Hardik and Arshdeep Blow South Africa Away as India Take 1-0 Lead

India opened their T20 World Cup build-up with a crushing 101-run win over South Africa in Cuttack, in a performance that underlined their status as title favourites.

Sent in to bat on a sticky, damp surface, India laboured early as Lungi Ngidi removed Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav, and South Africa’s tall seamers kept the scoring tight.

But Hardik Pandya transformed the innings with a blistering unbeaten 59 off 28 balls, launching two no-look sixes off Keshav Maharaj and taking 30 runs from the final two overs to lift India to 175 for 6.

That total quickly proved more than enough. Arshdeep Singh struck with his first over, swinging one away to remove Quinton de Kock for a duck, before using wobble-seam to dismiss Tristan Stubbs. His early double blow set the tone as India’s bowlers exploited whatever assistance remained before the pitch fully eased. Dewald Brevis briefly counter-attacked, but regular wickets prevented any partnership from developing and South Africa slid to 74 all out, their lowest T20I score.

Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, and Jasprit Bumrah tightened the squeeze through the middle overs, with Bumrah reaching 100 T20I wickets during the rout. Hardik added the wicket of David Miller, and Shivam Dube closed the match by taking the final scalp.

For India, a dominant win after losing the toss offers a reassuring answer to their biggest pre-tournament concern batting first under dew. For South Africa, a heavy defeat leaves urgent questions ahead of the remaining four matches of the series.