Johannesburg, February 18: Shabnim Ismail's five-wicket haul guided South Africa to a five-wicket win over India in the third women's T20 International encounter at the New Wanderers Stadium. After being asked to bat first, India posted a modest target of 134 for South Africa, which the hosts achieved with an over to spare to keep the five-match series alive. India are still leading the series 2-1 and will look to seal it when they meet Proteas women on February 21.
For India, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur top-scored with 48 as Smriti Mandhana and Veda Krishnamurthy struck 37 and 23 respectively. Ismail claimed five wickets and was adjudged Player of the Match for a magnificent bowling performance, while Masabata Klaas picked two.
For South Africa, Dane van Niekerk and Sune Luus provided a solid start after opener Lizelle Lee was removed for five. Mignon du Preez and Chloe Tryon hit 20 and 34 respectively as South Africa registered their first win in the series.
Pooja Vastrakar removed two South African wickets as Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Anuja Patil and Poonam Yadav chipped in with one apiece.