SA vs IND: 3rd T20I Review – Tilak, Arshdeep guide India to series lead

India defeated South Africa by 11 runs in the third T20I to take a 2-1 lead in the ongoing four-match series. Batting first, the visitors suffered an early blow, losing the wicket of Sanju Samson for a duck. Abhishek Sharma, struggling to find runs in international cricket, finally showed signs of his class, scoring a half-century off just 25 deliveries. Alongside Tilak Varma, who was promoted to number three, Abhishek stitched a partnership of 107 runs, that set the momentum for India at the SuperSport Park, Centurion.

Tilak hit an unbeaten 107 runs while facing just 56 balls as India posted 219 for the loss of six wickets in the first innings. Varma also received the Player of the Match award for his brilliance at the crease. Meanwhile, all the other batters struggled to get going. Captain Suryakumar Yadav made only one run, while Hardik Pandya and Rinku Singh scored 18 and eight, respectively. Towards the end, debutant Ramandeep Singh played an important cameo of 15 off six, which helped the visitors post a formidable total on the board.

The second innings started with a cluster of boundaries. Proteas openers Ryan Rickleton and Reeza Hendricks made 20 and 21 respectively. After which, captain Aiden Markram hit 29 runs off 18 deliveries and Tristan Stubbs made 12. Heinrich Klaasen tried to bail South Africa out of the situation, and he batted with aggressive intent but there was very little support from the other end.

Senior batter David Miller struggled big time, which put pressure on Klaasen. Miller departed after scoring 18 off 18, and soon Klaasen joined him in the dressing room after smashing 41 runs off 22 deliveries. He kept the Proteas in the hunt for the longest time, but it wasn’t enough in the end. Arshdeep Singh picked up his wicket, but South Africa didn’t quite give up.