India thrash South Africa by seven wickets to go 2–1 up in the five-match T20I series
Skipper Aiden Markram provided the lone resistance with a spirited 61 off 46 balls, but it proved insufficient against India’s relentless attack. Under a cool sky, India’s quicks extracted sharp swing and lateral movement with the new ball, dismantling South Africa’s top order. The visitors stumbled to 25 for three in the powerplay, which yielded just two boundaries.
India's Shubman Gill plays a shot during the third T20 International cricket match of a series between India and South Africa, at HPCA Stadium, in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025 (PTI)
DHARAMSALA: A superb bowling performance by India rattled South Africa, bundling the visitors out for 117 before the hosts chased down the target with 25 balls to spare to clinch the third T20I on Sunday.
Earlier, India’s pacers produced a mesmerising spell of swing bowling after the hosts opted to field. Arshdeep Singh (2/13), Harshit Rana (2/34) and Hardik Pandya (1/23) led the charge with early breakthroughs, leaving South Africa reeling.
Skipper Aiden Markram provided the lone resistance with a spirited 61 off 46 balls, but it proved insufficient against India’s relentless attack. Under a cool sky, India’s quicks extracted sharp swing and lateral movement with the new ball, dismantling South Africa’s top order. The visitors stumbled to 25 for three in the powerplay, which yielded just two boundaries.
Arshdeep, who endured a horror outing at Mullanpur a couple of days earlier, redeemed himself with a dream opening spell of 3-0-9-1. He repeatedly angled the ball away from Reeza Hendricks before jagging one back sharply to trap the opener lbw with the help of DRS. Rana followed suit, producing a similar nip-backer to pin Quinton de Kock inside the crease.
South Africa slumped to 7 for three in 3.1 overs, and the climb thereafter was steep. Markram struck a couple of crisp drives to keep the scoreboard ticking, but Tristan Stubbs and Corbin Bosch fell in quick succession to further derail the innings. Stubbs’ dismissal also helped Pandya reach the milestone of 100 T20I wickets, making him the third Indian to achieve the feat after Arshdeep and Jasprit Bumrah.
Bumrah did not feature in the match, having returned home to attend to a personal matter, with the BCCI stating that his availability for the remainder of the series will be announced in due course.
Spinner Varun Chakravarthy (2/11 in four overs) also reached a milestone, claiming his 50th T20I wicket as he flattened Donovan Ferreira’s stumps for 20 off 15 balls.
Brief Scores: South Africa 117 in 20 overs (Aiden Markram 61) lost to India 120/3 in 15.5 overs