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Kuldeep Yadav starred with the ball as India beat South Africa by 106 runs at the New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Thursday, December 14. Interestingly, the left-arm wrist-spinner put in the match-winning performance on his 29th birthday.
Yadav finished with an exceptional spell of 17/5 in just 2.5 overs. The fifer included the prized scalps of David Miller and Donovan Ferreira.
It was the second five-wicket haul for Kuldeep in T20Is, the joint-most for India in the 20-over format alongside Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
Kuldeep had scalped one wicket in the second T20I against the Proteas. In 2023, he has taken 14 wickets in nine T20Is. That came after an excellent outing in the 2023 World Cup, where he scalped 15 wickets in 11 ODIs. He will now look to carry his sublime form into the upcoming three-match ODI series.
Fans on X (formerly Twitter) lauded Kuldeep Yadav for a fifer against South Africa. One user wrote:
"Khud ko bday ka gift Diya yadav ji ne.. (Yadav has given himself birthday gift)."
Here are some more reactions:
“Nice self-gift on his birthday” – Suryakumar Yadav lauds Kuldeep Yadav
India captain Suryakumar Yadav lauded Kuldeep Yadav for his hunger to take wickets following his match-winning spell. In his post-match interview, Suryakumar said:
“He (Kuldeep) is never happy. He is always hungry. It is a nice self-gift on his birthday.”
After being asked to bat first, India posted 201/7 in their allotted 20 overs. Suryakumar Yadav and Yashasvi Jaiswal starred with the bat. Yadav smashed 100 runs off 56 balls, including eight sixes and seven boundaries. Meanwhile, Jaiswal smashed 60 off 41 deliveries, comprising three maximums and six fours.
Keshav Maharaj and Lizaad Williams bagged two wickets apiece for South Africa. Tabraiz Shami and debutant Nandre Burger scalped one apiece.
In response, the visitors bundled out the Proteas for 95 in 13.5 overs. Apart from Kuldeep Yadav's fifer, Ravindra Jadeja bagged two wickets. Mukesh Kumar and Arshdeep Singh settled for one wicket apiece.
David Miller top scored with 35 off 25, while skipper Aiden Markram chipped in with 25 off 14 but failed to take South Africa past the finish line.
With the win, India leveled the three-match T20I series 1-1. The hosts had won the second T20I by five wickets via the DLS method, while the opener in Durban was abandoned due to rain.
The two teams will next face off in the 1st ODI at the same venue on Sunday (December 17).
