South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma was an elated man, as he was happy with his team’s efforts after the Proteas won back-to-back matches against India after they started their ODI leg of the tour with a narrow 9-run win over the Men in Blue in Lucknow on Thursday (October 6).

The South African skipper admitted that Indian wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson (86*) put the tourists back in the game with his power-hitting, but his players held their nerve and won the match for them.

Notably, South Africa posted 249/4 on the board after the match was reduced to 40 overs per side due to rain, thanks to David Miller's (75*) and Heinrich Klaasen’s (74*) against Team India in the first ODI in Lucknow.

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Chasing 250 for victory, Samson almost took India over the line, but  South Africa managed to hold their nerves in the last few overs and eventually won the match by 9 runs and took a 1-0 lead in the ongoing three-match ODI series.

Temba Bavuma said after the match: “A good fight at the end, obviously Sanju pushed us at the end, but the boys stood firm and took us to the win. There wasn't much grass on the surface, we lost a couple of wickets in the middle overs, myself and Aiden (Markram), but the boys knuckled down.”

He added, “Miller and Klaasen played positively, stung together a partnership and took us to a good score. Bowling upfront was good, in the first 15 overs by KG and Parnell. I thought we lost our way in the middle overs, gave away far too many runs, but in the end, the result did go our way and I'm happy with that.”

(With ANI Inputs)