South Africa defeated India by four wickets in the second ODI of the three-match series. Chasing 360 runs in Raipur, Proteas opener Aiden Markram handed a perfect start to the visitors. He made 110 runs off 98 balls and set the tone of the match. With dew affecting the match severely, South Africa’s middle order batters capitalised as Matthew Breetzke and Dewald Brevis scored a half-century each, to bring the team closer to victory. Towards the end, Corbin Bosch played a perfect cameo to help South Africa level the series 1-1.
After the game, India captain KL Rahul explained that the dew played a major role in their defeat. He noted that the bowlers performed well in the first ODI in Ranchi, which played a role in their thrilling win, but this time around, it got difficult. He also thanked the umpires for changing the ball from time to time, but nothing could change the fate of the match. The keeper-batter also added that the team wouldn’t consider changing anything, but to win the toss next time around.
“Not really, considering everything – how much dew there is and how difficult it is to bowl in the second innings. The last game, we did really well, considering everything. All the difficulties for bowlers bowling with a wet ball, and the umpires have been nice enough to change the ball a few times, but still I think toss plays a huge part. So I’m kicking myself about losing two tosses in a row. It’s obviously making a huge difference,” Rahul said at the post-match presentation.
Rahul addresses poor fielding
Rahul also reflected on the fact that 360 runs looked good on paper, but the goal was to get 20-25 runs to give that cushion to the bowling unit. He also lauded the bowlers for giving their heart out and noted that the fielding could have been better and sharper.
To reflect back there’s always things that we could have done better. With the bat, I know that 350 looks good, but that’s also been the chat in the dressing room even after the last game [about] how can we get that extra 20-25 runs, so that the bowlers find some cushion when they bowl with the wet ball,” Rahul said.
“Bowlers obviously are trying their heart out, but there are areas to improve. There are a few soft boundaries that we gave away, even in the field. If we can tighten up all three aspects of the game and get a bit more sharper, then maybe those 20-25 runs will go our way and we’ll be on the other side,” he added.
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