The trademark leap in the air in Ranchi was followed by a roar in Raipur on Wednesday. Virat Kohli, continuing from where he had left off after his 135 last Sunday, registered another fine, fluent century.
This time, though, in a losing cause. Kohli (102), his fellow centurion Ruturaj Gaikwad (105) and captain KL Rahul’s unbeaten 43-ball 66 guided India to 358/5, but that didn’t prove to be enough.
Aiden Markram’s 110, the consistent Matthew Breetzke’s 68 and the explosive Dewald Brevis’ maiden ODI fifty (54 off 34 balls) were certainly central to South Africa’s run chase. But what equally made matters easier for the Proteas was India’s costly errors on the field and poor bowling, which also drove South Africa to a four-wicket win to level the three-match ODI series.
Agreed, batting under lights was easier, considering the effect of the dew and of course, the flatness of the Raipur pitch, which was unforgiving for the bowlers. Even then, failure to defend such a big target against a batting group that isn’t too experienced doesn’t bode well for India’s bowling unit, which had nearly goofed up on Sunday too.
If poor bowling and below-par ground fielding weren’t enough, Yashasvi Jaiswal, dismissed yet again off a left-arm pacer (Marco Jansen this time), made a mess of a catch at long-on when Markram was on 53. That error went on to hurt India badly.
However, credit has to be given to South Africa for not doing anything silly even after losing their set batters. Corbin Bosch (29 not out) and Keshav Maharaj (10 not out) remained calm and took their side home with four balls to spare, as South Africa recorded their highest-ever run chase against India in ODIs.
Moreover, they couldn’t get full services of pacer Nandre Burger and batter
Tony de Zorzi due to leg injuries, so that too makes their victory special.
Earlier, the wides that the Proteas gifted away to India, especially in the initial stages of the game, played a good hand in setting the tone for the hosts, after they lost the toss again and were put in. This was India’s 20th toss loss in a row in ODIs, as they won it last in the 2023 World Cup semi- final clash against New Zealand in Mumbai.
Commanding stand
South Africa, though, still had a fair chance to tighten the screws once India slipped to 62/2 in the 10th over from 40 without loss in the fifth.
But with Kohli looking set at the other end, Gaikwad, despite being greeted by a snorter from Jansen, backed his attacking game and made the most of almost all scoring opportunities en route to his maiden ODI century. Importantly, this innings helped Gaikwad vindicate the team management’s faith in him for the No.4 position, especially after managing only eight in the series opener.
Moreover, he was quick to brush aside that first-ball bouncer, which made him look clueless despite earning a boundary off it. What stood out in Gaikwad’s innings, comprising 12 boundaries and a couple of maximums, was the ease with which he attacked their lead spinner Maharaj — coming in place of Prenelan Subrayen — if the left-armer drifted even a bit in line and gave the batter some room.
Maybe skipper Temba Bavuma missed a trick in not giving Jansen an extra over when Gaikwad hadn’t scored many. But to give the batter his due, he barely let any of the opposition bowlers settle down once he had his eye in.
Of course, the presence of Kohli at the other end was indeed a huge influence on Gaikwad, as the senior pro kept egging him on which played a role in helping him remain steady.
Similarly, the aggression and intent that Gaikwad had shown enabled Kohli to play the game he’s best at. Their commanding 195-run third-wicket partnership gave India a fantastic chance of finishing close to 400 at least.
Lull period
Following Kohli’s dismissal, India managed only 56 in the next 9.5 overs as Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja struggled to maintain the momentum. In fact, after 49 overs, India had reached just 340/5 from 284/4 in the 40th.
Fortunately, Rahul and Jadeja got the boundaries in the final over of India’s innings, helping the team total past 350. In the end, those quiet 9.5 overs made the difference in the game’s outcome as India fell at least 20 runs short.