India defeated South Africa by 101 runs in the first T20 International in Cuttack on Tuesday, securing a dominant win after bowling out the visitors for their lowest-ever total in the format. The star of the night was Hardik Pandya, who marked his return from a two-month injury break with a match-winning all-round performance.
Walking in with India struggling at 78-4, Pandya smashed an unbeaten 59 off just 28 balls, hitting four sixes and six fours. His explosive knock powered India to a competitive 175-6 in 20 overs. Pandya later picked up a wicket as well, earning him the Player of the Match award. “I had to back my shots. The wicket had a bit of spice, so I had to be gutsy,” Pandya said after the match, adding that he was satisfied with his timing and overall batting.
India had a shaky start after being put in to bat, losing Shubman Gill for a two-ball duck to Lungi Ngidi, who also removed captain Suryakumar Yadav shortly after. Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma tried to stabilize the innings, but wickets kept falling until Pandya’s arrival shifted the momentum.
South Africa, chasing 176, collapsed under pressure as Arshdeep Singh struck early by removing Quinton de Kock for a duck. India successfully reviewed a caught-behind call to dismiss Tristan Stubbs, putting the Proteas on the back foot. With regular wickets tumbling, South Africa never recovered and were bowled out for 74. Arshdeep, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, and Axar Patel each claimed two wickets, while Pandya dismissed the dangerous David Miller.
With this emphatic win, India takes a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. The second T20I will be played on Thursday in Chandigarh.
