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What next for these two sides? India head to the UK for two T20Is against Ireland where Hardik will lead the side and then play England for one Test, three T20Is and three ODIs. South Africa will follow India to England after a few days for three ODIs, three T20Is and three Tests. That's curtains for today. Lots of entertaining cricket lined up. See you soon, take care!
Both Pant and Maharaj pose with the trophy as the series is shared 2-2.
Rishabh Pant: There are a lot of positives. The way the team showed character from 0-2 down was a huge positive. We are in a nice spot as we are finding different ways to win the game. I can only think about giving my 100% as a player and captain. It is for you guys to decide on how I am doing as a player and captain, I can only focus on giving my 100% every time I go on the field and keep improving. This is the first time I have lost so many tosses, but it is not in my control. We will be keen to win the Test we are going to play in England and from a personal point of view I am keen to contribute more to the team with the bat.
Keshav Maharaj: Very disappointed we didn't get a full game for the end of an exciting tour. We started pretty well, pity we could not see the outcome. We can't control the weather. We tried a few combinations. Still a work in progress for Australia. You may still see changes. I am sure the future series against India will be interesting like this one. We were disappointed with our performance in the last two games. We carried our confidence from past tours at the same time we didn't want to take anything for granted.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Player of the Series: Really proud. Body feels good, but I don't want to talk much about it. Just want to focus on getting back stronger physically and with my bowling. Most of the times I bowl two at the top and two at the end. Being a senior, I also think about how to help the youngsters. I have been lucky that the captain gave me the free hand to do whatever I wanted. Pretty blessed in that way.
The Proteas were plagued with injuries to QdK, Bavuma, Rabada, Parnell and th eunavailability of Markram due to Covid. But they had Pretorius at 3 and managed their resources pretty well. The return of Parnell is a great sign for them as he gives with both bat and ball. They look a rounded unit once all their main players are fit.
It was a good series. South Africa came with a full strength squad and looked all set for a series win with the way they outplayed India in Delhi and Cuttack. Pant the captain was under serious pressure. Mainstays were away but Dravid and Co. found a way to breakthrough. Ruturaj and Ishan gave a platform and then the finishing acts of DK and Hardik gave the bowlers cushion. Chahal and Avesh lifted their game. Bhuvi getting back amongst the wickets was a positive too. Harshal did his usual mastery with variations. Pant the batter was probably the only real concern for the hosts.
21:39 IST: The game has been abandonded. Series shared 2-2. What a shame. It was such a setting today. India set the stage with a brilliant comeback in Vizag and Rajkot. Good crowd, small ground, great ground for T20 cricket... all of it in the drain as the famed Bengaluru weather plays spoilsport. Some gutted that they were robbed off some great entertainment. Some happy that this series didn't deserve to end with a short game. South Africa keep their proud record intact - of not having lost a limited-overs series on Indian soil since 2010.
Meanwhile Rahul Dravid is catching up with his good friend Javagal Srinath, who is also the match referee.
21:30 IST: So then, we heard it from the officials. For a 10:02 start the drizzle must stop around 21:35 at least. The clock is ticking and I am afraid we may not be able to get a game today.
Umpires Anil Choudhary and KN Anantha Padmanabhan: Cut off time for a 5-over game is 2 minutes past 10. We should be able to play by then once it is playable. We have to wait until it fully stops, can't start with a drizzle. We are in touch. 25-30 minutes is the time needed for mop up operations.
21:20 IST: Still a light drizzle. Lot of interest about what happens if this is a washout... to clear the air, there is no reserve day in place and the series will be shared as both teams won two games each.
Dsk: Hey Cricbuzz , in the worst case scenario, what happens if today's match got cancelled, is there a reserve day? No reserve day, the series ends level at 2-2
20:55 IST: Nothing new to add, it's still raining and chances of further play have started to recede with time. I assume we have lost at least another 6-7 overs per side and we'll lose a few more, with or without SubAir. The cut off time is 10:12 pm for the game to resume and for it to be a 5-overs-a-side game
Varun: What is sub-air system? Can you give a brief explanation?
20:30 IST: The rain seems to have settled nicely, it's quite a heavy downpour and despite the SubAir system, the cleaning process will take a bit of time
20:20 IST: The groundstaff are waiting around the boundary edge, but this spell of rain seems persistent. It's quite a heavy squall and we'll keep losing time and overs
We had 21 balls of cricket and Ngidi ensured that his team took the early control over the game. Maharaj was hammered for two sixes in the first over, but that was as good as it got for India. A dream slower yorker castled Ishan Kishan, while another slower ball consumed Gaikwad. India will not be complaining over this break - they'll have time to go back and strategize better. The practice areas are also been covered
20:07 IST: The drizzle is just too heavy, the umpires have a chat and pull the players back into the dug-out. The covers are being brought back, we'll lose more time and we have already started losing overs. One over for every four minutes lost
Ngidi to Pant, 1 run, short of a good length and angling down leg, Pant was looking to tuck and gets an inside edge to the on-side, off the mark with a single
Rishabh Pant, left handed bat, comes to the crease
It has started to drizzle once again, but we'll continue with Pant in. It has become a bit heavier and the players are looking itchy. The ground staff are ready with the covers as well. Ngidi, from round the wicket - one slip in place