Cuttack: India had bowed to South Africa in their two previous T20I clashes at the Barabati Stadium.
On Tuesday night, in front of 46,000 passionate and vocal fans, the Men in Blue altered the script and bossed over the Proteas to notch up a resounding 101-run victory.
It was a carnival-like atmosphere at the Barabati, with fans turning up to enter the stadium several hours before the 6.30 pm toss.
The colourful crowd was a bit subdued early in the match as Shubman Gill and skipper Suryakumar Yadav holed out going for big shots, misreading the pace of the pitch.
Abhishek Sharma, India’s most exciting T20 batter, dampened spirits further as he departed after hitting a six and two fours.
Despite being rocked by early wickets, Axar Patel and Tilak Varma tried to stay positive. The sixes and fours kept coming, thus keeping the raucous fans entertained.
And then came Hardik Pandya. In his first game for the country since late September, the flamboyant allrounder brought Barabati alive with a series of sizzling strokes. The way he attacked the South African pacers and spinners, it seemed he was batting on a different track.
The crowd lapped up each of Hardik’s six fours and four sixes, and cheered him all the way to a match-winning unbeaten 59 off 28 balls.
🏟️ Barabati is alive! All thanks to YOU, the incredible fans bringing the stadium to life!#INDvsSA #1st #t20cricket #oca #bcci #odishacricketassociation #barabati #cuttack #barabatiroar #cricket #cricketlovers pic.twitter.com/UDcwqtxp9i
— Odisha Cricket Association (@cricket_odisha) December 9, 2025
As South Africa began their chase of 176, it was Arshdeep Singh’s turn to lift the crowd with a wicket each in his first two overs.
As spinners Axar Patel and Varun Chakravarthy joined in the wicket-taking feast, the crowd went berserk, screaming their guts out, whistling and clapping.
They loved it when Hardik took a wicket, and Jasprit ‘Boom Boom’ Bumrah completed 100 wickets in T20 Internationals. Suryakumar took a skier as SA top-scorer Dewald Brevis miscued a pull, and it seemed to be a no-ball going by the replays, but the third umpire ruled in the bowler’s favour.
The crowd didn’t at all mind the possible error in judgment.
As Shivam Dube grabbed the final wicket, the ecstatic crowd erupted in jubilation.
They had finally seen an Indian team conquer South Africa at the Barabati.