BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (Reuters) – India beat South Africa by seven runs in a heart-stopping final to win the Twenty20 World Cup at the Kensington Oval on Saturday.
Electing to bat on a dry surface, 2007 champions India overcame a top-order meltdown to post a competitive 176-7.
Virat Kohli (76) struck his first 50 of this World Cup and Axar Patel smashed 47 to power India to a healthy total.
Anrich Nortje and Keshav Maharaj claimed two wickets apiece for South Africa.
The Proteas suffered a top order collapse of their own but Quinton de Kock (39) and Tristan Stubbs (31) put their chase back on track.
Heinrich Klaasen (52) then counter-attacked in spectacular fashion but India’s impeccable death-overs bowling restricted South Africa to 169-8.
(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; Editing by Ed Osmond and Alison Williams)
