India vs South Africa: Shamsi, Hendricks help Proteas win rain-affected 2nd T20I by five wickets

Blazing half-centuries from Rinku Singh and skipper Suryakumar Yadav went in vain as South Africa defeated India by five wickets in the rain-affected second T20I in Gqeberha on Tuesday. Surya came to the team’s rescue after they had been reduced to 6/2 in the powerplay, and his knock of 56 in 36 deliveries helped the Men in Blue get back on their feet. Rinku then took over from SKY and blasted his way to his maiden international half-century, finishing unbeaten on 68 off 39 balls as India reached 180/7 before the heaves above St George’s Park opened up, bringing the Indian innings to an end with three deliveries left. Set a revised target of 152 in 15 overs, South Africa needed to make the most of the powerplay that had been reduced to five overs. Opener Reeza Hendricks did just that, capitalising on the wet conditions due to the brief spell of rain that made it difficult for the Indian bowlers to grip the ball properly and execute their plans.

Hendricks, who made just two appearances in the ICC World Cup including a 75-ball 85 against England, blasted his way to a 27-ball 49, missing out on his half-century by just one run. Skipper Aiden Markram too chipped in with a valuable 30 off 17 deliveries as the Proteas ended up going past the finish line in a canter despite losing wickets at regular intervals along the way. Left-arm wrist spinner Tabraiz Shamsi was adjudged the Player of the Match in the high-scoring encounter for his miserly spell of 4-0-18-1 — the only bowler from either side to finish with an economy of less than eight on Tuesday. South Africa rocketed to 67 for one in five overs in their revised chase and eventually cantered to win in 13.5 overs. Both Mohammad Siraj and Arshdeep Singh were taken to the cleaners upfront. The left-arm pacer conceded as many as 24 runs in his opening over in which Hendricks smashed him out of the ground with a massive strike over midwicket. Spin was introduced as early as in the third over but to no avail against the rampaging batters of the home team. After Matthew Breezke (16 off 7) departed, Reeza Hendricks and Markram went on a leather hunt. The Proteas were cruising but loss of three quick wickets gave India an opening. However, South Africa had too much firepower up their sleeve and eventually got home comfortably. The third and final T20 will be played in Johannesburg on Thursday. The first T20 in Durban was washed out. Put in to bat, India lost Yashasvi Jaiswal (0) and Shubman Gill (0) for six runs before Surya led from the front and forged fine partnerships with Tilak Varma (29 off 20) and then Rinku. Rain arrived at St George’s Park with three balls left in the innings and Gerald Coetzee on a hat trick, having got rid of Ravindra Jadeja and Arshdeep. The innings did not resume thereafter. Playing for the first time in South Africa, Rinku took his time initially before working the field beautifully. His square of the wicket shots stood out in his well paced innings including fours and two straight sixes off Markram. Coming in at number three, Varma looked good in the middle before getting caught at third man in the sixth over. What followed was a 70-run stand between Surya and Rinku. Surya played like he usually does, collecting a chunk of his runs behind the wicket. His three sixes came as he got inside the line of the ball to send the ball over the ropes. Two were in the fine leg region and one over midwicket. It was not the smoothest of starts for India as they lost Jaiswal and Gill in the first two overs. Jaiswal could not control the cut shot against Marco Jansen to be brilliantly caught by David Miller at backward point. Varma could have departed in similar fashion two balls later but Miller could not hold on to that sharp chance. Gill was trapped in front by Lizaad Williams who got the ball to nip back from length. Despite the initial pressure, the Indian batters kept batting aggressively. Brief scores: India 180/7 in 19.3 overs (Rinku Singh 68*, Suryakumar Yadav 56; Tabraiz Shamsi 1/18; Gerald Coetzee 3/32) lost to South Africa 154/5 in 13.5 overs (Reeza Hendricks 49, Aiden Markram 30; Mukesh Kumar 2/34) by five wickets. With inputs from PTI