IND vs SA, 3rd T20I: Bowlers come to fore as India takes 2-1 series lead

India turned up the heat on a chilly Dharamsala night to flatten South Africa by seven wickets in the third T20I here on Sunday.

The win, set up by an exceptional bowling performance, gave India a 2-1 lead in the five-match leg.

The home team was in the driver’s seat from start to finish in a dominant showing. After electing to field, India was ruthless with the ball, bundling South Africa out for 117. The one-sided chase, which started with Abhishek Sharma lofting Lungi Ngidi for a massive six, was done and dusted in 15.5 overs.

A sizzling Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana put South Africa in a hole in the PowerPlay. Arshdeep got the new ball to move sharply away, and when he brought one back in, he had Reeza Hendricks plumb in front.

Arshdeep (two for 13) honed in on the perfect line and length, in stark contrast to the endless wides he delivered in the previous match.

Harshit, drafted into the eleven because Jasprit Bumrah returned home for personal reasons, took out form batter Quinton de Kock with a skiddy delivery.

The visitor was put in a chokehold, crawling to 25 for three in six overs. There was no respite when Hardik Pandya came on to bowl, as the all-rounder induced the nick from Tristan Stubbs to record his 100th T20I scalp.

Wickets continued to tumble, with seamer Shivam Dube and spinner Varun Chakravarthy grabbing a share of the spoils.

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Only captain Aiden Markram (61, 46b, 6×4, 2×6) put up some resistance. His patience paid off when he smacked Harshit for two sixes and a four in the 18th over – a rare bright spot for South Africa. Markram would later add another highlight, when he ran back a great distance to pull off a fine catch to dismiss Abhishek.

Left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who got his chance due to an illness to Axar Patel, polished off the last two wickets.

Despite India dropping no less than four catches, South Africa was kept down to the lowest men’s T20I team total at this venue.

The big crowd at the HPCA Stadium enjoyed every bit of India’s response. Abhishek (35, 18b, 3×4, 3×6) and Shubman Gill (28, 28b, 5×4) powered the side to 68 for one at the end of the Powerplay, leaving the Proteas with nowhere to hide.

With the result a foregone conclusion, Gill used the chance to find a bit of form. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav (12, 11b, 2×4), another batter in desperate need of runs, was not at his best in this brief stint.

Tilak Varma, the standout batter in the second T20I, continued his good run with an unbeaten 26.

Published on Dec 14, 2025