South Africa restrict India to set a 177-run target in the highly anticipated ICC Men’s T20World Cup final clash at Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday.
Rohit Sharma’s men lost wickets in quick succession, with Suryakumar Yadav and Rishabh Pant both departing cheaply. A rapid-fire innings from Axar Patel, with the bowler registering 47 runs off 31 balls after being bumped up the order to bat at three down.
South African bowler Keshav Maharaj was in fine form, snapping up two wickets and giving away just 23 runs in his spell; Anrich Nortje also grabbed two wickets and giving away just 23 runs in his spell; Anrich Nortje also grabbed two wickets, while pacer Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen took a wicket each.
India were 34 for 3 in the fifth over, eventually recovering to end at 176 – the highest total in a T20 World Cup final – on the back of expensive overs in the final stretch of the innings.
Earlier, Sharma won the toss and opted to bat in the final. The toss was held in bright sunshine and with a gusty wind blowing across the 28,000 capacity venue.
Rohit and his South African counterpart Aiden Markram both named unchanged line-ups from the teams which won their respective semi-finals.
The possibility of stormy weather over the weekend, with some rain forecast for Saturday, had raised concerns among organisers but as early arrivals began taking their seats there was no sign of rain.
The final concludes a nearly month-long tournament and features two teams who have been unbeaten throughout the competition.
