India lost the first ODI against South Africa and now the series is on the line for the Men in Blue with the second ODI set to be played on Friday at the same venue. India had South Africa on the mat when they reduced the home team to 68/3, but then let off the hosts as they went onto post a formidable total of 297 which proved too much in the end. Meanwhile former Pakistan bowler Danish Kaneria feels the Indian team is divided more than ever.
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“We saw that the Indian dressing room was divided into two groups. KL Rahul and Virat Kohli were sitting apart. Also, Kohli wasn’t in the same mood as he used to be when he was the captain. But he’s a team man and will come back stronger,” said Kaneria on his YouTube channel.
“After losing the Test series, India would be eager to redeem themselves and clinch the ODI rubber. But Rahul hasn’t shown that spark until now. He had led in the Test series but wasn’t able to lift the team to break the South African partnership. At one stage, it didn’t look like the Proteas would put up 296 on the scoreboard. Lack of intensity from the Indian team helped the opposition in scoring such a total. There were also fielding lapses from the visitors,” he further said.
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Likewise Indian spinners also went for a plenty. The duo of Ravi Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal gave away 106 runs for a single wicket. On the other hand, South African tweakers were on the money. Aiden Markram, Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj bowled 26 overs between them for 124 runs and shared four wickets between them.
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“Rahul needs to lift up captaincy and batting as well. He needs to lift the team. Also, Bhuvneshwar Kumar gave away many runs against South Africa and the Ashwin-Chahal pair didn’t look effective like the Kuldeep-Chahal duo. India didn’t use Venkatesh Iyer’s bowling services too. The next ODI will be played at the same venue and India need to learn from their mistakes. Their intensity was poor in the series opener,” Kaneria further said.
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