India outplayed South Africa in all facets of the game in the final T20I match.
Opting to bat first, the visitors got off to a blazing start as the duo of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma put on 73 runs for the opening wicket inside the powerplay.
After Abhishek’s dismissal for 18-ball 36, Tilak Varma joined Samson in the middle. The pair made a mockery of the Proteas bowling attack as both of them notched up their second hundred in the series. While the wicketkeeper-batter reached the three-figure mark in 51 balls, it took the southpaw 10 deliveries fewer to get there.
With this milestone, Samson became the first player ever to score three T20 International centuries in a calendar year. On the other hand, Tilak became the second Indian batter after Sanju to score back-to-back tons in T20Is.
Thanks to unbeaten tons from Sanju Samson (109* off 56) and Tilak Varma (120* off 47), and their unbroken 210-run stand, the Men in Blue racked up a mammoth 283/1 on the board.
In reply, the Proteas innings folded for 148 in 18.2 overs. It was a listless batting display as no one managed to touch the 50-run mark.
Arshdeep Singh starred with the ball for India, claiming three wickets by conceding 20 runs in his three overs. Axar Patel and Varun Chakaravarthy picked up two scalps each while Hardik Pandya, Ravi Bishnoi and Ramandeep Singh returned with wicket apiece.
For their clinical display with both bat and ball, which gave them a 3-1 series win, the Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian side received rich praise from the cricket fraternity on social media.
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