South Africa comfortably defeated India by seven wickets in the 2nd ODI and sealed the series. The home team chased the target of 288 with only three wickets down with every batter contributing. It was a perfect match to highlight the different roles needed in an ODI and how momentum plays a bigger part in this format of the game. In today’s piece, we will look at stats that highlight the role of an innings anchor, analyze the importance of breaking momentum in ODI cricket, and what could have India done better.
Anchoring the innings
One opener from both sides looked to anchor the innings while the other batter batted freely around them. While Janneman Malan was successful in doing so, KL Rahul’s wicket after a drinks break was the momentum breaker for India.
Malan was playing on 40 and Rahul on 38 after 50 balls in their innings. Rahul had to slow down in between as India lost two wickets within the span of six balls but he picked up the pace once Rishabh Pant settled in.
After losing Quinton de Kock, Malan did not let the required run rate climb up with timely boundaries and scored 16 of the next 14 balls. Whereas India lost Rahul at a crucial stage, followed by Pant which was one of the main reasons India could not cross 300 runs.
Tactical blunder by India
India managed to pick up their first wicket at 132 after 22 overs. With the run rate required only at 5.6, bringing in Venkatesh Iyer was a tactical blunder as it let the batters build a new partnership. Iyer, did bowl economically, giving away 20 runs in the four-over spell but India needed to build more pressure in order to pick up wickets. They might have been trying to cover up for Bhuvneshwar Kumar who was expensive till then conceding 40 runs in his four overs.
Ideally, Rahul should have brought in Jasprit Bumrah or at least one of the front-line bowlers from Iyer’s end as it was important for India to pick up wickets given that South Africa’s no.3 and no.4 both had scored centuries in the last match. India let the game flow by playing it safe but ended up playing it at the hands of South Africa as they had a second-wicket partnership of 80(76) before Bumrah eventually got the breakthrough.
The other aspect of the game was the control given by the spinners, and it was not the Indian spinners but the South African spinners who had an economical and wicket-taking day at the office. The control given by them in the middle orders was crucial after India got off to a quick start.
Battle of the Wicket Keepers
Both the wicket keepers played their natural aggressive games and were pure entertainment for most cricket lovers. Pant with his 85 (71), coming in after two quick wickets gave the lower middle order the much-needed platform but the team management would have hoped that the left-hander could have carried on a lot longer especially after losing Rahul in the previous over before Pant departed. Whereas de Kock’s 78(66) broke the back of the chase for South Africa. One of the crucial moments in the match was when Pant missed the stumping of de Kock when he was on 32(25) of Ashwin’s balling. India was made to pay the very next ball as the batter deposited a six on the leg side.
Conclusion
What might look like a result of a change in leadership and other reasons in and around the Indian dressing room lately, the Indian bowlers have been struggling a lot lately. The bowlers have the highest average ( 46.96) and the highest economy rate (6.12) after the 2019 World Cup. They rank 20th on both parameters. The middle-order might be a slight issue, but there are bigger problems to be sorted. As for South Africa, they will be more than satisfied with the result and would want to win the 3rd ODI and give India a whitewash in the ODI series.