Quinton de Kock faces criticism after not taking a DRS in the ODI opener against India

After the culmination of the Test Series, India and South Africa locked horns in the ODI opener at Durban last night. With 17 straight home victories, the Proteas looked invincible, especially after clinching the three-match Test series 2-1. The Men in Blue faced an uphill task but charismatically emerged winners courtesy a scintillating century from the Indian skipper, Virat Kohli.

Winning the toss, South Africa did not have any hesitation in opting to bat first on a bright Durban day. Hashim Amla and Quintin de Kock opened proceedings for the hosts with the bat and got off to a steady start. Amla was the first to be dismissed, after being declared leg-before-wicket for 16. The score was 30 at that point.

But that didn’t come as shocking as Quintin de Kock’s dismissal. The wicketkeeper-batsman was adjudicated out LBW off of Yuzvendra Chahal’s delivery. He was on 34 at that time and his partnership with Faf du Plessis was growing. The ball struck him while he was looking to flick it on the leg side. Replays showed that the ball was to miss the leg stump.

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Had the decision been reviewed, it would have changed the entire dynamic of the game. But as he did not, the decision stood. South Africa’s loss can partially be accounted for this error of judgment. The Twitter critics soon unleashed themselves after this faux pas.

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India, one of the best chasers in the game

The run chase saw the Indian skipper playing risk-free cricket along with his Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane who was drafted in the side replacing Manish Pandey. Rahane too played a very handy inning of 79 runs while Kohli looked unstoppable as he completed his 33rd ODI hundred, 2nd most in the ODI history.

India once again established they are the best chasers in the business. With a target of 270, the Indian team paced their innings comfortably, finishing it off with a little less than 5 overs left.