India Vs South Africa Highlights, 5th T20I: Men In Blue Outclass Proteas By 30 Runs To Seal Series by 3-1

Hello and welcome back to our live blog of the India vs South Africa 5th T20I. Stay with us for all the live updates from the game.

The India vs South Africa 5th T20I match will be live-streamed on the JioHotstar app and website in India. Television broadcasts will take place on the following TV channels: Star Sports 2, Star Sports 2 Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada.

The two teams have faced off 34 times in T20 internationals, and India have won 20 of those. South Africa have emerged victors 13 times, while one game ended in a no result.

Stats At A Glance

Top run-scorers: Southpaw David Miller heads the list with 545 runs from 27 India vs South Africa T20I games. Quinton de Kock comes 2nd in the list with 442 runs in 14 matches. Former India skipper Rohit Sharma with 429 runs from 18 matches is next, while among the current Indian players, young Tilak Varma is on top with 423 runs from 9 games.

Top wicket-takers: Left arm-seamer Arshdeep Singh is first with 22 wickets from 13 matches. India's star spinner Varun Chakaravarthy is at the second spot with 18 wickets in just seven matches.

Given the home advantage, India are being considered the favourites in this match. Google gives the Indians a 68% chance of victory, and South Africa 32%.

India: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (wk), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Hardik Pandya, Shahbaz Ahmed, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy.

South Africa: Aiden Markram (c), Ottineil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Tristan Stubbs.

Ahmedabad’s weather looks cricket-friendly for the final T20I, with clear skies and temperatures around 15°C-30°C expected during match hours, ideal playing conditions with no significant rain threat and only light winds. Dew could become a factor later in the evening, potentially aiding teams chasing under lights.

The Narendra Modi Stadium pitch traditionally favors batters, offering true bounce and carry that encourages stroke-making on both sides of the wicket. Fast bowlers might get some early movement, but the surface typically eases into a high-scoring track where teams can post or chase big totals in T20 cricket.

South Africa won the toss and decided to bowl first against India.

South Africa (Playing XI): Quinton de Kock(w), Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram(c), Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Donovan Ferreira, George Linde, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman

India (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma(w), Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh

Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma walk out to open, Samson taking strike as Lungi Ngidi gets things going. Extra bounce straight away. Ngidi hits a short-of-a-length spot outside off at close to 137 clicks, Sanju spots the width and goes hard with the slash, but it climbs on him. A loud whoosh, nothing on it, and Ngidi pauses to have a quick look at the pitch. Message delivered first ball.

Abhishek Sharma goes bang-bang-bang, three fours in a row and Marco Jansen feels the heat. Width on offer, hands thrown at it, edges flying over the infield. Not all timed, all effective. Momentum firmly with India early.

Ottneil Baartman drops it fuller around off and Sanju Samson doesn’t miss out. Right in the slot, clean swing through the line, up and over mid-on and away for four. Timing, intent, message sent.

528 - Abhishek Sharma
573 - Suryakumar Yadav
679 - Hardik Pandya
679 - Sanju Samson*
686 - KL Rahul
690 - Tilak Varma

Marco Jansen fires a fullish delivery across, and Sanju Samson makes room, freeing his hands to middle it through extra cover, FOUR.

Corbin Bosch breaks the partnership, Abhishek Sharma out caught by Quinton de Kock! A short ball down leg, Abhishek stays inside the line and tries to guide it along, but it brushes the glove and flies to de Kock, who holds on. Surprisingly, South Africa didn’t appeal big, and Abhishek didn’t feel the contact, wasting India’s review. He departs for 34 off 21 balls, with sixes and fours mixed in.

Tilak Varma comes to the crease.

Sanju Samson survives as Ferreira spills a straightforward chance. He drills a full delivery back, but the ball slips through Ferreira’s hands and smacks umpire Rohan Pandit on the knee, leaving him wincing in pain while the ball trickles to long-on.

Sanju Samson’s knock comes to an end, bowled by Linde. A flighted 90ks delivery drifting in, landing around middle and leg, deceives Samson’s length, he reaches for it, but it straightens past the outside edge and crashes into the middle stump. He departs for 37 off 22 balls, with four fours and two sixes.

Tilak Varma nudges one for a single, attempting a wristy pull behind square. Played along the ground, he gets a quick run as Linde charges in.

Hardik Pandya smashes Corbin Bosch for a huge six right after walking in! Stepping out, he unleashes a flat, lofted drive over mid-off, timing no issue at all. The ball even smacks a cameraman on the left arm, catching him by surprise as he was focused on the Indian dugout.

Tilak Varma joins the party with a massive six off Linde! With the width on offer, he frees his arms, sets a solid base, and launches a powerful loft over long-on. Hardik Pandya celebrates the shot, giving Tilak a congratulatory tap on the helmet.

Ngidi leaks a boundary as Tilak Varma slices a short-of-length delivery past deep backward point! He steps out just enough, makes room, and punishes the lack of width. That shot brings up his sixth T20 fifty, earning cheers from the dugout, Hardik Pandya, and the crowd.

Marco Jansen put on a masterclass in clever bowling. He first tricked Tilak Varma with a slower ball that left the batter frustrated with his timing, then followed it up by outsmarting Hardik Pandya with a sharp short ball. Even though both batters were ready to attack, Jansen’s variety forced them to settle for just a single run each.

Hardik Pandya punished a massive mistake from Corbin Bosch, who served up a "hit me" full toss right in the slot. Since Hardik was already in great form, he didn't miss the gift, effortlessly launching the ball 85 meters over mid-wicket for a huge six.

In a stunning display of skill, Hardik Pandya reached a 16-ball half-century, the second-fastest for India in T20I history, trailing only Yuvraj Singh.

Even when Corbin Bosch nearly nailed a perfect yorker, Hardik’s elite technique took over; he quickly cleared his front leg and whipped a flat, fierce flick over mid-wicket for six. It was a "monster" shot that sent the Ahmedabad crowd into a frenzy, proving that even good deliveries aren't safe when Hardik is in this kind of rare form.

Hardik Pandya’s whirlwind innings of 63 off 25 balls came to an end when Ottneil Baartman’s low full toss was smashed straight to Reeza Hendricks at deep mid-wicket. Despite the stunning dismissal, the Ahmedabad crowd rose to applaud one of the finest T20I innings by an Indian.

Moving slightly too far across the line, Hardik couldn’t get the perfect base for maximum power, but the fireworks he delivered kept fans thoroughly entertained.

India finish at 231-5 in their 20 overs, leaving South Africa with a challenging target. Opting to bowl despite the dew, the Proteas now face a 231-run mountain to climb. While still chaseable, the new ball can move a bit in the powerplay, and with Arshdeep Singh ready to open the attack, the visitors have a tricky task ahead.

Chase time for South Africa, and Quinton de Kock wasted no time, expertly flicking Arshdeep Singh’s full delivery past the infield for four. Any ball close to off stump or straighter, and de Kock looked ready to punish it on the on-side, setting the tone for the Proteas’ chase.

Quinton de Kock continues his assault, flicking and toe-ending Arshdeep Singh’s delivery past mid-wicket for another four. Even with deep backward square leg in place, de Kock’s timing and placement leave the fielders helpless.

Quinton de Kock slashes Washington Sundar’s delivery to deep mid-wicket for four, keeping the momentum firmly with the Proteas.

Brevis punished Varun Chakaravarthy’s full delivery, getting under the ball and sending it soaring for a flat six over long-off. The shot sailed cleanly into the stands, giving the crowd a thrilling moment.

Most 50-Plus Scores Vs IND In T20Is
6 - Quinton de Kock (14 inns)*
5 - Nicholas Pooran (20 inns)
5 - Jos Buttler (24 inns)

There’s a worrying moment out there as Hardik Pandya looks uncomfortable, down on his haunches and taking his time before getting back on his feet. He had already needed a back massage earlier, and this doesn’t look entirely comfortable as he slowly walks back to his position.

Bumrah hits the stumps with a full delivery, Corbin Bosch shuffles across and can only flick it out to deep square leg for a single.

This is it! India win the match by 30 runs and clinch the series by 3-1. A yet another series win for Indian in the white ball format especially in T20Is where they have been the dominant force since the last T20I World Cup.

That's a wrap from our end. We'll meet soon with another blog, until then, bye bye.