Virat Kohli, the chase master, once again led India to a fine win over South Africa in the first One-day international at Kingsmead, Durban. It was not an easy chase as the South Africans had done well especially in the final flurry of hitting to get to the total that they did.
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It was perhaps 30 runs short of what would have been an ideal score, but the Indian spinners in particular had choked the runs in the middle overs, and South Africa does not have any player like AB de Villers, who could have got the big overs that would have propelled them to 300.
The Kingsmead pitch was on the slower side with very little bounce and the two wrist spinners exploited the conditions very well. Both these young guns have big hearts and are unafraid to toss the ball up and invite the big shot. They will occasionally get hit but will get wickets more often than not.
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The talk in Durban is that the pitch tends to quicken up once the lights come on but that is exactly what
Rohit Sharma and
Shikhar Dhawan like. They got the team off to a fine start before Rohit perished.
Thereafter, Kohli assumed the responsibility of making up for Dhawan's run out and his determination could be seen in the way he treated every ball. There is a simplicity about his batting that gives the bowlers no chance.
His balance is near-perfect and when he leans and plays the cover drive, there are few better sights in cricket.
Rahane, carrying on his good form from the Wanderers Test, once again emphasised that leaving him out for the first two Tests which India lost was a big mistake. The pitch at the Centurion will be a lot quicker than at Durban plus it is a day game so there won't be any excessive movements that the dusk can bring about in South Africa.
