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Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane (AP Image)
Taking to Twitter, Vijay wrote: “Clearly shows the hunger we have to conquer this battle!! Top quality batting @imVkohli & @ajinkyarahane88 👏 Take a bow @BCCI 👍 #TeamIndia #INDvSA #GameOn.”
Clearly shows the hunger we have to conquer this battle!! Top quality batting @imVkohli & @ajinkyarahane88 👏 Take a bow @BCCI 👍 #TeamIndia #INDvSA #GameOn
— Murali Vijay (@mvj888) February 2, 2018
It was a brilliant effort by Team India as they defeated South Africa in the first ODI by six wickets to go 1-0 up in the six-match series. Skipper Virat Kohli (112), as usual was the main man in the 270-run chase as he brought up his 33rd ODI century in the match. Along with Kohli, it was Ajinkya Rahane (79) who batted beautifully and strung a partnership of 189 runs for the third wicket. India achieved the target with 27 balls to spare.
The duo did not put a step wrong during the chase, and bailed the Indian team out of trouble when Shikhar Dhawan departed after being run-out for 35. The score read 67/2 at that time, and had more wickets fallen at that stage, the match could have gone either way.
But the duo dealt with the South African pacers really well, and did not allow them to settle. The highlight of the Kohli-Rahane partnership was that they scored on all the loose deliveries that came their way. To go with that, they ran well between the wickets, to push South Africa on the backfoot.
The chase did not start on a very bright note for the Indian team, as they lost opener Rohit Sharma (20) with just 33 runs on the board. The Durban pitch, though good for batting, was a tricky one for the new batsmen. But Kohli and Rahane applied themselves well and helped India chase the target with ease.
The chase was not devoid of minor hiccups though. There was a time when Dhawan and Kohli were cruising at a brisk pace, but a wrong call for a run by Kohli saw Dhawan make his way back to the pavilion. The dismissal left Dhawan fuming, as he was looking good for a big score.
Again, coming very close to the target, both Kohli and Rahane got out playing ordinary shots, and could not finish the match for India. It was MS Dhoni who took the Indian team to the victory, through a powerful pull towards mid-wicket.
As far as South African bowling is concerned, they were guilty of giving too many boundary balls to the Indians. Morne Morkel was good in the first spell, and got the ball to bounce as well. That did create some trouble for the batsmen initially. He gave away 35 runs, and got a wicket in his seven overs. Other bowlers were expensive, and the Indian batsmen dealt with them easily.
Ajinkya RahaneFaf du PlessisMS Dhonimurali vijayrohit sharmashikhar dhawanSouth Africa vs India 2018virat kohli
First Published: February 2, 2018, 11:06 AM IST