SA vs IND 2024/25, SA vs IND 1st T20I match report, November 8, 2024 Trendy Blogger

SA vs IND 2024/25, SA vs IND 1st T20I match report, November 8, 2024 Trendy Blogger

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India 202 for 8 (Samson 107) beaten South Africa 141 (Chakravarthy 3-25, Bishnoi 3-28) by 61 runs

Sanju Samson hit his second consecutive T20I century, in just his fourth match, and shattered South African records and hopes at Kingsmead. His T20I was the fastest hundred by an Indian against South Africa and will be remembered as one of the most destructive.

For India, the runs came mainly in boundaries: 17 fours and 13 sixes, including seven fours and ten sixes for Samson. In total, 88 of his 107 runs were scored in boundaries and he was particularly brutal square of the wicket. He scored 69 runs from 19 balls in the region between point and cover and square leg and mid-wicket, and only 13 runs behind square. Samson faced the spinners with enthusiasm and scored 58 runs from the 27 balls he faced against Aiden Markram, Keshav Maharaj and Nqaba Peter combined. He also shared two explosive stands: 66 runs off 37 balls with his captain Suryakumar Yadav and 77 runs off 34 balls with Tilak Varma. This meant that India’s innings had a middle-of-the-road momentum that South Africa could not match.

They may have thought they had given themselves a chance when they finally pulled India back. South Africa looked to concede the highest total at Kingsmead and the highest against India, but after the dismissal of Samson in the 17th over, India scored 28 runs from 20 balls and lost four wickets. They still finished with their fourth total against South Africa, and it proved to be too much.

South Africa was never in the race as only three batters scored more than 20 and there was only one partnership of more than 30. The two legpinners Varun Chakravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi took three wickets each and conceded 53 runs in their eight overs after Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan made early breakthroughs which all pointed towards a more experienced Indian bowling line-up.

The return of Gerald Coetzee

It’s been 166 days between international matches for Gerald Coetzee, but it doesn’t appear he’s been away for a single day. Given the ball in the fourth over, Coetzee immediately started with a full delivery outside off and found extra bounce. Abhishek Sharma tried to go underneath and clear at mid-off, but only managed to pass the ball to Markram in the ring. He ran back and took the hook over his shoulder to bring out an almighty roar from Coetzee, who has recovered from a hip injury and is returning from a 12-week conditioning block.

The rest didn’t go so well. Indian captain Suryakumar hit Coetzee over the head for four and then to fine leg for six to take 10 runs after his opener. Coetzee closed out the Powerplay which India finished on 56 for 1. Coetzee also made a comeback in the match when he was called upon to bowl at the death and had Hardik Pandya caught at deep point for just 2 and Rinku Singh caught with his penultimate over. ball.

Kruger’s timeless one that ended with a wicket

Patrick Kruger started with what looked like a good plan to keep India quiet – a slower ball which Suryakumar had to collect, but Samson was in no mood to be stopped by that. The next ball was also slower and hit longer. Kruger put in extra effort in response and went over the top. Then sent a complete draw. Then a wide, a no ball and another wide and he still had three balls to go. He got it right with a full delivery outside off, then pulled his length back and couldn’t help but reach back to finish. His 11th ball was a knuckle ball which Suryakumar dragged to deep square leg where debutant Andile Simelane was stationed. He put his nerves aside to make his first contribution to the match, and not a moment too soon. Simelane was named South Africa’s seventh bowler, at 10th.

Tilak is too good to pass up

Tilak hit the second ball he faced with the wind on deep square behind for six as he joined in the boundary hitting action. He sent the first ball of Peter’s second over between deep mid-wicket and deep back square for four, then tore Kruger’s tactic apart to prevent the shorter leg side boundary from being in tatters. He hit it over backward point and swept it to fine leg. His innings was cut short when he hit Maharaj to the deep backward square boundary where Marco Jansen took a good catch, but his cameo gave middle-order momentum to India’s innings.

Markram’s policy continues, as does that of South Africa.

It’s been 25 innings and two years since Markram scored a T20I half-century and the run continued with a seventh single-digit score in this match. Markram looked particularly out of sorts when he tried to bowl Arshdeep to mid-wicket, but closed the face of the bat too early and gave Samson a slight edge to fall in the first over. This set the tone for an innings in which South Africa never quite got going. Tristan Stubbs and Ryan Rickelton were both dismissed in the Powerplay, which South Africa finished on 49 for 3. The combination of Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller put on 42 in 6.1 overs, but when they were separated, South Africa collapsed. They were bowled out in 18 overs and were bowled out for their fourth lowest score against India to lose the series opener by 61 runs.

Varun knocks out South Africa’s best

Chakravarthy removed both South African middle-order players and he collected them in the space of three balls. In his final over, Klaasen tried to pull a slightly shorter ball but sent it straight to Axar Patel at long-off. And two balls later, Miller hit Chakravarthy to Avesh at square foot and South Africa went from 79 for 3 to 87 for 5 and were staring straight at defeat.

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