IND vs SA 2022: India Player Ratings from 1st T20I vs South Africa as pacers, SKY deliver comfortable win

Team India got their final T20I assignment ahead of the T20 World Cup off to a good start, beating South Africa by eight wickets in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday, September 28.

After winning the toss and electing to field, India saw their new-ball bowlers, Deepak Chahar and Arshdeep Singh, terrorize the South African top order. The visitors managed only 106/8, following which fifties from KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav helped the Men in Blue overcome a shaky start.

Here are India's player ratings from the first T20I against South Africa.

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IND vs SA 2022: Early wickets set India up for easy victory

1st T20 International: India v South Africa

KL Rahul: 8/10

Rahul looked all at sea, facing almost five overs in the powerplay with barely any runs to show for. He hung in there, though, and managed to take India over the line with an unbeaten fifty.

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Rohit Sharma: 2/10

Rohit bagged a two-ball duck, with Kagiso Rabada's skill proving to be too much to handle. He kept things tight with his bowling changes in the first innings.

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Virat Kohli: 1/10

Kohli looked to play his shots when the ball was moving around prodigiously, and the ploy didn't pay off. A short-and-wide delivery saw him nick off for just 3.

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Suryakumar Yadav: 10/10

Like so many times in the recent past, SKY seemed to be batting on a different pitch. His 33-ball 50*, laced with five fours and three sixes, was a treat to watch.

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Rishabh Pant: 6/10

Pant was solid behind the stumps, producing a few acrobatic saves. He wasn't needed with the bat.

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Dinesh Karthik: 5/10

Karthik hasn't spent much time in the middle recently, having faced only a few balls since the start of the Asia Cup. It might be in India's best interests to ensure that he gets some more practice.

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Axar Patel: 8/10

Axar bowled an excellent four-over spell, teasing the South African batters with his lines and lengths. He finished with 1/16 in his four overs.

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Deepak Chahar: 7.5/10

After castling Temba Bavuma with a booming inswinger, Chahar was fortunate to pick up the wicket of Tristan Stubbs. He bowled well in helpful conditions, but dished out a couple of boundary balls that were duly punished.

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Harshal Patel: 6.5/10

Harshal didn't look anywhere near his best but scalped two wickets, including a trademark dipping yorker to shatter the stumps of South Africa's top scorer. India will want him to get more time in the middle under his belt.

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Ravichandran Ashwin: 8/10

Ashwin gave nothing away after being introduced into the attack when South Africa were in all sorts of trouble. He finished with terrific figures of 1/8 in four overs.

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Arshdeep Singh: 9/10

Arshdeep's opening over yielded three wickets, following which the Proteas never recovered. His beautiful setups and mastery over swing were a welcome sight on his return to the playing XI. The left-armer copped some stick in his final over at the death but is bound to build on this display ahead of the T20 World Cup. He even took a good catch to dismiss Stubbs.