Cuttack (Odisha) [India], December 9 : India all-rounder Hardik Pandya added another milestone to his T20I career as he became only the fourth Indian batter to clear the hundred-sixes mark for the country. The milestone came during the first T20I against South Africa at Cuttack's Barabati Stadium, where Pandya produced a match-changing knock under pressure.
Walking in when India were in a tricky situation, Pandya rescued the innings with a blistering unbeaten 59 off just 28 deliveries. His counterattacking effort featured six fours and four sixes, helping India post a competitive total of 175/6. At a time when wickets were falling at regular intervals, Pandya made batting look remarkably easy and shifted the momentum back in India's favour.
With this innings, Pandya took his tally of T20I sixes for India to 100, joining Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli as the only Indian players to reach the landmark. Rohit leads the list with 205, followed by Suryakumar Yadav with 155 and Virat Kohli with 124. Pandya is now fourth, ahead of KL Rahul, who has 99 sixes.
India's total of 175 eventually proved more than enough as the bowlers delivered a commanding performance to secure a 101-run victory and take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel picked up two wickets each, while Pandya contributed with the ball as well, returning figures of 1/16 in two overs. Shivam Dube wrapped up the innings by dismissing the final batter, Lutho Sipamla, sealing a dominant win for the hosts.
India will look to carry this momentum forward as the series progresses, with Pandya once again proving his value as a genuine match-winner with both bat and ball.