SA vs IND: 2nd T20I Review: Proteas strike back in Gqeberha

South Africa drew level in the four-match series against India after winning the second T20I by three wickets at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Sunday, November 10.

Aiden Markram won the toss once again and opted to bowl first. India got off to a terrible start as they lost their top three batters inside the first four overs. Axar Patel was promoted up the order and the southpaw stitched a decent 30-run partnership with Tilak Varma, who departed for a run-a-ball 20 as David Miller took a stunning one-handed catch.

After playing a good knock of 27 off 21 balls, Axar was unfortunately run out at the non-striker’s end. Rinku Singh also fell cheaply as India were reduced to 87/6 in the 16th over. Hardik Pandya played a gritty knock of 39* off 45 deliveries to take his team to 124/6 in 20 overs.

Reeza Hendricks and Ryan Rickelton got their team off to a decent start adding 22 runs inside the third over. The latter was dismissed by Arshdeep Singh as India got the much-needed initial breakthrough. Varun Chakaravarthy came into the attack and bowled a remarkable spell, bagging five wickets for 17 runs in four overs.

The Proteas were reduced to 86/7 in the 16th over. Gerald Coetzee joined Tristan Stubbs at the crease as the hosts needed another 39 runs to win off 26 balls. Stubbs held one end up while Coetzee played a brilliant came to see their team home with an over to spare.

Top Performers of the Match

Best Batter – Tristan Stubbs (47* off 41 balls)

The wicketkeeper-batter showed a lot of maturity during his unbeaten knock of 47 off 41 deliveries as he held the South African innings together even as he lost partners from the other end. Stubbs hit seven fours during his calm and composed knock. This fighting inning will give the youngster a lot of confidence in tough batting conditions.

Best Bowler – Varun Chakaravarthy (5 for 17)

The mystery spinner has been in excellent form since his return to the Indian team. He was almost unplayable on Sunday as he bamboozled the South African batters with his skills. Chakaravarthy dismissed South Africa’s two most destructive batters for the second time in as many matches as possible: Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller.