It was all too familiar for the hosts in Cuttack, as South Africa chased 148 without breaking much sweat to lead the 5-match T20 series 2-0.
Again, nothing seemed to work for the men in blue. The batting looked clueless, and the bowling, like the previous T20 in Delhi, lacked any venom. These are gloomy signs for India in the World Cup year.
South Africa won the toss and opted to bowl first. Batting first, Rabada sent Ruturaj packing - something he has done time and again, both in IPL and now in international cricket.
Ishan Kishan threatened to take the game away from the Proteas, smacking 34 off 21 balls, before getting out to a short delivery by Nortje.
Pant again got out at a crucial time and threw his wicket away.
Shreyas Iyer got in, made a laborious 40 off 35 deliveries, and left India hanging in the middle. Axar Patel came ahead of Dinesh Karthik, made 10 off 11 deliveries and fell to Nortje. Karthik came to the crease with six overs remaining in India's innings. Four overs after he came to the crease, Karthik had faced 14 deliveries and scored just eight runs.
The pressure was certainly there, and with Harshal Patel at the other end, the responsibility to finish the innings off rested on his shoulders. Karthik gained momentum during the last 2 overs, smacked 30 off 21 deliveries, and powered India to 148.
Chasing 148, South Africa did not get off to a good start, with the team reeling at 29-3 at one stage. But the partnership between Bavuma and Klaasen nearly killed the chase for the Proteas and after the skipper's dismissal, Miller did the rest to take South Africa home with 10 deliveries remaining.
The caravan now moves to Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam. India will need to perform a lot better if they want to make a comeback in the series, and by what we have seen so far, this Indian side will have to play out of their skin to beat this SA side.
