India beat South Africa by 135 runs in Friday’s fourth and final T20I at the Wanderers in Johannesburg.
Batsman Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma hit centuries in India’s total of 281 for three. The Proteas replied with 148 all out.
India won the series three-one. South Africa played without fast bowlers Lungi Ngidi, Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, while all-rounder Marco Jansen and seamer Gerald Coetzee returned from injury.
Seamer Lutho Sipamla played international cricket for the first time in two years, while all-rounder Andile Simelane debuted during this series.
“To grow the net of players, there’s times we have to play younger guys even in big series against good teams. And ultimately, that’s where they’re going to learn the most,” said Proteas limited-overs coach Rob Walter.
“It’s really a balancing act and there’s no right or wrong. We’re trying to get it right, we’re trying to get rest right, we’re trying to get rotation right, we’re trying to get exposure right all at the same time. But it doesn’t excuse the performance. We still need to be better and that starts with me as the head coach of the team.”
South Africa have not won a bilateral limited-overs series since Walter’s appointment in February 2023. They did, however, reach the final of this year’s T20 World Cup.
“The easy answer is that when we go to the world tournaments, we’re picking our very best 15 players, but we can’t pick those same 15 players every single time we play. It’s just not feasible. It’s just too much cricket. So, the rest of the time we have to build our base of players up to be to the same level,” added Walter.
Meanwhile, Nortje and spinner Tabraiz Shamsi have opted out of national contracts with Cricket South Africa.
“At the end of the day, when it comes to the world tournaments, we want to pick our best side. And if Anrich is one of those best players, we consider him,” concluded Walter.
“Shamsi has done exactly the same thing. We need to be cognisant of what’s happening in world cricket. It’s not easy and the national side is competing with franchise cricket. The money lies in franchise cricket, not international cricket. That’s the reality that we live in.”