Varma, Pandya blitz overwhelms South Africa

India claimed a 3-1 series win over South Africa following a 30-run victory at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Following a brisk start from the openers, blitzkrieg from Tilak Varma and Hardik Pandya propelled India's total to a massive 231/5. South Africa began their chase in spirited fashion, led by Quinton de Kock's 35-ball 65, but fell apart following the drinks break to slip from 120/1 to 135/5.

After South Africa opted to bowl, Lungi Ngidi afforded them some control with the new ball as he conceded just eight runs off his first two overs. Marco Jansen though wasn't able to keep the Indian openers quiet. Abhishek Sharma greeted him with three consecutive fours before Sanju Samson ended the over with a six. The fourth and fifth overs, bowled by Ottniel Baartman and Jansen respectively, saw similar carnage unfold as India smashed three boundaries in each.

South Africa's respite came in the sixth over when Corbin Bosch had Abhishek gloving a bouncer through to the 'keeper. A review wasn't able to save Abhishek with UltraEdge revealing the faintest of spikes when the ball was next to the gloves. Varma, who walked in next, got his innings underway with a cracking shot through extra cover as India continued to score freely on a belter of a wicket.

The ninth over saw Donovan Ferreira drop a sharp return catch as Samson rifled one back only for it to ricochet and strike umpire Rohan Pandit flush on the right knee. Pandit received treatment from physios of both teams before getting back on his feet and continuing his duties for the rest of the game.

South Africa regained control momentarily as George Linde castled Sanju Samson with a flighted delivery before Corbin Bosch dismissed Suryakumar Yadav for another low score. That, however, marked the beginning of a destructive 105-run stand between Hardik Pandya and Varma. Pandya's entry to the crease was blockbuster as he lofted the first ball he faced over mid off for six. That was followed by India clobbering Linde for 27 runs in the 14th over.

The onslaught continued as the duo kept finding boundaries with ease. Varma raised his fifty in the 15th over while Pandya brought his up off just 16 deliveries, the second fastest by an Indian, in the 17th. They were only separated in the 20th over when Pandya holed out to deep mid-wicket. Tilak Varma was run-out two balls later but India's finish remained strong as Shivam Dube struck a four and a six off the three balls he faced.

In pursuit, South Africa feasted on India's wayward new-ball bowling. Quinton de Kock struck Arshdeep Singh for three consecutive fours in the very first over. Arshdeep's second over was even worse as he struggled for control while conceding 23 runs. South Africa raced to 67/0 in the PowerPlay and de Kock, who did the bulk of the scoring, kept going even as a brilliant catch from Shivam Dube in the seventh over sent Reeza Hendricks packing.

Dewald Brevis took a few deliveries to settle in before unleashing his range of shots to compliment de Kock. The ninth and tenth overs went for 23 and 19 runs respectively as South Africa stayed abreast with the asking rate.

It was Jasprit Bumrah that provided India with a much needed breakthrough just after drinks as he accounted for de Kock caught and bowled. South Africa suffered a shocking slide thereafter as they lost three more wickets in the space of two overs. Brevis holed out to deep mid-wicket attempting to pull a Pandya bouncer before Varun Chakaravarthy dismissed Aiden Markram and Ferreira off consecutive deliveries in the following over.

There was a brief suggestion of a recovery during David Miller and Linde's 19-run partnership but the fire in South Africa's chase fizzled out quite quickly as they continued to lose wickets. Miller fell to Arshdeep in the 15th over while Chakravarthy dismissed Linde in the following over. His figures of 4/53 were somewhat damaged by the three sixes struck in his final over. Bumrah claimed the last wicket to fall, that of Jansen, in the 17th over as South Africa tottered along to 201/8.

Brief Scores: India 231/5 in 20 overs (Tilak Varma 73, Hardik Pandya 63: Corbin Bosch 3-44) beat South Africa 201/8 in 20 overs (Quinton de Kock 65, Dewald Brevis 31; Varun Chakaravarthy 4-53) by 30 runs