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NEWS India-South Africa Series 2006>India register encouraging win 02nd Dec 2006 01.51 IST By Agencies India made a good debut in Twenty20 format as they beat South Africa to register an encouraging win at the New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on December 1. Chasing 127 to win their maiden Twenty20 international, India romped home with six wickets in hand and one ball to spare thanks to a cool and composed knock by Dinesh Kaarthick .
Stand-in skipper Virender Shewag then stroked in all directions and stepped up the tempo. He did look ominous but was run out after a terrible mix up with Mongia after hitting a blazing 29-ball 34, which included five boundaries and one six. The trouble increased for India when Mahendra Dhoni was dismissed for a duck. Then Dinesh Mongia scored 38 runs off 45 balls before Kaarthick took over. The reserve wicket keeper-batsman was slow at the start of his innings but went in top gear by hitting a last over six over mid-wicket. India needed nine runs off the last over when man of the match Kaarthick (31 not out) pulled spinner Robin Peterson over mid-wicket for a six to virtually seal a thrilling victory and then hit the winning run with one ball to spare to lift the sagging spirits of the struggling team. Earlier, India made the most of helpful bowling conditions to restrict South Africa to a modest 126/9 after Graeme Smith won the toss and elected to bat. Zaheer Khan (2/15) and Ajit Agarkar (2/10) were brilliant up front and had reduced the hosts to 41/4 by the eighth over. South Africa lost their first wicket in Loots Bosman (1), when he edged Zaheer to Tendulkar in the slips and Agarkar struck from the other end by having Herschelle Gibbs (7), caught brilliantly at short cover by Suresh Raina . Smith made 16 before he was dismissed by Zaheer again in an all too familiar fashion -- leg before to an incoming delivery. Agarkar claimed his second wicket when he dismissed AB de Villiers, who edged a drive behind the stumps. The situation was worsened further with swashbuckling Justin Kemp (22) falling leg before to Tendulkar to make it 64/5. India, however, received a jolt in the form of Agarkar tearing his right groin muscle in the middle of his third over. Homebound after the one-day series, Agarkar has almost been ruled out of the last game on Sunday. Albie Morkel (27) sparkled while he was at the crease, once hoisting Harbhajan Singh beyond the trees outside the confines of the Wanderers but fortunately for India he lofted a catch to long-off in the 16th over. This is India’s first victory of the tour so far after having conceded an unassailable 3-0 lead to the hosts in the five match one-day series, which had put them under immense pressure to perform. Also View In-Depth Coverage: India-South Africa Series 2006 Team Page: India Team Page: South Africa | LIVE CRICKET COVERAGE NEWS ~ Gilchrist has no plans to retire after World Cup ~ Ganguly's new batting approach may cost him sixer record ~ India 'squash the Orange' in World Cup warm-up game ~ Symonds gets a new hairdo for World Cup ~ Dhoni readies himself for stand-up act at World Cup (more in NEWS) FACE-TO-FACE ~ 500-mark a possibility in World Cup: Hayden ~ Minnows add charm to World Cup: Dravid (more in FACE-TO-FACE) COLUMNS ~ Will Sri Lanka replicate 1996 World Cup success? (more in COLUMNS) OFF-THE-FIELD ~ Ganguly again the darling of corporate world ~ Ganguly roped in as brand ambassador of Puma (more in OFF-THE-FIELD) PLAYERS Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble (more PLAYERS) TEAMS India, South Africa, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia, West Indies, Zimbabwe, England, New Zealand, Bangladesh, Kenya, Holland | 
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