
Suryakumar Yadav managed to reap the awards as he was adjudged the Player of the Match and the Player of the Series as well for his fine batting in both games.
The Indian side will now look ahead for the upcoming three-match ODI series which will begin on December 17.
