IND vs South Africa T20: Axar Patel’s brilliant leap to dismiss David Miller | Watch

IND vs South Africa T20: Cricketers often bounce back from mistakes. Axar Patel’s jumping catch to dismiss David Miller in the third T20I against South Africa at the SuperSport Park in Centurion on Thursday, was a fine example of the same.

Axar had made a mistake earlier by dropping a catch in the second innings where he gave a second chance to Ryan Rickelton during South Africa’s chase of 220 runs. But Patel’s moment of redemption came when he took a brilliant leap for a catch, leading David Miller out of the game, who is known to have been a menace against top-quality opposition as the middle-order batter.

Heinrich Klaasen fought hard for South Africa, contributing 41 runs, but when all seemed lost, Marco Jansen launched a remarkable 16-ball half-century, bringing the game down to the final over.

Arshdeep Singh traps Jansen

However, Arshdeep Singh (3/37) had the final say, trapping Jansen leg-before with three balls remaining to secure India’s victory.

Jansen’s late surge and Klaasen’s quickfire 22-ball knock were the only highlights in South Africa’s chase, as India set a formidable total, powered by Verma’s brilliant unbeaten 107 after being asked to bat.

At the start of South Africa’s chase, Ryan Rickelton (20) once again failed to make a significant impact, despite some fortune on his side — the new ball narrowly missed his edges and stumps, and Axar Patel dropped a straightforward catch running back from mid-off. However, Rickelton’s luck ran out soon after, as he chopped one onto his stumps.

Reeza Hendricks (21) followed quickly, stumped off Varun Chakravarthy, and South Africa’s troubles deepened. Captain Aiden Markram (29) could only blame himself after he miscued a pull shot off a short delivery outside off-stump, handing a catch to midwicket off Chakravarthy.

Tristan Stubbs (12) was the next to go, trapped in front by Axar Patel, as the Indian spinners dominated a key passage of play. Klaasen then launched a counterattack, smashing 23 runs in an over to salvage something for South Africa and spoil Chakravarthy’s figures.