Centurion, Mar 26: South Africa completed the highest successful chase in Twenty20 international cricket to reach 259-4 and beat West Indies by six wickets in a record-breaking game on Sunday.

West Indies was asked to bat first in the second game of the series and made 258-5, meaning the match at Centurion was the first T20 international where 500 or more runs were scored.

South Africa chased down the huge target with seven balls remaining after Quinton de Kock smashed 100 from 44 balls for his first T20 international century, and fellow opener Reeza Hendricks hit 68 from 28.

Their 152-run stand for the opening wicket put South Africa on its way to its record-breaking chase. Captain Aiden Markram guided the Proteas home with his 38 not out, leaving the series level at 1-1 with one game to play.

"We just wanted to give our side a bit of hope and that's what we did," de Kock said of his partnership with Hendricks.

Johnson Charles flayed 118 from just 46 balls to set up West Indies' big total, with support from Kyle Mayers, who made 51, and Romario Shepherd, who hit 41 not out.

Charles' innings was the fastest T20I century by a West Indies batter, his 39-ball knock eight quicker than the previous record set by Chris Gayle in 2016. Only David Miller of South Africa, Rohit Sharma of India and Sudesh Wickramasekara of Czech Republic all in 35 balls have scored faster T20I centuries.

Charles smashed 11 sixes to play a big part in another record for the game. There were 35 sixes, the most for a T20 international. Charles also hit 10 fours in an innings that seemed destined to give West Indies a series victory, but de Kock and South Africa had other ideas.

"It was pretty, pretty crazy," West Indies captain Rovman Powell said. "When we came off halfway we thought we had enough. But credit to Quinton de Kock and Reeza Hendricks. They applied pressure from ball one."

The teams will now play a series-decider in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

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Jerusalem (PTI): India and Israel on Thursday elevated their "time-tested" relationship to a special strategic partnership and agreed to soon firm up a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly backed the Gaza peace initiative, asserting that humanity must never become a victim of conflict.

Following talks between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the two sides inked a plethora of agreements to expand cooperation in areas of trade, agriculture, energy, cyberspace and digital payment.

India and Israel also vowed to expand their already close defence partnership by working towards joint development and joint production of military hardware under the framework of the transfer of technologies.

In his media statement, Modi said India's security interest is linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supports the Gaza Peace Initiative.

"India's stance is clear: humanity must never become a victim of conflict. A path to peace has been created through the Gaza Peace Plan. India has fully supported these efforts," he said.

"In the future as well, we will continue dialogue and cooperation with all countries," he said.

PM Modi landed in Israel on Wednesday on a two-day visit. It is his second visit to Israel in nine years.

In his remarks, the prime minister said India and Israel have a united view that there is no place for terrorism in the world and both sides stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering terrorism and its supporters.

"Our relationship is founded on the strong bedrock of deep trust, shared democratic values, and human sensitivities. Our bond has stood the test of every trial of time," he said.

"Today, we have taken the historic decision to elevate our time-tested partnership to the status of a 'Special Strategic Partnership'," he said.

The prime minister also announced the establishment of an India-Israel critical and emerging technologies partnership to impart a new momentum for cooperation in areas of artificial intelligence, quantum, and critical minerals. "I am pleased that an agreement has been reached for the use of UPI in Israel," he said.

The prime minister, referring to the threat of terrorism, said India and Israel will continue to confront the menace unitedly.

"India and Israel are completely clear that there is no place for terrorism in the world. In any form, in any expression, terrorism cannot be accepted," he said.

"We have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in opposing terrorism and its supporters, and we will continue to do so," he added.

India and Israel also discussed the implementation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and cooperation under the framework of I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-USA).