Talking points: India vs South Africa 4th ODI

Team India made a strong yet slightly unconvincing recovery in the 4th ODI after snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in the 3rd. Kohli,Rahane and Raina got runs, Bhuvaneshwar got wickets and the spinners again came to the party. In fact more these were not scratchy runs, Kohli and Raina actually found fluency. So to speak it was a good match for the men in blue statistically, but there is more than meets the eye. So here are the talking points from the 4th ODI between India and South Africa.

 Kohli finding his touch 

After an uncharacteristically tame innings in Rajkot, Virat Kohli finally found fluency and struck a solid hundred which was however marred by cramps towards the end. He was a part of two century partnerships, one with the new Mr. Consistent Ajinkya Rahane and the other with the also-back-in-from Suresh Raina. But for his muscle cramps, India would’ve  scored a lot more. But eventually 300 proved too much of a target to be overhaued by the visitors. In the process, Kohli moved to 5th on the list of batsmen with the most centuries in ODIs.

Dhawan failing yet again

The think tank will have to ponder hard over the Shikar Dhawan corundrum as the dashing opener fell meakly yet again and in similar fashion. The short ball has been his undoing on most occasions in this series. This time too he gave his wicket away consumed by the frustration of not being able to pull decisively. MS Dhoni likes to give a long rope to his players and in all fairness Dhawan is just coming back from an injury layoff but another failure and his place in the team might come under severe questions.

Raina getting some runs under his belt

It was important for Suresh Raina to get some runs today after getting two ducks in the previous matches. We all know he is a quality player but too often he puts himself in a position where he has to prove himself all over again. Raina was promoted ahead of Dhoni and he made full use of the opotunity. The quickfire half century will return to him some of his lost confidence which is crucial to India’s chances because when he struggles, the entire middle order struggles.

AB’s century

Being the player that he is AB didn’t give up till the time he was on the crease. And there is no doubt in my mind that had he stayed till the 50th over the result could have been very different. AB batted with the tail and took his team as close as he could with a valiant century but alas it was not enough. What he and South Africa shoud consider seriously is his inability to finsh the match even when set properly on the crease. This is the second instance this year when AB has fell in this manner, unable to complete a chase well within his powers.

Lack of support from the SA middle order

Apart from AB, no other Proteas batsman could reach even 50, forget about making a sizeable contribution. The second highest score was Quinton de Cock’s 43. If South Africa have to win the next game their middle order will have to show much more spine. Games are won by team effort not by individual brilliance.