South Africa suffered a humiliating eight-wicket defeat at the hands of India in ODI series opener.
Opting to bat first, South Africa’s innings folded for a paltry 116 on 27.3 overs. The Proteas batting line-up was blown away by India’s pace duo of Arshdeep Singh (5/37) and Avesh Khan (4/27), who shared nine scalps between them.
In reply, the visitors rode on half-centuries from debutant Sai Sudharsan (55* off 43) and Shreyas Iyer (52 off 45) to overhaul the target in just 16.4 overs.
After the loss, South African skipper Aiden Markram acknowledged that the Indian bowlers used lateral movement really well while bowling and put the hosts behind right from the first ball.
"Tough one (the loss). We would have liked to put on a really good score batting first. Credit to their bowling attack with the lateral movement. We were not even allowed to settle and build a partnership. The problem was right from the start and could not pull things back. (Misread the pitch?) We expected it to go around a little bit. Generally in the day games it does do something for 5-7 overs, we have seen that before. But today it went along for longer and we couldn't get in and build partnerships," said Markram in the post-match presentation.
"I think it comes down to individuals (on aggressive batting) When you are out there you have to assess yourself and communicate with the partner. We encourage guys to be positive but also choose smart options. We will have to assess. (Would you bat first again?) Probably not [laughs]," he added.
With this defeat, South Africa are now facing a must-win situation to stay alive in the three-match ODI series. The second ODI will be held in Gqeberha on Tuesday (December 19).