Hardik storm blows Proteas - first T20 : India vs South Africa
Hardik storm blows Proteas - T20 One: India vs South Africa Journey begins for T20 World Cup’ February 2026. Introduction: The 1 st T20 engagement between India and South Africa played at Cuttack, generated a lot of interest with the T20 World Cup just months away to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. Both teams resembled their best combinations, preparing for the Championship fight. Shubman Gill is back in the squad, and so is Hardik Pandya, who wasn’t playing the recently concluded One-Day series. Jasprit Bumrah and Axar Patel, the bowling all-rounder, are the other players in the first eleven. The wicket looked even, with the ball coming into the bat a bit slow in the initial overs. Overall, the dewy conditions as forecasted later in the match prompted Aiden Markaram to opt for fielding. It was the devastating innings of Hardik Pandya rescuing the Indian team from 78 for 4 to 175 for 6 with Hardik remaining not out, scoring 59 runs (28 balls: 6x4, 4x6) Th...