Proteas skipper Temba Bavuma and batter Rassie Van der Dussen both scored excellent hundreds against India as South Africa registered a comfortable 31-run win on January 19.
The Indians’ miserable run in South Africa continued as they lost the first ODI game at Paarl, after Bavuma and Van der Dussen’s tons took the game away from the Indians, who suffered a middle-order collapse again following the dismissal of Shikhar Dhawan and former captain Virat Kohli.
South Africa’s comfortable victory put them 1-0 ahead in the three-match ODI series, after also notching up an unexpected 2-1 victory in the Test series.
First toss lost under coach Rahul Dravid
— Vinay Kumar Dokania (@VinayDokania) January 19, 2022
KL Rahul lost the toss in his first game as ODI captain, as Bavuma chose to bat first. The Indian bowlers got a decent start to the game, with Jasprit Bumrah getting the edge off Janneman Malan, through to Rishabh Pant, who completed a regulation catch behind the stumps.
Ravichandran Ashwin got rid of the Quinton de Kock. A huge mix-up between Bavuma and Aiden Markram was taken advantage of, as debutant Venkatesh Iyer ran the latter out, putting the Proteas in a spot of bother at 68/3.
Markram’s run-out brought Van der Dussen and Bavuma together at the crease. Things were looking good for the Indians, who had two new batsmen at the crease. However, a brilliant partnership of 204 runs between vDD and Bavuma completely took the game away from the Indians, who had had quite a good start to their bowling innings.
The duo dealt with the tricky surface magnificently as they built the perfect partnership. Bavuma took his time, knocking the ball around, keeping the scoreboard ticking, while Van der Dussen was more aggressive, taking on the bowlers and scoring boundaries every chance he got.
Van der Dussen in particular, played a fantastic knock, neutralizing the conditions, using the sweeps to great effect against the likes of Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravichandran Ashwin, who was making a comeback into the ODI setup after a sabbatical of about four years.
Both Bavuma and Van der Dussen scored valuable centuries, as South Africa posted a daunting total of 296/4 at the end of 50 overs, on a wicket that was not doing the batsmen any favours.
In response, India’s start was not ideal, as they lost skipper KL Rahul for just 12, which Kohli and Dhawan together in the middle. The two had an excellent partnership, as they added 92 for the second wicket. Both Kohli and Dhawan looked to be in good touch, as they scored runs at a decent rate.
Dhawan was looking well on course for a much-deserved century before he chopped on a Keshav Maharaj delivery, walking back to the pavilion after a classy 79. India’s troubles were soon compounded as Tabraiz Shamsi got rid of Virat, just after the latter had completed a well-compiled half-century.
From there on, it was another collapse that has become worryingly common for the Indian side of late, as Pant, Venkatesh Iyer, and Shreyas Iyer fell without making much of an impact on the scorecard. Ashwin also departed after dragging on an Andile Phehlukwayo delivery onto his stumps, essentially ending any remote possibility of an Indian victory.
Shardul Thakur did manage to score a good half-century, studded with a few boundaries and the solitary maximum, but it was too little too late for the Indians, as the Proteas wrapped up a convincing 31-run victory.
Player of the match, Rassie van der Dussen (using Bavuma's mic) https://t.co/uFOsWMPOqi Read More: https://t.co/OCRG6DaF5D pic.twitter.com/loysURfKGV
— All About Cricket (@AllAboutCrick3t) January 19, 2022
Van der Dussen was awarded the man of the match for his scintillating innings of 129* in just 96 deliveries, including nine boundaries and four sixes. The second ODI will also take place in Paarl on Friday, and the Indians will be looking to set the record straight after a disappointing performance in the first ODI.
