A brutal hitting show from Hardik Pandya and Tilak Varma followed by a magical Jasprit Bumrah spell ensured India clinched a fine 30-run win in the IND vs SA 5th t20I in Ahmedabad. Chasing 232 to win, South Africa only had Quinton de Kock firing, eventually falling short. It maintained India's unbeaten record in bilateral T20I series under Gautam Gambhir.
Chasing 232 to win, South Africa got off to a flyer with Quinton de Kock firing in all cylinders. While Reeza Hendricks struggled, De Kock single handedly maintained the tempo helping the Proteas to 67 in the powerplay - identical to India's score.
With a tall chase, Aiden Markram promoted Dewald Brevis and David Miller in a bid to get ahead of the chase. However, Varun Chakravarthy rocked the middle-order with a 4-wicket haul to put the breaks on. Jasprit Bumrah was also a key component in slowing the visitors down. In a game where over 460 runs were score, Bumrah conceded just 17 in his four overs at an economy rate of less than 5.
Earlier, India were put into bat with the opening duo of Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson re-united following Shubman Gill's injury. India got off to a fast start before South Africa wrestled themselves back into the contest.
However a century stand between Hardik Pandya and Tilak Varma blew the Proteas out of the water. Hardik smashed the second fastest t20I fifty for India in a whirlwind knock. Tilak was also at his aggressive best, top scoring with 73. Their 105-run partnership off just 44 balls set the tone, helping India to 231.
