Rahul’s strategy as captain will also be looked into as tourists seek to prevent South Africa from flying high
To keep the series alive, KL Rahul’s men will need to improve a lot against a flamboyant South African side in the second ODI on Friday.
The middle order, which was a problem, is still sticking around like a sore throat and no one knows exactly what the solution is.
Once again, it was a case of an opener – Shikhar Dhawan on this occasion – and the indomitable Kohli’s fortress before the middle order fell on a slow pitch where it was turn and the ball was caught, leading to a run-off. -Mil seamer Andile Phehlukwayo is looking formidable.
South Africa crushed India both strategically as well as skillfully and therein raised serious questions about Rahul’s wealth as captain.
The most pressing question was what was Venkatesh Iyer actually doing in the team if he was not bowling at least four to five overs as a sixth bowler when Yuzvendra Chahal and Shardul Thakur were being taken to the cleaners. Was?
There wasn’t a singularly inspired bowling change, unlike the Proteas, which made the first introduction of Aiden Markram’s off-break and bottled up the Indian captain.
The game was lost at half a stage once Dhawan and Kohli were dismissed in quick succession after their 90-plus stands. Suddenly the bar on which batting seemed easy has become difficult.
Shreyas Iyer’s well-documented struggles against the short ball have been exposed again and he will find that a place in the Indian playing XI comes at a premium.
Rishabh Pant and two Iyers will have to play a big role.
The difference between the two sides was how the spinners fared – Ashwin and Chahal conceded 106 for a wicket in their combined 20 overs, while Markram, Tabrez Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj bowled 26 overs for 124 runs between them. Took four wickets between them.
Teams (from):
India: KL Rahul (Captain), Jasprit Bumrah (Vice-Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Famous Krishna, Shardul Thakur, Mohammad Siraj, Jayant Yadav and Navdeep Saini.
South Africa: Temba Bavuma (capt), Keshav Maharaj (vice-captain), Quinton de Kock (wk), Zubair Hamza, Marco Jensen, Janman Malan, Sisanda Magala, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Wayne Parnell, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwayne Pretorius , Kagiso Rabada, Tabrez Shamsi, Rasi van der Dussen and Kyle Verne.
Match at 2 PM IST. will start from,
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