India claimed a 2-1 T20I series lead over South Africa with a clinical seven-wicket win on Sunday, courtesy of an incisive opening spell from Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana.
Inside the opening three overs in Dharamshala, Arshdeep (2-13) and Harshit (2-34) had quickly reduced South Africa to just 7-3, dismissing Quinton de Kock (one), Reeza Hendricks (0), and Dewald Brevis (two) cheaply.
Aiden Markram provided some resistance at one end with a steady knock of 61, but lacked support as Varun Chakravarthy (2-11) and Hardik Pandya (1-23) struck through the middle.
As a result, the Proteas were bowled out for just 117 after 20 overs, setting up what looked like a straightforward chase for India.
Abhishek Sharma (35 off 18) got off to a blazing start
but saw his stay at the crease cut short by a brilliant catch from a backtracking Markram, forcing a slight wobble from India's middle order.
Shubman Gill (28) and Suryakumar Yadav (12) struggled for fluency through the middle overs, but a composed hand from Tilak Varma (26) and a late flourish from Shivam Dube (10 off four) carried India over the line with 25 balls to spare.
Shivam Dube with the winning runs #TeamIndia register a 7-wicket win in Dharamshala and lead the series -
Scorecard https://t.co/AJZYgMAHc0#INDvSA | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/TUodMWQAo5— BCCI (@BCCI) December 14, 2025
Data Debrief: Hardik joins 100-wicket club
Among the many positives for India in Sunday's win will be another quietly effective performance from Hardik.
His dismissal of Tristan Stubbs was his 100th wicket for India in T20Is, placing him in elite company, with only Arshdeep and Jasprit Bumrah also having reached the milestone for India.
Chakravarthy also enjoyed a productive outing, taking two wickets to move to 51 for India in the format. Having played 32 matches, he is the second-fastest Indian player to reach the 50-wicket mark in T20Is, behind his spin partner Kuldeep Yadav (30 games).
