Deficit irrigation improves maize yield and water use efficiency in a semi-arid environment

•A combination of varying irrigation levels at different maize growth stages can help stabilizing the yield under uncertain supply of water.•Reducing the full irrigation supply by 20 % between V8 to maturity overall had the highest yield.•Impacts of water stress during the early to mid-vegetative stages can be compensated by supplying 80 % or 100 % irrigation during the later stages.•Water stress at certain growth stages could have positive impact on maize yield.