We weren't completely outplayed - Bavuma

"They bowled pretty well and understood conditions better than we did," admitted Proteas T20 captain Quinton de Kock after India beat South Africa by seven wickets with an over to spare in the second T20 International at the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on Wednesday.

South Africa played three debutants in the game – batsman Temba Bavuma, fast bowler Anrich Nortje and left-arm spinner Bjorn Fortuin.

"There was a lot of pressure on them coming into the game and I thought they did really well, it's a world-class India line-up. Obviously we didn't get to a winning score but I thought they held their nerves very well," De Kock said.

South Africa scored 149 for five with the captain making 52 from 37 balls and Bavuma 49 from 43 deliveries. On a high-scoring ground, it always looks short of par and India duly posted 151 for three to win with an over to spare and captain Virat Kohli finishing unbeaten on 72 from 52 balls.

"We hoped KG (Rabada) could pick up a wicket nice and early but, unfortunately. It looked like it was easier to bat when there was pace on the ball and more difficult when the bowling was slower," De Kock said.

His own form was slim consolation: "Since the World Cup I've had some time off so I was hungry to play again, but next time we're just going to have to make sure we’re better than them."

Kohli was succinct: "When you finish the game off like that it is always a good feeling as a batsman."

Bavuma, having played 36 tests and two ODIs, was satisfied – more or less – with his T20 debut: "It didn't do much to the result of the game but it was a pleasing knock. Last season was a big one for me in white-ball cricket because there wasn't much red-ball cricket. So I had to evaluate my plans and I had some decent success, which resulted in my place in the T20 team," he said.

Asked about the difficulties in balancing personal and team ambition, the team vice-captain said: "I don't see myself as a selfish person, I put the team's needs above all personal ambitions. If you look at the way I got out, that shows I put the team first. For me, that's not a hard thing to balance, but for other players, it is a challenging thing. Especially if it is your debut and you know chances may be limited, but putting the team first will always serve you best."

A solid start suggested the tourists might make considerably more than 149 and Bavuma agreed: "Just after the halfway stage when David (Miller) came in at the 13th over, I was thinking 180 was on the cards and that would be a good score. That's where we failed a bit in our batting cause.

"I wasn't really able to get the momentum going so maybe I was to blame because the platform was set for the big-hitters. But there are a lot of positives we can take into the next game and we certainly weren't outplayed in this game."