India vs South Africa T20I Series Report Card

Although India’s hard-fought T20I series against South Africa ended in disappointment at 2-2 after the decider in Bengaluru was washed out due to rain, there were still plenty of learnings for both sides ahead of the upcoming T20I World Cup in Australia.

There were plenty of dazzling performances from the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Dinesh Karthik across the five games, and here is our report card for the series.

Ishan Kishan – 8.5/10

In the absence of KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan impressed at the top of the order for the Men in Blue. The left-hander finished as the highest run-getter in the series, scoring 206 runs at a strike rate of 150 and was dismissed in the powerplay on just one occasion across his five innings. Kishan hit the most fours and sixes in the series and was particularly destructive against the South African spinners, striking at 233 against Shamsi and Maharaj in the five matches.

Dinesh Karthik – 8/10

Dinesh Karthik marked his return to India’s white-ball set-up against the Proteas, and the 37-year-old translated his incredible form for RCB in the IPL into national colours. Karthik finished the series with 92 runs in four innings at a strike rate of 158 and put himself in prime contention for a spot in India’s World Cup squad after his 26-ball half-century in Rajkot which helped the hosts level the series at 2-2.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 9/10

Bhuvneshwar Kumar was named the man of the series against South Africa for his fantastic performance across the four matches with the ball, and the veteran seamer stood up to the task as the leader of the Indian pace attack in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah. Kumar finished with six wickets at an average of 14 and consistently made inroads with the new ball across the four matches for the Men in Blue, conceding just 3.56 runs per over in the powerplay in the series.

Rishabh Pant – 5/10

It was a disappointing debut series as captain for Rishabh Pant, who continued to underwhelm for the Men in Blue in the shortest format. The left-hander scored just 58 runs in five matches at a worrying strike rate of 105 and continued to make the same errors throughout the series, with the wicketkeeper dismissed on three occasions by chasing wide deliveries outside off-stump.

Hardik Pandya – 8/10

Hardik Pandya returned to the Indian squad for the first time since the 2021 T20 World Cup, and the all-rounder carried his stellar form from IPL 2022 into the series against South Africa. Pandya finished with 117 runs at a strike rate of 153 in the series and played two pivotal knocks in both of India’s victories in Vizag (31 off 21) and Rajkot (46 off 31).