Quinton de Kock leads the way as South Africa square T20I series

South African skipper Quinton de Kock was in scintillating form as he helped the Proteas square the three-match T20I series 1-1.

Winning the toss and opting to bat first, the Indians couldn't repeat the heroics from their previous outing in Mohali. While opener Rohit Sharma returned to the pavilion for cheap returns yet again, star batsmen Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli too were dismissed in quick succession as the hosts were dealt a body blow.

Youngsters Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer couldn't amount to much either, leaving the all-rounders with plenty to do. However, much to the disappointment of the crowd at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, the South Africans succeeded in containing the likes of Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja towards the death to restrict India to paltry score of 134 in 20 overs.

Pace gun Kagiso Rabada accounted for three wickets while left arm seamer Beuran Hendricks and spinner Bjorn Fortuin scalped two wickets each.

Coming out to chase, the visitors hit the groove quite early in their innings. Openers Quinton de Kock and Reeza Hendricks looked at ease and went on to stitch a match-winning opening stand of 76 runs before the latter was dismissed by Hardik Pandya in the 11th over.

De Kock, on the other end, though continued to pile the agony for the Indian bowlers. The southpaw took a menacing form to dispatch the hosts to all parts of the ground whilst his impressive stay at the crease. The South African skipper essayed a brilliant 79*, off 52 deliveries, to steer his team's chase. An able support from Temba Bavuma helped the men in green stomp home to victory, with 9 wickets in hand in the 17th over.

The two teams will next cross swords in the three-match Test series. The first Test of the series is slated to be played in Vizag from 2-6 October.