Related Links : ICC World T20 2010 in West Indies | Scorecard of India Vs South Africa
India picked up a well scripted 14-run win over South Africa in their Group C Match at the Beausejour Stadium in Gros Islet. On a slowish track, the Indian batsmen planned their innings pretty well to pile up a huge total of 186 for 5 after being asked to bat first. South Africa in their chase were too conservative and left too many runs to get in the end, they finished at 172 for 5.
Young Suresh Raina played one of his best knocks ever to register a maiden T20I century. The left hander smacked 101 from just 60 balls with 9 fours and 5 sixes to get the Man of the Match award. Most importantly for India, Yuvraj Singh returned back to form after a dull IPL. He scored a promising 37 from 30 balls (with three fours and two sixes) while putting on the match-winning stand of 88 runs with Suresh Raina for the third wicket.
The South African bowling wasn’t good towards the slog overs with the bowlers often dishing out length deliveries rather than hitting the blockhole. India was set to put up 160 but a couple of really big overs of 25 and 19 runs turned the match on its head.
The South African chase was dominated by a steady 97-run partnership for the second wicket between opener Jacques Kallis (73 from 54 balls with 3 fours and 3 sixes) and Skipper Graeme Smith (36 from 28 balls which included two sixes). However, the asking rate was never kept under control. Kallis was too slow as per T20 standards getting his fifty in as many as 45 balls.
There was a minor scare for the Indians with just two pacers in the side and MS Dhoni relying heaving on his five spinners! That presented the opportunity for the Proteas to blow the slower bowlers out of the park but somehow India had just enough runs to defend. AB de Villiers tried his best to clinch an impossible win with his three sixes filled 31 from 15 balls but in vain. Ashish Nehra came to the rescue of India with his 1 for 27 in 4 overs while Harbhajan Singh did the restriction act with his none for 33 in 4 overs.