South Africa vs India, 2021-22: 2nd ODI - Who Said What

Another ordinary show from Indian bowlers meant South Africa clinched the second ODI by seven wickets. As the hosts also won the opening game by 31 runs, they earn an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series. The Men in Blue must be disappointed with their efforts as many loopholes in the team were exposed once again. The bowling attack looked particularly weak as the hosts chased down 288 without much hassle.

Speaking of how game panned out, India finished at 287/6 while batting first at the Boland Park in Paarl. While skipper KL Rahul slammed a steady half-century at the top, Rishabh Pant was at his destructive best. He even came near to his maiden ODI ton but fell prey to Tabraiz Shamsi at 85. All-rounders Shardul Thakur and Ravichandran Ashwin also played handy cameos, helping India post a challenging total.

Another clinical show from Proteas batters

South Africa’s chase couldn’t have gone smoother as they didn’t look in any trouble whatsoever. Openers Quinton de Kock and Janneman Malan added 132 runs for the first wicket before the former perished for 78. Malan got out for 91 while skipper Temba Bavma slammed a quickfire 35. Aiden Markram and Rassie van der Dussen also played handy cameos, ensuring there’s no twist in the tale. South Africa eventually crossed the line in 48.1 overs.

Winning skipper, Temba Bavuma said:

Very happy. We wanted to win the series and weren’t really expecting it to do after the 2 games. Lot of positives to take from our performances. Great to have him (QDK) in the side and he reminded us again why he is such a valuable player for us.

As a team we have a lot of self-belief and confidence in our ability. We are not a team that prides itself on having superstars or relying on individual performances. We really try and put in a team effort. Coming into this series from the Test side, no-one had much faith in us and that gave us a lot of motivation.

The performances in the last month have been really good. Spinners have done a splendid job. It’s a great thing. We pride ourselves on fast bowlers, but to see the spin bowlers winning the game for us that really makes us a side to reckon against.

I enjoy captaincy and I enjoyed it since domestic cricket. I see it to something to forget about myself and try and see how I can inspire the other guys in the team. 3-0 sounds a lot better than 2-1.

Losing skipper, KL Rahul said:

I think they are playing some really good cricket at home, we are making mistakes as well in the middle. It’s a good learning for us. We are a team that takes a lot of pride in winning, but good learning for us and hopefully we can grow. We are trying to get better at things we haven’t done well in the past.

Partnerships, middle order becomes crucial when we are entering a big tournament, wanna get better at bowling in the middle overs and these are the few things which are really obvious and right in front of us. We have spoken about it and it’s only up to us to get better, learn from it and find a way.

It does feel like one of the wickets at home and I don’t think it was pitch where they could have chased down 280 that easily. Credit to them, they are showing us the importance of partnerships and putting pressure early on against the bowlers.

The way Shikhar and Virat batted in the first game was very good, and today Rishabh batted, the way he managed the first 20 balls and then he took down the spinners. He is a really important member of the team and Shardul, too, showing us he can bat lower down and make a good contribution.

Jasprit has been the standout bowler for us and Yuzi has been good today. The energy has been great, it’s been tough on the body staying in the bubbles. We love challenges and we have come short in the first 2 games, we will look ahead to the third game and try and win that one. Too early to say (about team changes for the next ODI).

Player of the match, Quinton de Kock said:

Good to get out there and score some runs. Quite nice to be out there and bat some time. I was feeling good towards the end there. I think me and Janneman are both similar players and we have a great understanding. It’s been brief (speaking about fatherhood), only had a chance to spend couple of days along with her, but it’s been very chilled and I think it’s changed my view on life and kids in general. It’s been great.