IND vs SA 2022: 3 records that were broken during India's comfortable win in the first T20I 

It was a complete performance from India as they thrashed South Africa by eight wickets in the first T20I in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday, September 28.

The Indian pacers picked up eight wickets (five in the first three overs) to reduce the Proteas to 106 after 20 overs.

In reply, despite losing Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli quickly, the Indian batting unit delivered in style to chase down the total. Suryakumar Yadav and KL Rahul notched up half-centuries to help the hosts coast to an eight-wicket victory.

Deepak Chahar, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshal Patel picked up two, three, and two wickets, respectively. South Africa's lower-order showed resistance to help the Proteas post a respectable total. Keshav Maharaj top-scored for the visitors with 41.

While Sharma and Kohli departed for a combined total of three, Rahul took his time to settle the nerves in the Indian camp. The brilliant Suryakumar appeared to be batting on a different surface and took on the bowlers from the word go.

Yadav's counter-attacking cricket allowed Rahul to stitch together his innings in peace. Their partnership of 93 helped the hosts emerge victorious with 20 deliveries to spare.

Although runs were difficult to come by, the first T20I saw several records being broken. Here is a list of three records that stood out.

---

#3 Team India registered their lowest-ever T20I powerplay score

1st T20 International: India vs South Africa

After watching South Africa lose five wickets in the powerplay, India realized the potency of the pitch and adopted a different strategy with the bat. Since the visitors had scored only 106, India were in no rush to make a quick start. Instead, the focus was on not losing wickets in order to set up a platform for the latter overs.

As the dangerous Proteas bowling unit rammed hard into the deck, the Indian batters chose to play out the powerplay. It worked to an extent as India lost only two wickets compared to the five South African scalps in the first innings.

However, it did affect their scoring rate as India ended the powerplay with only 17 runs on the board. That is their lowest total in T20I cricket, four runs less than the 21/3 they registered against Pakistan in 2016.

---

#2 KL Rahul registered the slowest T20I fifty for India

1st T20 International: India vs South Africa

Four Indian batters were put to the test by South African bowlers on Wednesday. Rohit Sharma failed to trouble the scorers while Virat Kohli departed after scoring three. Suryakumar, courtesy of his imperious form, appeared to be floating on the pitch and hitting everything with maximum ease. The other batter was KL Rahul.

After a lengthy injury lay-off, the Indian opener is attempting to rekindle his scoring touch and a half-century in such tricky circumstances will greatly add to his confidence. He had to weather the storm and miscued multiple deliveries. However, the grit on display and the desire to put a price on his wicket allowed India to coast to victory.

The half-century did come at a price though. He scored his fifty in 56 deliveries, making it the slowest half-century ever scored by an Indian in T20I cricket.

Rahul's record beat the one set by Gautam Gambhir, who had scored a 54-ball fifty against Australia in 2012.

---

#1 Suryakumar Yadav has now hit the most T20I sixes in a single calendar year

Suryakumar Yadav scored a brilliant 33-ball 50 on Wednesday [Pic Credit: BCCI]

Suryakumar is the man in form for India. He has been proving his efficiency on different pitches against numerous opponents. His counter-attacking innings on Wednesday night deflated the South African bowling unit.

His 33-ball half-century was peppered with boundaries. The Mumbai Indians batter also hit three maximums, with the second one delighting the local crowd the most. He has now set the record for the highest number of maximums hit in a calendar year (45), overtaking Mohammad Rizwan who hit 42 maximums in 2021.

Suryakumar, who has racked up 732 runs so far in 2022, has also become the Indian batter with the most runs scored in a calendar year. He overtook Shikhar Dhawan's record of 689 runs in 2018.