finally eked out the win.
While the victory would definitely give their morale a boost, it would also raise concerns about the lack of sting in the bowling, especially during the Powerplay overs and in the last five. Here are some of the snapshots from today’s game:
Shikhar Dhawan arrives on the big stage
This generation’s “Vikram Rathore” announced his arrival on the big stage with a well-paced hundred that set the platform for a huge score. Shikhar shared a solid 127-run opening stand with Rohit Sharma and added another 83 with statemate Virat Kohli for the second wicket. Everything came alike for the southpaw as he played his shots extremely well on all sides of the wicket. His eventual score of 114 became the highest individual score in all the ODIs played at Cardiff – a feat that he should be proud of!
Missing Dale Steyn and Morkel’s through injury
The Proteas suffered their first jolt of the day when speedster Dale Steyn was ruled unfit for the match. To make matters worse, their strike bowler Morne Morkel could send down only 6.5 overs before pulling up with a groin strain. In the initial overcast conditions, Morkel’s pace and bounce would have had the Indians hopping all over the place, while Steyn’s accuracy at high speeds would have rattled them even more. In any case, the Indians should thank their stars that both of SA’s vital bowlers were unable to make an impact on this game.
Peterson scares India
South Africa’s left-arm spinner Robin Peterson became a thorn in India’s side after his winning boundary against Ashish Nehra in the 2011 World Cup. Sent in as a pinch-hitter in this game, he took the attack to the Indian bowlers, sharing a century stand with captain AB de Villiers. It took an Sir Ravindra Jadeja fielding special to send back the left-hander just when he was looking ominous. If India play the Proteas again in this tournament, they should look to knock him over early and smash him for runs when he bowls. Scared the living daylights out of the Indian team!
What was initially thought of as a contest between South Africa pacers and Indian batsmen turned out to be a game of all-rounders with India’s Sir Ravindra Jadeja and SA’s Ryan McLaren doing the star turn for their sides. Both southpaws did extremely well with bat and ball, but it was SRJ’s effort in the field that allowed India to sneak past SA. It was heartening to see McLaren find some form after a rather disappointing time in the IPL – unfortunately for all his heroics, he could only reduce the margin of defeat for his side. Both these performances reinforced my belief in ODI cricket – I might just start following the tournament regularly now!
Game changer- The Peterson dismissal
At 155/2 midway through the SA innings, you would think that the batting side had the game well and truly in their pocket. After all, their skipper had just scored a half-century and their designated pinch-hitter was looking very comfortable in the middle. However, you would have probably reckoned without the presence of a certain ‘Sir’ Ravindra Jadeja on the field. A splendid dive, quick pick-up and perfect throw found Peterson well short of his crease as wicket-keeper Dhoni removed the bails in a flash. Gone was the 124-run partnership, and it effectively derailed the Proteas’ charge despite fighting cameos from Ryan McLaren and Francois du Plessis. Peterson’s dismissal told me one thing - You don’t mess with the ‘Sir’!
Toothless pace attack
I am most likely going to draw a lot of flak with this sub-title. Despite securing a win, the Indian pace attack looked ineffective to me, especially when Peterson and de Villiers were blazing away. Granted that the pitch was a good one for batting, but that gives our pacers no excuse for a rather profligate performance. If you are willing to bend your back, the wickets will come, even in good batting conditions. Having the opposition six down for 212, all that the pacers had to do was keep attacking. Yet there was no sting in their approach. It allowed both McLaren and du Plessis to come up with little cameos that pushed the South African total past 300. I’m not impressed with this attack – they have to hit their straps quickly or the remaining games could become very tough for them.
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