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De Kock and Baartman star in comeback win as Proteas level series

football11 December 2025 17:33
By:Neil Manthorp
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Quinton de Kock blazed a stunning 90 from just 46 balls to lead South Africa to a daunting total of 213-4 on a perfect batting pitch before the bowlers completed a fine comeback for the tourists dismissing India for 162 to complete a 51-run victory in the second of five T20 Internationals at the Yadavindra Singh Cricket Stadium in Chandigarh on Thursday.

It was a remarkable turnaround for the tourists who were humiliated by 101 runs in the first game just two days earlier after being bowled out for 74, their lowest total in the format.

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Ottneil Baartman led the bowling counter-attack with a well-deserved return of 4-24 from his four overs.

De Kock made a flying start with a pair of early, legside sixes against new-ball bowler Arshdeep Singh and even included a slog-swept maximum against fellow new ball bowler, Jasprit Bumrah and never looked back.

India’s run chase stumbled immediately when Shubman Gill edged his first ball from Lungi Ngidi (2-26) to Reeza Hendricks at slip – a classic test match dismissal – and captain Suryakumar Yadav (5) edged a perfect away swinger from Marco Jansen (2-25) to De Kock.

Opener Abhishek Sharma (17) chased a wide Jansen delivery to give De Kock another catch and when Axar Patel, promoted to number three, was caught low down at extra cover by Hendricks of Ottneil Baartman, India were reeling at 67-4 in the eighth over.

Tilak Varma blasted 62 from 34 deliveries to try and keep India in the game but Hardik Pandya produced one of his notoriously curious ‘go-slow’ innings with 20 from 23 balls – with 15+ runs per over required – before slapping Lutho Sipamla (2-46) to Dewald Brevis at long on.

DE KOCK ASSAULT

Earlier de Kock reached 50 from a mere 26 balls with four sixes and fours applying unrelenting pressure on all of the bowlers who had no answer to his array of shots on both sides of the wicket.

Left-armer Arshdeep suffered a cruel meltdown in his third over, the 11th of the innings, when De Kock’s assault caused him to bowl an astonishing seven wides in a 13-ball over which cost 18 runs and proved that even the best, most experienced bowlers can wilt under pressure.

Captain Aiden Markram was a happy spectator at the non-striker’s end reaching a pedestrian 17 from 21 balls before bursting into life with two straight sixes against leg-spinner Varun Chakravarthy in the 12th over before slogging him to deep midwicket to depart for 29 from 26 balls.

Brevis, too, struggled to get going with eight from seven balls until he hoisted medium pacer Shivam Dube for six over long on, but there was no stopping De Kock who took 17 from Hardik Pandya’s third over to keep the scoreboard rattling along at over 10 runs per over.

De Kock seemed certain to post his second century in the format until a freak dismissal saw him run out by ‘keeper Jitesh Sharma when he pushed the ball into the offside seeking a single only to see it spin back towards the gloveman who gathered it brilliantly to remove the bails with the batsman centimetres short of his crease.

His 90 included five fours and seven sixes.

Brevis (14) was well caught at deep midwicket off left-arm spinner Axar and Chakravarthy (4-0-29-2) brought the momentum to a shuddering halt with just four runs coming from the 16th over as Donovan Ferreira became the fourth player in the top six to struggle for timing – initially.

But veteran David Miller crunched a couple of early fours and flicked a low full toss from Arshdeep for six in the penultimate over to complete the bower’s horror outing.

There have been many more expensive analyses than Arshdeep’s 4-0-54-0, including nine wides, but few have seen the leader of an attack collapse quite so dramatically.

Miller finished unbeaten on 20 from 12 balls while Ferreira located the middle of his bat just in time to smite three sixes and a four in a whirlwind 30* from 16 deliveries.

The third match of the series, now level at 1-1, takes place on Sunday.

INDIA: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Tilak Varma, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma (wkt), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh

SOUTH AFRICA: Reeza Hendricks, Quinton de Kock (wkt), Aiden Markram (captain), Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Donovan Ferreira, George Linde, Marco Jansen, Lutho Sipamla, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman

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