IND vs SA 2024, 1st T20I: India Player Ratings as Samson special gives Men in Blue series lead
India secured a comfortable 61-run win over South Africa in Durban on Friday, November 8. With the win, the Men in Blue took a 1-0 lead in the four-match series.
It was a bit of a mixed bag from India in the batting department, with only two batters crossing the 30-run mark. The visitors still managed to post an imposing 202 on the board, a score that proved too much for the Proteas.
On that note, here are India's player ratings from the first T20I against South Africa.
IND vs SA 2024, 1st T20I: Samson hits 2nd successive century; bowlers deliver
Abhishek Sharma: 2/10
Abhishek's shortcomings against pace were exposed once again as he fell early. He is running out of time to stake his claim for a spot in the first-choice side, with no notable innings apart from his century against Zimbabwe.
Sanju Samson: 9.5/10
Samson was at his best in Durban as he plundered seven fours and 10 sixes to put India well ahead of the game. He has made clear changes to his approach in the powerplay, and that is paying rich dividends.
Suryakumar Yadav: 6.5/10
Suryakumar got a couple of trademark shots away but was deceived by a knuckleball from Patrick Kruger. The Indian captain failed to capitalize on his start in a rare event but was on point with his captaincy.
Tilak Varma: 7.5/10
Tilak injected momentum into the middle overs and played some creative shots. He should've done better against Keshav Maharaj, but he did his bit on the whole.
Hardik Pandya: 3/10
Hardik had a rare bad game. The all-rounder fell cheaply with the bat, went wicketless, was India's second-most expensive bowler in the second innings, and dropped a catch at backward point.
Axar Patel: 5.5/10
Axar didn't have much to do. He found sweeper to perfection while trying to accelerate at the death and bowled just one over.
Rinku Singh: 4/10
Rinku was bounced out as the South African pacers targeted his weaknesses well. India would've wanted more of a finishing impetus from their main man.
Arshdeep Singh: 7/10
Arshdeep bowled a delightful delivery to dismiss Aiden Markram and came back for one at the death. It was a routine performance from the left-arm seamer.
Varun Chakaravarthy: 9/10
Chakaravarthy was the pick of the Indian bowlers, with three wickets to his name. His dismissals of Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller effectively sealed the game for the Men in Blue.
Ravi Bishnoi: 8/10
Bishnoi wasn't one to be left out of the fun as he helped himself to three scalps of his own. The leg-spinner was accurate for most of his spell.
Avesh Khan: 6/10
Avesh secured the important wicket of Tristan Stubbs in the powerplay and bowled decently on the whole. He did, however, concede more boundaries than any other Indian bowler.