IND vs SA, 3rd T20I: Seamers wreak havoc as India thrash South Africa by seven wickets to go 2-1 up
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Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana's pace attack helped India defeat South Africa by seven wickets in the 3rd T20I, securing a 2-1 series lead. Markram's 61 was in vain.
DHARAMSHALA: India defeated South Africa by seven wickets in the third T20I to take a 2-1 lead in the series, showcasing a dominant performance fueled by impressive seam bowling. Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana proved to be a lethal combination, dismantling South Africa's top order and restricting them to a total of just 117 runs. Aiden Markram's innings of 61 stood out as the only significant contribution from the South African side.
Chasing a low total, the Indian batting lineup comfortably secured the victory. Abhishek Sharma's quickfire 35 off 18 balls provided early momentum, setting the stage for a smooth chase. Shubman Gill contributed 28 runs, while Tilak Varma remained unbeaten on 26. India reached the target in 15.5 overs, despite Suryakumar Yadav's relatively short innings of 12.
The success of India's bowling attack was evident from the start, with Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana exploiting the favorable conditions to trouble the South African batsmen. Reeza Hendricks and Quinton de Kock were dismissed early, falling lbw to Arshdeep and Rana, respectively. Dewald Brevis was Rana's other victim in the powerplay. The seamer-friendly conditions allowed Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube to each claim a wicket in their opening overs.
Varun Chakravarthy further tightened the screws with figures of 2/11, complementing Arshdeep's 2/13. Despite a few dropped catches, Markram's resilient 61, featuring six fours and two sixes, was a display of skill against quality swing bowling. Donovan Ferreira's 20 off 15 briefly helped South Africa build some momentum, but it wasn't enough to mount a serious challenge.
While Markram found success targeting Rana in the later overs, the early damage inflicted by the Indian seamers proved too much for South Africa to recover from. The Indian bowlers' performance not only compensated for Jasprit Bumrah's absence but also eased the pressure on the Indian batsmen, who have previously struggled against the new ball.
