SA vs IND 2024/25, SA vs IND 4th T20I Match Report, 15th November 2024

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India 283 for 1 (Tilak 120*, Samson 109*, Abhishek 36) beat South Africa 148 (Stubbs 43, Miller 36, Arshdeep 3-20, Axar 2-6, Varun 2-42) by 135 runs

Bat like it’s nobody’s business.

It’s like this Sanju Sansão and Tilak Varma approached this T20I series against South Africa. They scored a century each in Durban and Centurion respectively, and then combined to hit two hundreds in the final in Johannesburg to break the record books and give India their fifth bilateral series victory in 2024.

India recorded the highest T20I total in South Africa, regardless of venue, and the second highest in T20Is (one month and three days after the highest, of 297 against Bangladesh). They became the first Full Member team and the third international team to score two individual hundreds in the same innings, and the only team to boast four centuries in the same series.

As for South Africa, perhaps the less said, the better. There was no repeat of the famous 438 moment when they went to the locker room with the dry humor of a hitter (Jacques Kallis) joking that the pitchers had done their job and that the hitters should do the same. They were dismissed for 148 and suffered their biggest defeat in the format by runs, losing for 135. South Africa have not won a T20I bilateral series for over two years, since beating Ireland in August 2022.

Run, run, run

How many different words are there to describe the way India have batted for most of this series?! But it’s our job to try. We can come up with something outrageous, expressive, unbelievable, or we can simply let the numbers do the talking. India were 73 for 1 after the powerplay, 129 for 1 after 10 overs, 200 for 1 in the 15th over and hit another 84 runs in the last six overs. The second-wicket stand of 210 runs between Samson and Tilak was the highest of any Indian wicket in the men’s T20Is and they did not spare any ground. Samson’s six hits were particularly impressive at V, who accounted for four of his nine total. The other four came from the side, but his cart wheel was well balanced, with 54 runs outside off to 55 from the leg side.

Tilak Varma had a clear preference. He hit 74 runs from the leg side, including eight of his 10 sixes, and 46 outside off. In the end, direction would not matter to South Africa’s bowlers. Only Marco Jansen conceded less than 11 runs per over and everyone else had an economy rate of 14 or more. And a word for the duo’s celebrations. Although Samson barely raised his fist, he had everyone on the bench flexing their biceps, and Tilak pointed to his captain Suryakumar Yadav – who will probably allow him to bat at No. 3 for as long as he wants – and blew at him. kiss.

Concern about South African disciplines

Between the over-reliance on the short ball, ineffective use of the slower ball and the odd full toss, South Africa also did themselves no favors by conceding 12 runs off deliveries and bowling a no ball. This after they also conceded ten runs from wides and bowled three no-balls at SuperSport Park, where India bowled just one wide. At Wanderers, India conceded six runs in deliveries, so there may have been some trouble with the bowlers finding their lines. South Africa’s biggest culprit was Gerald Coetzee, who conceded five wide runs and left the field with a hamstring injury five overs into the match. He returned to bowl the 15th over but was taken for 20 runs. It wasn’t the most expensive over of the innings – Andile Simelane’s first over, which cost 24, was – but it was still hard-hitting.

Swing when you’re winning

It may have been the lights, or the cloud gathering overhead in preparation for an overnight storm, but it was more likely that India’s skill found momentum where South Africa could not. Arshdeep Singh almost immediately evaded the movement of right-hander Reeza Hendricks and deflected the next ball to spin the bail.

He defeated Aiden Markram with a more exquisite strike in a dangerous warning of what was to come. At the other end, Hardik Pandya deflected the ball from Ryan Rickelton once, twice, three and four times before Rickelton could not resist. He reached the fifth ball and got an edge to Samson, leaving South Africa 1-2.

South Africa finally found a six, but it’s very little

India’s 23 sixes were the most in an innings in a T20I between two full-member sides, which suggested the conditions were ripe for big hitting, but South Africa needed a touch of over 50 balls to hit their first six. Ramandeep Singh bowled a mid-tracker to Tristan Stubbs, and he dispatched it to mid-wicket. Two balls later, Stubbs went over the stumps and hit Ramandeep to deep square.

In the next over, David Miller sent Varun Chakravarthy, the highest wicket-taker of the series, over cows corner before hitting two more sixes, but South Africa’s breakthrough came too late. Varun rounded the wicket and made Miller fetch a ball outside off and found Tilak at long off. Stubbs was dismissed by Ravi Bishnoi next ball and all Marco Jansen’s 12 off 29 balls managed to do was ensure that South Africa finished with just over half of India’s total.

Firdose Moonda is ESPNcricinfo’s South Africa and women’s cricket correspondent

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