India crushed South Africa by 101 runs in the opening T20I on Tuesday, riding on a blistering unbeaten 59 off 28 balls from Hardik Pandya in his comeback match.
Returning to international cricket after recovering from a quadricep injury, Pandya struck six fours and four maximums to lift India to 175 for six.
Tilak Varma contributed 26 and Axar Patel added 23 after South Africa opted to field.
Lungi Ngidi took three for 31 while Lutho Sipamla picked up two for 38 for the visitors.
South Africa collapsed to 74 all out in 12.3 overs in reply. Dewald Brevis top-scored with 22 in what became the team's lowest ever total in T20Is.
Their previous lowest was also against India -- 87 all out in Rajkot in 2022.
Arshdeep Singh finished with two for 14, Varun Chakaravarthy took two for 19, Jasprit Bumrah claimed two for 17 and Axar Patel produced figures of two for 7.
Shivam Dube took one for 1 and Pandya picked up one for 16 to seal a dominant win for India and a 1-0 lead in the series.
It was also South Africa’s first defeat in three T20Is in Cuttack, and if India had started shakily, South Africa began disastrously.
Arshdeep set the tone with a superb away-swinger that kissed past Quinton de Kock’s tentative prod for a two-ball duck.
In his next over, Arshdeep produced another beauty -- a length ball that jagged back into the in-form Tristan Stubbs (14).
India went upstairs for the review, and UltraEdge confirmed a thick inside edge onto the elbow before Jitesh Sharma completed a sharp take as South Africa were 18/2 inside four overs.
Axar was introduced in the final over of the powerplay and struck immediately.
Aiden Markram, shuffling back to work a skiddy, straight delivery, was beaten on the inside edge to get bowled. At 28/3 in six overs, South Africa were already in a hole.
Pandya then added to their misery, dismissing Miller.
Chakravarthy, operating with sharp drift and deceptive pace, got into action after the powerplay. Donovan Ferreira was late to react to a delivery that held back, and could only nick behind to Jitesh.
Marco Jansen, who had fielded brilliantly earlier, was undone by Chakravarthy’s googly as South Africa slid to 68/6.
The end arrived quickly thereafter with Bumrah, who completed 100 T20I wickets, cleaning up Dewald Brevis and Keshav Maharaj in the space of four deliveries.