Twitter Reactions: South Africa survive Sanju Samson's blitz to secure narrow win in first ODI
Shreyas Iyer and Sanju Samson's half-century knocks went in vain as South Africa bowlers defended the total in the final over
After a significant delay in the first ODI between India and South Africa at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow, due to rains, the game finally started as a 40-overs-a-side contest. South Africa did not have the ideal start, but they managed to put up a competitive score towards the end, which helped them bag a victory and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.
Winning the toss, Indian skipper Shikhar Dhawan elected to bowl first. The pitch assisted the pacers when the game began as Shardul Thakur and Mohammed Siraj gave India a perfect start. The Proteas openers started off slow and could not score many runs. Their struggle came to an end when Shardul Thakur struck twice within three overs to dismiss Janneman Malan and Temba Bavuma.
Kuldeep Yadav was next to strike as he bowled a beautiful spinner to send Markram walking back to the pavilion. Ravi Bishnoi was then the pick of the batters as they punished him for some big runs, and he conceded more than 30 runs in three overs of his spell. He picked up his first wicket late in the 23rd over and picked up the in-form Quinton de Kock, thereby providing his team with the required breakthrough.
But, that was it for the Men in Blue. South Africa’s middle-order batters Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller were at their best on a pitch that wasn’t supporting the batters. The duo took the team from 110/4 to 249/4 at the end of the innings as they added a massive unbeaten 139-run stand for the fifth wicket. The bowlers struggled to keep the batters under check as Klaasen and Miller put up a masterclass, giving India a target of 250 runs.
Indian batters fight back, but lose by mere nine runs
India were dealt a major blow as they started off with the chase. Shikhar Dhawan and Shubman Gill opened the batting for India, but the duo, unlike their recent outings, were not able to stitch a partnership and lost their wickets within the powerplay. Kagiso Rabada struck first to pick up Gill, and Wayne Parnell joined the celebrations as he dismissed Dhawan.
Debutant Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan walked into the field next at the No. 3 and No. 4 position respectively. South African bowlers added to India’s misery as they did not let the two batters score any big runs. They carried the game for over 10 overs, but could barely add 40 runs on board before Gaikwad fell prey to Tabraiz Shamsi and Kishan followed him next.
It was then the partnership between Shreyas Iyer and Sanju Samson, that steered India’s ship in the middle. Iyer got going as soon as he entered and notched up a half-century, thereby majorly contributing to the 67-run stand that Samson and Iyer shared for the fifth wicket. Iyer’s dismissal put a halt on India’s momentum, but that is when Samson gained his mojo.
After Iyer, Samson carried the game forward, and joining him in the hitting down the order was Shardul Thakur. The two found the gaps on regular basis and kept hitting the ball toward the fence, keeping India’s hopes alive. Wickets kept falling, but Samson kept going till the end but his hard fought unbeaten knock of 63-ball 86* under pressure went in vain as South Africa won the game by just nine runs.
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