India vs South Africa Highlights 2nd T20: South Africa win rain-interrupted game by five wickets

Tabraiz Shamsi: I have taken that celebration away but the kids near the boundary keep asking me for it. To be able to deliver under pressure against India was pleasing. He is a wonderful player and he has shown that again today. Aiden was brilliant with his changes. Since Rob has come in, he has created a brilliant environment in the team. He pushes hard in the field but also allows us to enjoy our families. The results are there to show on the field.

Ravindra Jadeja will bowl the penultimate over. Tristan Stubbs decides to take the initiative and goes for a reverse sweep but gets a top edge and it flies down short third for four. He's adamant on not leaving this to the last over and he closes the game with a clean swipe over deep square leg for six and South Africa win by five wickets.

Wow, what a game of T20 cricket! Even though it was cut short, even though it was played on a wicket where the past average first innings total had been 160 and even 140 looked defendable, both Indian and South Africa batters kept the biggies coming. Suryakumar Yadav and Rinku Singh, it seemed like had managed to put India to an above par total but in the end, South Africa had that much more batting power to chase 152 inside 13.5 overs. But it wasn't as easy as it had looked after the first couple of overs. The T20 World Cup is still some six months away. With batting lineups such as these two.....phew, can't wait!

Mukesh Kumar in to bowl his third. And it's not the best of starts. A front foot no ball conceded before Miller gets a hold of his slot ball and flicks it neat over mid wicket for six. Just what the doctor (or Rob Walter) would've ordered. But even he can't finish this game for the Proteas. A low full toss and this time, Miller is only able to get the ball as far as Mohammed Siraj at backward square leg. Half of the South African side are back in the hut with 13 needed off 13. It stays a run a ball as Andile Phehlukwayo wraps the over with a single.

Mohammed Siraj in to bowl his last over. Manages to get an outside edge off David Miller with a first slip in place but it goes past him and runs down for four. Not the start he would've wanted. Later in the over, gets away with a full toss, off which Miller only manages to pocket a couple down the mid wicket boundary. He keeps the strike for the 13th. South Africa, 128/4 as the cameras show coach Rob Walter walking in to have a chat with his batting duo.

It's Kuldeep Yadav, who comes in to bowl his third over. With the equation by South Africa's side and the seamers leaking heavy on the night, the chinaman closes his quota with a brilliant three-run over. Can India push the card from here. 32 runs off 24 balls is the equation. 

Make that three wickets in three overs. Goodness me, are South Africa bottling this chase as well?

Klaasen, looking to clear the mid wicket fence, is caught by Yashasvi Jaiswal and Mohammed Siraj has a wicket. The Proteas are four down. 

But hold on to your haunches (shouts inside) as the hosts get a couple of boundaries to wrap up the over. Tristan Stubbs gets lucky with a swipe across the line that beats the keeper behind and runs for four byes. Next up, he connects a pull shot and gets four runs to show for it. 116/4 after 10 overs. 36 needed off the last 30 balls.

Kuldeep Yadav in to bowl his second. Drags the length down a bit too much and Hendricks latches onto it with a pull shot for four. Heinrich Klaasen joins the party with smoking slog-sweep over deep mid wicket for six. Off the last ball though, Hendricks - looking to slap Kuldeep through the covers - is caught by Suryakumar Yadav and falls short of his fifty. South Africa lose two wickets in two overs. 108/3 after nine overs.

Mukesh Kumar to Aiden Markram. Length ball from the seamer and the Proteas skipper gets underneath it. All the way over the deep mid wicket boundary for six. Last laugh seems like a luxury at the moment but Mukesh removes Markram off the next ball to provide some respite to India just after the two Proteas batter had added 50 runs for the second wicket. Goes short on this one and Markram is unable to connect it off the middle and finds the fielder in front of square on the on side. 96/2 after eight overs.

Ravindra Jadeja into his second over and the dew has started to settle onto the surface at St. George's Park. What a time to be in that South African dressing room. They can stretch their legs by the balcony. These two don't look like halting anytime soon.

Even Aiden Markram's wild heave that induces an inside edge almost kisses the leg stump as it runs down fine leg for four. 87/1 after seven overs.

Arshdeep Singh was deposited for two sixes and as many fours in his first over. Reeza Hendricks belts him for two more boundaries off his second. South Africa have made the most of the field restrictions and 152 doesn't look as big a total as it did 30 minutes ago. 78/1 after six overs.

Geez! Reeza Hendricks looks inspired tonight. 

Whatever happened to those '140 is adequate on this surface' predictions! Kuldeep Yadav - the fifth Indian bowler into the attack today - to bowl the fifth over. 

Bowls a shortish delivery, and Hendricks picks it by rocking back deep in his crease cutting it expertly between two fielders. Another back of a length delivery, dealt with by sitting on one knee and slapping it past mid off for four. 67/1 after five overs.

And just like that, Aiden Markram comes in and smothers Mukesh Kumar for three consecutive boundary following the fall of South Africa's first wicket. It's been the trend of the day. Breakthroughs for South Africa didn't slow down India and the vice versa has been true so far in the second innings. 

13 more runs added as fifty comes up for the hosts in no time. 56/1 after four overs.

Oh my my, what a poor way to give away that first wicket!

South Africa had the perfect jumpstart to chase 152 but they've gifted India with that wicket. Matthew Breetzke - looking for a second run when there wasn't one. Reeza Hendricks didn't move a muscle there and had clearly signalled his partner to not come running for a double. He does and India capitalize on the miscommunication. 43/1 after three overs.

Arshdeep Singh from the other end is peppered for 24 runs off his first over. Two monstrous sixes off the blade of Matthew Breetzke and Reeza Hendricks. The first from the former is a gorgeous flick shot over backward square leg for six. The second is bigger and more bruttish from Hendricks, who dances down the track and slogs it over the deep mid wicket fence - 93m. 38/0 after two and the hosts couldn't have asked for a better start.

Mohammed Siraj steams in to bowl the first over for India and finds an outside edge straightaway but it runs wide of the first slip for four. South Africa off the mark with a boundary. Siraj goes fractionally short and Hendricks middles a cover drive for his second boundary. And then, another edge flies safe and gets South Africa four more runs. A brilliant first over. 14/0. 

So here's a good news from the middle. The covers are on. The rain has stopped and the match will resume at 11:10 PM IST. South Africa will need to chase the required target in 15 overs. 

A recap of the two sixes Rinku Singh struck off Aiden Markram in the penultimate over. The first one is off a short delivery and Rinku brings that backfoot strength into play to sky it over wide long on. The next one is tossed up and Rinku advances down to meet it as a half volley before smothering it straight down the ground. BANG came the sound as it cracked open the glass window of the media box.

#AidenMarkram brought himself on in the penultimate over, and #RinkuSingh made him pay with back-to-back maximums ?

Rinku has brought his A-game to South Africa!

Tune-in to the 2nd #SAvIND T20I
LIVE NOW | Star Sports Network#Cricket pic.twitter.com/HiibVjyuZH

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) December 12, 2023

Nobody:

Left-handed Singh’s in at number 5: pic.twitter.com/jdsD0vyWlB

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) December 12, 2023

It will be Gerald Coetzee to finish the proceedings for South Africa with the ball. Jadeja claims a double off the first. The next one is full and thuds onto Jadeja's pads. Up goes the finger and Jadeja ain't reviewing that. 

Arshdeep Singh on the strike. He can hit it as evidenced by his county stint last year in England. Coetzee is smart to offer him a slower bouncer though and the southpaw - looking to dab it down short third - finds the fielder stationed at the edge of the 30-yard circle. Two wickets off two balls for Coetzee and India go seven down for 180 but with three balls remaining in the innings, rain has forced a stoppage at Port Elizabeth.

That Rinku SIX just landed in the media box. pic.twitter.com/fwAXKUUvD1

— Rajal Arora (@RajalArora) December 12, 2023

If it wasn't clear before, it very much is after that Aiden Markram over. 

Gosh, the southpaw has clattered the Proteas skipper here. Back to back sixes and they are fierce!

The first one is off a short delivery and Rinku brings that backfoot strength into play to sky it over wide long on. The next one is tossed up and Rinku advances down to meet it as a half volley before smothering it straight down the ground. BANG came the sound as it landed on the roof above the sight screen. 178/5 after 19 overs.

Tabraiz Shamsi comes in to close what has been a magnificent spell on what has been a poor day at the office for the Proteas pacers. And he wraps it up keeping that economy rate untarnished. Just the 18 runs conceded off the four overs and the big wicket of Suryakumar Yadav in the pocket. He's done his job. 162/5 after 18 overs.

Gerald Coetzee to Ravindra Jadeja. Short ball going down the leg side and the southpaw steers it down fine leg for six. What a hit! Spoils a perfectly good over which had costed only the three runs apart from the maximum. 158/5 after 17 overs.

Jitesh Sharma looks to have a taste of the boundary but locates the fielder at deep mid wicket as skipper Aiden Markram gets a wicket. 

On comes Ravindra Jadeja, who finds his first boundary. A wide delivery outside the off stump takes an inside edge to run down short third for four. Meanwhile, Rinku Singh reaches a first milestone for India. His first fifty in Indian colors. 141/4 after 16 overs.

Same script again for India. A wicket falls and yet, the boundaries continue to flow. Rinku Singh takes the inititaive against Lizaad Williams. A short ball first up is slapped over point for four. Then, a length ball outside the off stump - this one's quicker - and Rinku uses the pace to clamp it through the same region for four. Williams shifts to the leg side line and goes short but Rinku has anticipated the same and picks it on one leg to get it wide of short third for four. 141/4 after 15 overs.

Shamsi into his third over and Suryakumar Yadav goes for another dancing-down-the-track-lofted drive but this time, the fielder at long off claims the Indian skipper and South Africa have the wicket they needed. The Indian captain is sent back for 56 off 36 and India lose their fourth wicket at 125.

That close DRS call seems to have been the flick of the switch Rinku Singh needed. The southpaw pumps Phehlukwayo for three boundaries - a flick-pull down backward square leg, another whack in the same region and a slower ball helped down fine leg. 

Skipper Aiden Markram brings himself in to bowl. Comes round the wicket to Rinku Singh, who tries to reverse sweep the off break bowler but is unable to bat it and the Proteas shout for lbw. Umpire says aye! 

Rinku is reluctant to take a review here but his captain persuades him to and it proves beneficial. The southpaw has gloved it and gets another lifeline. 

Dale Steyn on the broadcast suggests 140 can be a very good total at this surface. With Suryakumar Yadav in the middle, India can surely wish for more. Off he goes into the latter half of this innings - whipping Jansen down fine leg for six. Gee, those wrists must be burning hot after having executed some of the shots today. Brings up his half century. Rinku Singh gets into the thick of the action - finds his second boundary. This time down mid off for four. And then, dabs it neat down short third for another. 100 up for India. 101/3 after 11 overs.

Perhaps agitated with just the one boundary off his first six deliveries, Rinku Singh decides to bring out the reverse sweep against Tabraiz Shamsi, but the southpaw misses the trajectory altogether and there's a stumping appeal from the Proteas here. Rinku however, has got his foot grounded in time. Shamsi has bowled another good one here but Surya smothers him with a sweep shot for four off his last ball. 

At the halfway stage, India are 84/3.

Phehlukwayo scampers in from the other end and just as South Africa offer something quick, the boundaries return for India. Suryakumar Yadav leans down on one leg and scoops one down square leg for four. What picture perfect execution!

For Rinku Singh, it's a good time to come in and prove his prowess against a rich pace attack in testing conditions. Conditions he is yet to get a hang of - this being his first taste of a SENA tour. Seven runs come off the over. 

Right then, change of pace from the Proteas as Tabraiz Shamsi replaces Gerald Coetzee. Starts off by negotiating just the three singles and the umpire signals for a strategic timeout. Yep, you read it right. In international cricket!

Andile Phehlukwayo into the attack. Goes short to Suryakumar Yadav, who's in place to play a controlled upper cut that runs down the short third boundary for four. He's taking the pace off the ball against Surya but the Indian skipper isn't budging away from playing the big strokes. Becomes the third quickest to 2000 T20I runs (56 innings) behind Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan (52).

Coetzee to wrap up the powerplay. And he gets an important breakthrough to take the momentum away from India. 

Goes back of a length from over the wicket and it's angled away from Tilak Varma, who's come down his crease but is only able to find the fielder down the short third fence. A third wicket falls for the visitors. The Indians however, aren't giving up on the attacking.

Rinku Singh claims a first ball four. 59/3 after six overs.

Just as expected, a switch of ends for Williams. But the counter attacking from the Indian batters continues. Tilak Varma lays low to execute a scoop shot for four. And just when we were having some fun, it has started drizzling again in Gqeberha, *sighs*. 

Surya finishes the over with a sensational-front-of-the-square helicopter shot. WOW! He'd played one of these in the T20 series against Australia and oh how well does he play it! What a turnaround this from India as fifty comes up on the scoreboard. 

A change in the bowling from the other end, eh!? 

Lizaad Williams had bowled a good first over, removing Shubman Gill and costing just the three runs but he's replaced by Gerald Coetzee. (Probably coming to bowl from the other end)

Meanwhile, Surya joins the boundary party with his first of the day. A gorgeous lofted cover drive for four. Change in gears after lousy first couple of overs. A short one from Coetzee is hooked down fine leg for six followed by another drive on the front foot for four. Another good over for India. 40/2 after four overs. 

Okay, Tilak Varma finally connects a couple from his sweet spot. First up, a flick shot off an incoming delivery from Marco Jansen that sails over deep square leg for six - first boundary of the game. Then, a shortish delivery that's cut past backward square leg for four. Closes the over with another flick shot off a fullish delivery that runs in front of square for four. But that's not it. Just as we go into an advert, the broadcaster have to cut us back to the St. George's Park where Jansen has bowled a no ball. The following free hit gets smothered behind square on the leg side for four. Healthy over that for India - 19 runs come off it. 

Lizaad Williams bursts in from the other end. Starts off with a couple of dots before banging one in short and Varma is taken aback with that one. A top edge that falls not too far away from the fielder. Two runs collected by the Indians. 

To Shubman Gill, he goes length and manages to nip one back. It thuds into the right-handers pads. The umpire wastes little time before raising his finger. Gill has gone upstairs. Three reds it is and he has to walk back. Both Indian openers back in the hut with just six runs on the board after the first two overs.

Yashasvi Jaiswal finds the middle of his willow off the first ball but it rolls straight to the fielder at short extra cover. Jansen holds his length slightly as it nips past the southpaw off the next one. There's a bit of an agitation to get that first boundary and it shows as Jaiswal goes for the risky cut short and gets caught at backward point. First wicket for Jansen and South Africa with no run on the board. 

And they almost have another. Tilak Varma finds Tabraiz Shamsi at backward point off the very next ball but the spinner drops him. To be fair to him, it was hit like a belter that one. Quite the start that for the hosts. 3/1 after the first one.

Right then, we're already one step ahead of the proceedings in Durban. Toss has happened and the hosts have invited the visitors to bat first in what will the first piece of action in this multi-format series in South Africa. The two sets of players take to the St. George's Park, with grey clouds still posing a threat but no showers as of now. The national anthems will follow. 

Good atmosphere around this venue, it's not a packed house either. Perhaps, more of them will turn up as the game progress. Regardless, the contest promises to be an exciting one. The exciting pair of Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal walk into the middle. Remember, no Gaikwad in the XI today. The right-handed batter who had accompanied Jaiswal in the T20 series against Australia was unavailble for selection due to illness. 

For South Africa, it's Marco Janses who has the ball. On he comes from round the wicket to the left-hander.

Shubman Gill: Very important series for us. There are just five more games before the IPL. So in terms of that it's very important. I haven't had that much of T20Is under my belt so this series and the three matches in India will be very important. It's all about staying in a good mental place and then go about executing your shots. I mean at the end of the day, it's a game of bat and ball. It's about playing the situation and that is what I focus on.

"Square boundaries are 64m and 67m, straight hit is 77m. Average bounce in South Africa is 8cm more than what it is in India, but here at St George's Park it's not so much so India will be comfortable here. Lots of grass on the pitch today so that it can hold the surface together. Many batters complain about ball hitting bottom of the bat, but I don't think they need to worry about it today," reckons Pommie Mbangwa.

No Ruturaj Gaikwad in the playing XI today. Update from the BCCI is that he was unavailable for selection owing to illness. 

India XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar

South Africa XI: Matthew Breetzke, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram(c), Heinrich Klaasen(w), David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Andile Phehlukwayo, Gerald Coetzee, Lizaad Williams, Tabraiz Shamsi

Aiden Markram: We are going to bowl first, been under the covers for most of the day, so I would assume it would move around a bit. Each game becomes important for us to fine tune things before the 2024 T20 WC, hopefully we can start well today. From my point of view it's about understanding if someone needs a rest. No debuts today.

Suryakumar Yadav: We are going to bowl first, been under the covers for most of the day, so I would assume it would move around a bit. Each game becomes important for us to fine tune things before the 2024 T20 WC, hopefully we can start well today. From my point of view it's about understanding if someone needs a rest. No debuts today.

So the rain has stopped and the players are in the middle for their warm-up drills. The two captains, Suryakumar Yadav and Aiden Markram walk in the middle for the spin of the coin. On we go to the St. George's Park.

And it's Markram who wins the toss, South Africa opt to bowl first in Gqeberha. 

With some six months left in the upcoming T20 World Cup, India have only five T20Is left to be played ahead of the big ticket tournament. One of which is under the risk of being called out, with clouds still hovering over the St. George's Park. For now, the showers have halted and it looks like we'll have the toss at the scheduled time of 8:00 PM IST.

With Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal in the mix, Bishnoi is no longer a luxury now. The 23-year-old leg-spinner, the least conventionally skilful of the lot, is an utterly T20 specimen. His trajectory is flat, is quicker than the rest, his leg-spin seldom turns, his googly just comes in with the angle. He doesn’t bother about those jazzy sentiments about flight and dipping from above the eye-lines of batsmen, writes Venkata Krishna B. (Read more)

1st ODI – December 17, 2023 in New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg

2nd ODI – December 19, 2023 in St George’s Park, Gqeberha

3rd ODI – December 21, 2023 in Boland Park, Paarl

1st Test – December 26-30, 2023 at 1:30 PM IST in SuperSport Park, Centurion

2nd Test – January 3-7, 2024 at 2:00 PM IST in Newlands, Cape Town

"About 40 minutes to toss and we are witnessing a steady drizzle," BCCI update from the St. George's Park. Another washout on the cards, ladies and gentlemen. 

In the three T20Is that have been played at the St. George's Park previously, the highest total has been 179 and the lowest 58, scored by South Africa against West Indies, who also lost five wickets while chasing the same. Too short a sample size to predict. 

A total of 333 players are set to go under the hammer at the IPL 2024 player auction, with the IPL Governing Council announcing the final list of players for the event set to be held in Dubai on December 19. Out of the lot, 119 are overseas players, including one each from Namibia and the Netherlands. Altogether, 23 players have put in their names with a base price of Rs 2 crore, among them three Indians – Umesh Yadav, Shardul Thakur and Harshal Patel. 

Venkata Krishna explains talking points from the auction list revealed on Monday. (Read here)

India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravi Bishnoi, Mukesh Kumar, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh

South Africa: Reeza Hendricks, Matthew Breetzke, Tristan Stubbs, Aiden Markram (capt), Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Keshav Maharaj, Gerald Coetzee, Nandré Burger, Tabraiz Shamsi

Aiden Markram: "The world saw that he gave his all and some more. It would have been tough for him to deal with — it was tough for everyone — but he has been good the last few days. He is back up for it and it’s been good to see. He loves bowling, he loves performing and he loves competing. For him, it’s a new series and he's looking forward to what he can do for us."

Suryakumar Yadav: "It was a disappointment that will be difficult to move on from, but the show must go on. We had a nice T20I series against Australia. It was a different format, but we really enjoyed it and it was a big boost for the boys who came in and won that series for us."

Here are the big talking points on how the two teams can line up in Gqeberha. 

-Shubman Gill back in India's T20 XI

-Ravi Bishnoi or Kuldeep Yadav, who'll be India's first choice spinner? 

-Deepak Chahar in for Mukesh Kumar

-Gerald Coetzee and Marco Jansen to play before being released to prepare for Tests (Read more)

Former South Africa skipper, Faf du Plessis highlights the age-old factor that the Indian batsmen have to overcome if they are to succeed in South Africa. “If India can get adapted to the bounce on offer, it is going to be a good white-ball leg," he'd told this newspaper. “Both India and South Africa are coming on the back of a very good World Cup. From what I have seen they have the right sort of players. Them coming against each other is going to make for some fantastic cricket.”

India and South Africa are at a curiously similar place as they start a month-long tour with a three-game T20 series from Sunday. Both teams will view the ODI World Cup with a bittersweetness. Both teams had issues before the big event but South Africa dazzled against Australia in a home series as did India at the Asia Cup. And they forced the world to gape at them later during the ICC event. Now both teams look at fresher faces in the T20 series to take them forward.

Off the field too, both nations are casting their nets in similarly diverse places for unearthing talent. For a while now, South Africa have been social-engineering their teams with black quotas to reflect the larger populace of the country but have been facing criticism for it. One of the less-convincing condemnation has been that the black population isn’t interested in the game. Telford Vice, a senior South African journalist, corrects the misconception in his chat with Sriram Veera. (Read more)

In his short India career so far, Arshdeep has embodied these traits. For, every time he has been plundered for runs, or looked rusty, or blundered, he has found the wherewithal to fight back and deliver a match-winning performance. Weeks after the Dubai faux pas, he landed lusty blows to Pakistan at the MCG in the World T20 in 2022. There are other examples—in the first T20 game against New Zealand earlier this year, his last over cost 27 runs, and India ended up losing the game by 21 runs. But in the next game, his last two overs yielded only seven runs.

Even in his last game for India, against Australia in Bangalore, he bled 37 runs in his first three overs, but in the last, with Indian defending 10 runs, he jettisoned the dangerous Matthew Wade and gave away just three runs to sew the game. He would not have even played the game—he was dropped for the fourth fixture after listless outings in the previous three games—had not Deepak Chahar flown out due to a family issue. Arshdeep, in his short career, has travelled through the whole spectrum of emotions, and emerged stronger from crisis, often wielding a pen that has been as sharp as his bouncer, writes Sandip G. (Read more)

Total matches: 24

India: 13

South Africa: 10

No result: 1

After the worst possible start to India's multi-format tour of South Africa - a washout - the two teams shall lock horns in the second T20I on Tuesday. Even though India are missing quite a few big names, the two teams still boast loads of T20 superstars in their squads and will be looking to tick a lot of boxes in the lead up to the T20 World Cup next summer in the Caribbean.

For now though, it's the showers in Gqeberha that everyone has their eyes on. Stay tuned as we take you through the evening, hopefully one with 40 overs of cricketing action.