South Africahad a dismal outing in the first T20I of the five-match series against India in Cuttack on December 9, crumbling to their lowest T20I score. The Proteas trail by a 1-0 margin after being defeated by a massive 101-run margin
The 74 -run total was South Africa's sixth sub-100 score in T20Is. Interestingly, three of these have come in the second innings against the Men in Blue. In fact, barring one instance, all of the lowest T20I totals have been when South Africa were chasing.
Lowest totals by South Africa in T20Is
| Opposition | Innings | Venue | Date | Overs | Score |
| India | 2 | Cuttack | December 9, 2025 | 12.3 | 74 |
| India | 2 | Rajkot | June 17, 2022 | 16.5 | 87 |
| Australia | 2 | Johannesburg | February 21, 2020 | 14.3 | 89 |
| India | 2 | Johannesburg | December 14, 2023 | 13.5 | 95 |
| Australia | 2 | Cape Town | February 26, 2020 | 15.3 | 96 |
| Sri Lanka | 1 | Colombo (RPS) | August 14, 2018 | 16.4 | 98 |
Dewald Brevis
(22 off 14) was the top-scorer for South Africa while only four others could post double-digit scores as all six of India's bowlers came to the party.
Quinton de Kock (0 off 2), David Miller (1 off 3) and Donovan Ferreira (5 off 7) failed to get going as India took early advantage in the final leg of the all-format series. Hardik Pandya secured the Player of the Match award for his all-round performance of 59* (28) and 1/16 in two overs.
South Africa, who clean swept India 2-0 in the Tests before going down 1-2 in the ODIs, will be keen to put a better show with the bat in the second T20I of the series, which is scheduled to be played at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh on December 11.
