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India went on an experimenting spree in the third and final T20I of the series against South Africa. The series of experiments did not help as India lost to the Proteas by a huge margin of 49 runs at Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore, in their last T20I match before travelling to Australia for T20 World Cup 2022.
After winning the toss, Rohit opted to field first. Arshdeep Singh had issues with his back and was replaced by Mohammed Siraj in the side, who is one of the standbys for the mega event. In place of rested Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, Rohit included Shreyas Iyer and Umesh Yadav in the side.
While Quinton de Kock picked up right where he left off, skipper Temba Bavuma's torrid time in the series continued. Bavuma could score just three runs from eight deliveries before he got dismissed by Umesh while playing a loose shot. Bavuma got an embarrassing record to his name as he managed to score just three runs in the series. However, that was the only negative for the Proteas side in the game.
Rilee Rossouw joined De Kock in the middle. The southpaw was yet to score a single run in the series. The southpaw started off well with a few big shots. After the powerplay overs, South Africa had 48/1 on the board. In the ninth over, he was dropped by Mohammed Siraj at backward square leg and the ball bounced off his hands to go over the boundary.
In the next over, De Kock completed his second half-century on the trot with a six off Umesh. After the halfway stage, Rossouw and De Kock went ballistic. The partnership was broken in the 13th over as Shreyas Iyer's rocket throw from the deep. The opener scored 68 runs from 43 deliveries including six fours and four sixes.
Tristan Stubbs joined Rossouw in the middle. Axar Patel was introduced in the 13th over just after De Kock's wicket but it did not have an impact on the run rate. Stubbs was dropped by Dinesh Karthik at extra cover off the first ball he faced. In the slog overs, Rossouw’s assault continued.
Bowling no balls did not help India's cause either. While Mohammed Siraj bowled a fairly economical penultimate over, Chahar was taken to the cleaners in the final over despite Stubbs' (23) wicket. Rossouw got to his maiden T20I hundred from 48 deliveries and made up for dismal show in the first two T20Is. David Miller came to the crease and smoked three sixes from the five balls he faced including the no ball. Rossouw remained unbeaten for 100. His century included seven fours and eight sixes. Miller's five-ball 19 helped South Africa post 227/3.
In reply, India lost too many wickets despite maintaining a decent run rate. The first two wickets fell within 10 balls. Skipper Rohit got bowled for a two-ball duck by Kagiso Rabada whereas Shreyas got out leg before wicket by Wayne Parnell.
Promoted up the order, Rishabh Pant played an electrifying cameo but could not continue it beyond five overs. Pant got out for a 14-ball 27 which included three fours and two sixes. The wicketkeeper-batter became Lungi Ngidi's first victim of the night. Karthik got promoted up the order as well and played as if he is in a hurry to finish the game. Karthik connected the ball well and hit four fours and sixes each in his 21-ball 46. However, he got bowled by Keshav Maharaj in an attempt to play a reckless reverse sweep.
Suryakumar Yadav (8), Axar (9), Harshal (17) started off well but could not continue. Ravichandran Ashwin failed to make a mark and got out after scoring just two runs. After Ashwin's wicket, India were 120/8 in the 13th over.
Chahar and Umesh entertained the crowd with some exceptional hits. Deepak looked like a proper all-rounder as he smashed three sixes and two fours in his 17-ball 31. Umesh remained not out for 17-ball 20. Siraj looked to play big shots as well but caught at the boundary by Miller in an attempt to pull off MS Dhoni's trademark helicopter shot.
India got all out for 178 in the penultimate over and lost the dead rubber by 49 runs. It is also India's first loss in international arena in Indore.
