South Africa vs. India, Third Twenty20 International: Who Said What?

In the third Twenty20 International (T20I) match between India and South Africa, which was played on Thursday, December 14, at New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, India triumphed by 108 runs, showcasing an impressive comeback. India was given the opportunity to bat first, and thanks to a brilliant century from captain Suryakumar Yadav, they amassed a massive score of 201/7 in the 20 overs permitted.

In response, Kuldeep Yadav pulled up a fifer on his birthday as South Africa was bowled out for just 95 runs in the second inning. The game’s talking points are as follows:

1. Suryakumar Yadav’s position Glenn Maxwell and Rohit Sharma hold the record for most T20I hundreds.

With a century off 56 balls with seven fours and eight sixes smashed, the Indian captain extended his amazing run in Twenty20 Internationals. The Mumbai native’s century made him share the record for most hundreds in Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) with Glenn Maxwell and Rohit Sharma, who have each amassed four centuries in the abbreviated format.

2. On his birthday, Kuldeep Yadav became the first bowler to select a T20I player.

The left-arm spinner dismissed David Miller, Donovan Ferreira, Keshav Maharaj, Nandre Burger, and Lizaad Williams in 2.5 overs, scoring 5/17. Along with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, he became the second Indian to select two fifers in the format. Interestingly, those were the best bowling numbers of the 29-year-old’s T20I career.

3. In Twenty20 Indian T20Is, Mohammed Siraj becomes the 11th bowler to bowl two maiden overs.

Mohammed Siraj, who lost the second Twenty20 International match by giving up 14 runs in the opening over, came back magnificently in the third match, starting with a maiden against Reeza Hendricks. With this accomplishment, he also made history as the eleventh Indian bowler to have two or more T20I maiden overs. In three overs, Siraj concluded with figures of 0/13.

South Africa’s Aiden Markram, the lost captain, said:

Wasn’t too unhappy with chasing 200. Felt we could have chased it down. Was chaseable. It was slightly on the lower side. When we were fielding, it seemed batters could hit it everywhere. Would have been nice to do better. There are some positives that we can take forward. Couple of good things and couple of things we can work on.

India’s winning captain, Suryakumar Yadav (156 runs), POM, and POTS, stated:

I am good. I am walking, so good. Always a good feeling. When it comes in a winning cause, it makes me happier. We wanted to play some fearless brand of cricket. The idea was to bat first, put some runs on the board and defend. The boys work day in and day out. Happy that they showed some character. He(Kuldeep) is never happy. He is always hungry. It is a nice self gift on his birthday. I mean it is important to know your game. I just go out there and enjoy myself. The balance is important.