NEW DELHI: India all-rounder Hardik Pandya not only wins hearts with his outstanding on-field performances but also goes a notch higher with his conduct off the field, as seen during the fifth T20I against South Africa in Ahmedabad.

Pandya went hammer and tongs, smashing the second fastest T20I fifty for India in 16 balls after Yuvraj Singh's 12-ball milestone against England at Kingsmead back in inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007.

Hardik Pandya unleashed: A 16-ball storm shakes T20I record books

In a whirlwind knock featuring five sixes and as many fours, one of Pandya's sixes unfortunately struck a cameraman just below the shoulder while he was performing his duties at the boundary line.

Demonstrating care beyond the game, Pandya immediately approached the cameraman after his innings to check on his well-being, making sure he received attention and even assisting in applying an ice pack.

He then hugged the cameraman - heartfelt gesture that quickly went viral and drew widespread praise from fans.

Pandya also expressed relief that his six only caused a minor bruise and that the cameraman was lucky to avoid a serious injury.

"God was with me that it didn't go any higher and only hit him in a spot that caused just a bruise. At the same time, he was lucky. I'm very grateful it didn't go higher," Pandya said in a video posted by BCCI.

Talking about the match, India rode on a smashing fifties from Pandya, Tilak Varma and Varun Chakravarthy's four-for to thump South Africa by 30 runs and end 2025 with a 3-1 series victory in the fifth and final T20I.

Pandya scored 63 off 25 while Tilak made a fluent 73 to lift India to daunting 231/5. In reply, South Africa were on track as long as Quinton de Kock (65) was in the middle, but lost seven wickets for 81 runs and finished at 201/8.