A Virat Kohli special saw India start their white-ball series against South Africa with a win, picking up a 17-run win in Ranchi to go 1–0 up in the three-match ODI series.
Now, the hosts will look to seal the series in Raipur, with Aiden Markram & Co looking to level the proceedings.
For the second ODI between India and South Africa, here we present our preview and predictions.
With no Shubman Gill, India had Yashasvi Jaiswal open the innings alongside Rohit Sharma. Both gave the team a brisk start, with Jaiswal missing out on a big score despite looking in good nick. Sharma, along with his old partner, Virat Kohli, stitched up a 136-run partnership to provide a formidable platform to the rest of the order. Further contributions from captain KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja propelled India to a commanding total of 349/8. Kohli’s 135 was key, with the former Team India captain looking in fine form despite not playing international cricket regularly.
While their batting looked stacked with the return of Kohli and Sharma, India’s bowling unit had to make do without their leading pacers, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj. Harshit Rana stepped up, and his double strike in the second over immediately put South Africa on the back foot. Alongside him, Arshdeep Singh and Prasidh Krishna were a bit expensive, but they did make sure to wrap up the innings. Kuldeep Yadav, meanwhile, was the standout star in Ranchi, as his four-wicket haul helped peg the opposition back during the middle overs.
The visitors, meanwhile, had a rough outing with the ball. Despite Nandre Burger’s early promise, they lost steam and allowed India to bat them out of the game. With no Lungi Ngidi in Ranchi, the South African bowling attack was a little light on experience, and it showed, especially towards the end of the Indian innings. Their batting didn’t get off to a great start either, as two of their most experienced batters, Aiden Markram and Quinton de Kock, were back in the hut inside the first five overs. However, despite being 11/3, the likes of Matthew Breetzke, Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, and Corbin Bosch came back hard at the Indian bowlers to take the game closer than it should have been.
The Raipur ground has not seen a lot of international cricket; only one ODI has taken place here, and that was back in 2023. The pitch here will not be as easy for the batters as the one in Ranchi, so expect the bowlers to have a bigger say. A promising bowling performance on a pitch that became much easier to bat on in the second innings would have given KL Rahul & Co a lot of confidence, which is why we have the Men in Blue as our favourites to win this game and seal the series.
Fantasy XI: Rohit Sharma (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram, Virat Kohli, Dewald Brevis, KL Rahul (c), Ravindra Jadeja, Marco Jansen, Arshdeep Singh, Nandre Burger
Venue: Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, Raipur
Winners Prediction: India
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