India v South Africa, 2015-16
Wisden's review of the first Twenty20 International, India v South Africa, 2015-16
Dileep Premachandran
15-Apr-2016
At Dharmasala, October 2, 2015 (floodlit). South Africa won by seven wickets. Toss: South Africa. Twenty20 international debut: S. Aravind.
Only five times in Twenty20 internationals had a team chased down 200 or more to win. Now, in the Himalayan foothills of Dharmasala, Duminy - helped by Behardien - did just that, in the process eclipsing Rohit Sharma's wonderful 66-ball 106. India once won the World Twenty20 after the unheralded Joginder Sharma bowled the final over, but there was no such reprise when Sreenath Aravind, a 31-year-old debutant slow left-armer from Bangalore, was given the responsibility to defend ten off the last. Duminy's third-ball six all but settled the issue. He had already grabbed back the initiative - after de Villiers and du Plessis fell in the space of five deliveries - with three sixes a row in the 16th over, from Patel. It was the sort of late impetus India's innings had lacked, as a relatively modest 41 came from their final five overs. Rohit Sharma and Kohli, who became the quickest to 1,000 runs in the format (from 27 innings, five fewer than Kevin Pietersen and Alex Hales), had imperiously added 138 - an Indian all-wicket record - from 74 balls. But, after both departed in the same Abbott over, the charge never came. Duminy timed his perfectly, eventually hitting seven of the game's 20 sixes, a record for a Twenty20 international in India.
Man of the Match: J-P. Duminy.
Only five times in Twenty20 internationals had a team chased down 200 or more to win. Now, in the Himalayan foothills of Dharmasala, Duminy - helped by Behardien - did just that, in the process eclipsing Rohit Sharma's wonderful 66-ball 106. India once won the World Twenty20 after the unheralded Joginder Sharma bowled the final over, but there was no such reprise when Sreenath Aravind, a 31-year-old debutant slow left-armer from Bangalore, was given the responsibility to defend ten off the last. Duminy's third-ball six all but settled the issue. He had already grabbed back the initiative - after de Villiers and du Plessis fell in the space of five deliveries - with three sixes a row in the 16th over, from Patel. It was the sort of late impetus India's innings had lacked, as a relatively modest 41 came from their final five overs. Rohit Sharma and Kohli, who became the quickest to 1,000 runs in the format (from 27 innings, five fewer than Kevin Pietersen and Alex Hales), had imperiously added 138 - an Indian all-wicket record - from 74 balls. But, after both departed in the same Abbott over, the charge never came. Duminy timed his perfectly, eventually hitting seven of the game's 20 sixes, a record for a Twenty20 international in India.
Man of the Match: J-P. Duminy.