After a tremendous comeback in the 2nd ODI team, fortunes of Indian team took a complete ‘U’ turn as they suffered an 18 run defeat at the hands of the guests in the 3rd ODI played at Rajkot. AB de Villiers had won the toss and on a pitch that was ‘deemed’ to be a batsman’s delight. South Africa put up a total score of 270 at the loss of 7 wickets. In reply, the hosts could only put up 252 runs, losing 6 wickets. This calls for a major introspection especially with regard to the Indian batting order if they want to win the upcoming matches. Thus, with the next ODI to be played in Chennai on 22nd October, it’s time for our match report card.
TOPPERS
In a below average performance by the Indian team, the toppers are Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Sharma made 65 runs whereas Kohli put up 77 runs out of 99 balls. Though both these players were the top 2 highest scorers of the team they did not bat to their fullest of abilities. Both Sharma and Kohli are explosive batsmen who are known for firing away at the opposition’s bowling attack, so on the pitch which was called a runs galore both these batsmen failed to achieve a strike rate of even 90 and that is not acceptable from batsmen of their calibre. If only runs were scored at a convenient rate by the Indian batsmen, the scenario might have been different.
SCORE: 3/5
THE FAILED BUNCH
This category includes a class of players who failed to score passing marks on their report card. These are Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane and Suresh Raina. While on one hand Suresh Raina’s form has dipped further, on the other hand, Shikhar Dhawan as an opener has scored a total of 73 runs in the 3 matches he has played so far in this ongoing Freedom series. Furthermore, there is Ajinkya Rahane and the batting position issue. Ajinkya Rahane made 111 runs when he played at No. 3 and made a mere 4 runs in the last match when he was demoted to No. 6. The No. 3 position is Virat Kohli’s domain and he has been very vocal about keeping that position only, so if the talent of Rahane is to be realised he has to play where he can perform well. If not at No.3 then maybe open the innings for the team. There has been a lot of shuffling in the batting and order Shastri might as well try Rahane as an opener; the Proteas did it with David Miller and it reaped benefits for him as well as the team.
SCORE: 1/5; (Suresh Raina: 0/5)
A PERSEVERING CAPTAIN
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the captain who is trying to lead a team of dismal performers. At his disposal, he has world class players who are not performing up to their potential. With a shoddy batting line up and a bowling unit which has always been India’s weak point, Dhoni is facing an opponent that excels in all fields. Apart from that Dhoni’s performance has also not been up to the mark. He made 92 runs in the 2nd ODI and yesterday made 47 runs off 61 balls. In a match where India could have easily breezed to the total with a manageable required rate, Dhoni’s pace of making the runs just added pressure on the tail enders and ultimately we remained 18 runs short.
SCORE: 2.5/5
A REDEEMABLE BOWLING UNIT
The only redeemable thing from the 3rd ODI at Rajkot was the performance of the bowling unit. The Indian bowling was tight and consistent and the bowlers kept taking wickets at regular intervals. It can be regarded as a major improvement on the part of the bowling unit to restrict a team like South Africa for 270 runs.
SCORE:3.5/5