India have won the game by 11 runs. It didn't come as easy as India would have liked, but they eventually manage to win the contest. South Africa were there in the chase, but the always increasing asking rate meant that they remained 11 runs short despite a lot of effort.

IND 219/6 (20)

SA 208/7 (20)

Is this game still alive? If we consider what has been going on. The answer is yes! South Africa need 25 runs in 6 balls. Hardik Pandya has been hit for 26 runs in the penultimate over.  Marco Jansen slammed him for two sixes and three fours.

Arshdeep Singh got the wicket of Heinrich Klaasen on the fourth ball of the over. Klaasen fell for 41 off 22 balls. Only 8 runs came off the over and the target now seems unrealistic for South Africa. They need 51 runs in 12 balls. 

SA 169/6 (18)

South Africa are somehow still in the fight. Marco Jansen slammed two consecutive sixes on the final two deliveries of Ravi Bishnoi's over. 18 runs came off the over. South Africa need 59 runs in 18 balls.

That is a sensational catch from Axar Patel in the deep. It was a short ball from Hardik Pandya and David Miller nearly hit it over the player at deep mid-wicket. Axar timed his jump to perfection and completed the terrific catch. South Africa need 78 runs in 25 balls.

Only eight runs came off Ravi Bishnoi's third over and that put India in further command. South Africa need 86 runs in 30 balls. They are lagging behind in this chase, but they are still not out of it.

Heinrich Klaasen slammed Varun Chakaravarthy for hat-trick of sixes and a four. A total of 23 runs came in the over. South Africa are still alive in the game. They need 94 runs in 36 balls.

South Africa need 117 runs in 42 balls. The asking rate for them is over 16. Heinrich Klaasen is looking really good but South Africa need even David Miller to fire from the other end to stand a chance in this game.

Aiden Markram slammed Varun Chakaravarthy for two big sixes in the over but the Indian spinner had his man on the final delivery of the over. He bowled a short ball away from Markram and the right-handed batter ended up miscuing it into the hands of Ramandeep Singh at deep mid-wicket. South Africa need 136 runs in 60 balls.

SA 84/4 (10)

Another wicket for India and South Africa are in all sorts of trouble. Tristan Stubbs, the star for the Proteas from the previous game, departs for 12 off 12 balls. Stubbs went for a reverse sweep but missed it completely. He was caught plumb in front of the stumps and umpire raised his finger over the appeal. Stubbs went up for a review but ended up wasting it. South Africa need 152 runs in 67 balls.

Varun Chakaravarthy has bowled a six-run over. Both the South Africa batters Aiden Markram and Tristan Stubbs tried hard but failed to score any boundary. Pressure is piling on the Proteas as the asking rate has increased to 13 now. They need 156 runs in 72 balls.

Axar Patel was trusted and given a second over despite conceding 14 runs in his first over. The left-arm orthodox spinner was right on the money as bowled tight lines and gave only three runs in the over. Axar bowled three consecutive dot balls to Tristan Stubbs.

Here is the much-needed wicket for India! They get the wicket of dangerous looking Reeza Hendricks. And guess, who provides it? It is leg-spinner Varun Chakaravarthy, who claimed a five-wicket haul in the previous game. Hendricks came down the track but completely missed the ball. Sanju Samson did an easy stumping to provide India a second wicket.

SA 47/2 (5.3)

Axar Patel has leaked 14 runs in his first over. Reeza Hendricks slammed him for three fours in the over. South Africa have lost a wicket but their scoring rate is good. They need 174 runs in 90 balls.

Hardik Pandya too got good swing in the over and it troubled South Africa batter Reeza Hendricks. Only five runs came off the over. 

Arshdeep Singh has got his man. He has dismissed Ryan Rickelton, definitely not the way he would like to, but still a wicket is a wicket! Arshdeep troubled Rickelton with his outswingers in the over, but he was unlucky enough to not get any edge. Rickelton, however, got an inside edge on the final delivery of the over and ended up playing it on his stumps. 

Axar Patel, one of India's top fielders, dropped the catch of Ryan Rickelton on the fourth ball of the over. Hardik Pandya outfoxed the SA opener with a slower delivery. The ball went high in the air and Axar covered good ground in time to get under the ball but it burst through his hands. 10 runs came off the over.

Ryan Rickelton gets a tad fuller delivery from Hardik Pandya and he drives it for a four down the ground. The ball ran away from the left of mid-off fielder for the boundary. With it, the match resumes!

SA 11/0 (1.1)

play stopped due to flying ants swarming around the ground in large numbers#SAvsIND #INDvSA #INDvsSA pic.twitter.com/KLV53arshL

— A & K (@badjocker1020) November 13, 2024

The play is set to resume at 11:10 PM IST. The groundstaff are doing a really good job and the intensity of the flying ants has visibly decreased. VVS Laxman, India's head coach for the series, is in a discussion with umpires.

Keedo ne roka match ! #indvssa #SAvsIND pic.twitter.com/Vum8ecuMqU

— Syed Umaiyd (@SyedUmaiyd) November 13, 2024

The flying ants continue to surround the stadium. Measures are being taken by the groundstaff to clean them up. Umpires are also closerly watching the conditions.

There were a lot of flies there at the ground at the start of the innings. Now, the problem due to it has increased so much that the umpires are forced to stop the play. Hardik Pandya had come in to bowl the second over of the South African innings, but he has to wait a bit.

Arshdeep Singh started the bowling for India. Reeza Hendricks swung hard and got a thick outside edge on the third delivery of the over. The ball flew over the gully to run away for a four. A total of 7 runs came off the over.

SA 7/0 (1)

"Incredible feeling to get this coming back from injury. The wicket was two-paced, and challenging at the start. After some time it went well. I was holding my shape while playing the shots. We both (him and Abhishek Sharma) were under pressure. Today's knocks are important for us. Our spinners are bowling well. 200-210 is what we were looking for and we got it. Hopefully we can defend this."

Brilliant last over from Marco Jansen as he concedes only four runs in it despite centurion Tilak Varma playing three balls. Overall, India have got a massive total on the board. Considering the outing that the Indian spinners have enjoyed in the series so far, the South Africa batter have their task cut out.

A four and Tilak Varma races to his maiden T20I century with it. He gets there in 51 balls with the help of 8 fours and 6 sixes. What an innings this has been from the southpaw! Truly incredible. India have 7 balls left in the innings and they are heading towards a massive total.

IND 208/5 (18.5)

A slower ball from Andile Simelane and he has outfoxed Rinku Singh. The batter went for his cross-batted shot early and it hit him on the front foot in front of the stumps. Umpire raised his finger and Rinku didn't bother to review it. India are five down.  

Tilak Varma hits a four and gets further close to his maiden T20I century. He has played really well tonight and deserves to reach the three-figure mark. The southpaw is only 6 runs away from his ton. 

That is a superb shot from Tilak Varma down the ground for a six. It was a slower length ball from Gerald Coetzee and Tilak has hit it for a biggie.

Hardik Pandya is gone! He misses his sweep shot and gets him around the waist. Umpire raised his finger over the LBW appeal but Hardik decided to go upstairs only to waste a review. That is the second wicket for Keshav Maharaj.

IND 132/4 (12.5)

Tilak Varma has slammed his half-century in 32 balls. He has played well tonight. The intent to score quick runs was evident from the start and here he gets to his half-century. India 132/3 in 12.2 overs vs South Africa.

Hardik Pandya is hitting the ball right from the middle of his bat. He scored the first boundary in the over through a sweep shot and then hit a cut shot for another boundary. Runs keep coming for India at a good pace.

IND 119/3 (10.4)

A big breakthrough for South Africa. It has come after a long-long time. Keshav Maharaj has got the wicket of Abhishek Sharma. The Indian opener departs at the score of 50 off 25 balls with the help of 3 fours and 5 sixes.

Abhishek Sharma has raced to his half-century in 24 balls. He gets there with a single, but his innings has just been contrary to that. Abhishek slammed three fours and five sixes to reach the milestone. He was having a lean patch, but what a comeback this is for the India southpaw!

IND 106/1 (8.2)

13 runs came off the Aiden Markram over. Lutho Sipamla and Marco Jansen are the most economical bowlers so far with an economy of 8. Others have leaked runs at 13, 15 (Gerald Coetzee) and 18 (Andile Simelane) per over. India are completely on top of this game at the moment.

Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma have laid a solid platform for India. The side lost an early wicket in the form of Sanju Samson, but the duo of Abhishek and Tilak have kept firing on all cylinders. There has been no respite for South African bowlers since then.

Two consecutive sixes from the bat of Abhishek Sharma and India have crossed the mark of 50 runs in just 27 balls. Barring the wicket of Sanju Samson that fell in the first over, India have dominated the game so far. Another good thing for the visitors is that Abhishek is looking in ominous touch.

It was short of length from Lutho Sipamla and Tilak Varma adjusted well to put it on the leg side. Marco Jansen was the man there at deep backward square leg. He ran to the ball but let it slip away for a four despite reaching there in time.

A Marco Jansen bouncer hit the helmet of Tilak Varma ran through fine leg for a four. It happened on the fourth ball of the over. The play was halted for some time as there was a customary check. The action resumed and Tilak looked good despite the blow to his helmet. A total of 8 runs came off the over.

IND 35/1 (3)

Abhishek Sharma is looking really good tonight. He hit Gerald Coetzee for two fours and a six in the second over. A total of 15 runs came off it.

Marco Jansen has cleaned up Sanju Samson. That is just another failure for the Indian opener. He has now scored two consecutive ducks after scoring two centuries on trot. Such is the game of cricket for you! The ball kept low and hit the off stump of Samson. 

The national anthems are over and players of the both the sides now gear up for the action.

Say hello to the Debutant
A special moment for Ramandeep Singh as he receives his #TeamIndia Cap from @hardikpandya7
Live - https://t.co/JBwOUCgZx8#SAvIND pic.twitter.com/dZD9uasHzm

— BCCI (@BCCI) November 13, 2024

India (Playing XI): Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy

South Africa (Playing XI): Ryan Rickelton, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram(c), Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen(w), David Miller, Marco Jansen, Andile Simelane, Gerald Coetzee, Keshav Maharaj, Lutho Sipamla

"It is okay. We have done well in the last two games while batting first. The boys have come out with clear plans and are executing it, I have been really happy with that. Just be clear, go out and enjoy yourself (the message from him and the management). These boys have made my job easier. We have one change - Ramandeep makes his debut. Avesh has done well for us but one of the two bowlers had to make a sacrifice," said India captain Suryakumar Yadav.

"We are going to bowl first again. The wicket looks good. Not quite at our best. We are making slow progress. The bowlers did a good job in the last game. The batters need to spend time in the middle and not be too desperate. We have full trust in our batting unit and hope we do something special tonight," said South Africa captain Aiden Markram.

South Africa captain Aiden Markram has won the toss and opted to bowl against India in the third T20I match in Centurion.

Ramandeep Singh, a right-handed batter, has scored 170 runs across 19 matches at a strike rate of 166.67 in the Indian Premier League. In the last IPL season, he scored at a strike rate of over 200. Ramandeep has played 57 T20s and scored 544 runs at a strike rate of 170.00. He also bowls right-arm fast medium and has claimed 16 T20 wickets.

Ramandeep Singh, Kolkata Knight Riders' star batter, has got his maiden India cap. Hardik Pandya is the man, who provides him the cap. That is an unforgettable moment for Ramandeep! He waited the first two games and now he is getting an opportunity to shine for India.

The senior batters like skipper Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya and Rinku Singh too cannot absolve themselves of the blame entirely for India's struggles. Both Suryakumar and Rinku have shown only fleeting images of their prowess here while Pandya made 39 in the second match but he consumed 45 balls for it. In fact, the power-hitter took 28 balls to find his first boundary and, again, could not find the ropes between balls 39 and 45.

The Indian batting problem starts from the top - more precisely with Abhishek Sharma, whose extended lean run with the bat has now snowballed into a serious concern. He is in desperate need of a good outing in Centurion before the management thinks of juggling the combination. Even now, they can think of giving the job of partnering Sanju Samson at the top to Tilak Varma and bring in Ramandeep Singh in the middle to add more muscle to the unit.

Along with that unfamiliarity factor at SuperSport Park, India will also grapple with the ordinary form of their batters, particularly when the pitch at the venue is touted to be similar to the one at Gqeberha - quick and bouncy. In the second T20I, India batters struggled against South African pacers upfront, getting restricted to 124 for six, and Centurion has similar characteristics.

India Squad: Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy, Avesh Khan, Jitesh Sharma, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Ramandeep Singh, Yash Dayal

South Africa Squad: Ryan Rickelton, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram(c), Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen(w), David Miller, Andile Simelane, Gerald Coetzee, Keshav Maharaj, Nqabayomzi Peter, Patrick Kruger, Mihlali Mpongwana, Donovan Ferreira, Ottneil Baartman, Lutho Sipamla

Indian batting line-up need to get its mojo back against a resurgent South Africa to regain the lost ground on rather unfamiliar SuperSport Park conditions when the two teams clash the third T20I in Centurion Wednesday.

Hello everyone, welcome to the live blog of the third T20I match between India and South Africa. The contest is set to take place at SuperSport Park, Centurion. Stay connected for all the live score and updates.