Twitter Reactions: India clinch maiden series win in South Africa

India have achieved something very special in the Rainbow Nation as Virat Kohli and his men become the first Indian team to win a bilateral ODI series in South Africa. It all started with the victory in the third and final Test in Johannesburg and the momentum carried on to the ODI leg as well.

India won the first 3 ODIs quite comprehensively and narrowly lost the 4th one. They came back strong and got back to winning ways in the 5th ODI in Port Elizabeth and clinched the 6-match series by a margin of 4-1 with a game still to be played.

At the St George’s Park, the South African captain Aiden Markram won the toss and elected to field. The pitch offered assistance to the seamers with the new ball and the run-making was difficult in the initial overs. But Shikhar Dhawan went on the offensive that eased the pressure on India as well as his partner Rohit Sharma who had struggled in the series thus far.

When Dhawan departed for 34 in the 8th over, the score was already 48. Then, Rohit and Virat Kohli had a wonderful partnership of 105 runs as the duo carried the momentum forward and once again, a solid platform was built. But when Kohli looked like shaping up for another century, a confusion in the running led to his downfall. Ajinkya Rahane too fell prey to the same mode of dismissal soon.

Rohit, who was involved in 2 run-outs had to the take the innings forward and he did that in style by notching up his 17th ODI hundred and his first on the tour. But when he got out for 115 in the 43rd over, the same old story of Indian middle-order repeated itself as none of the batsmen could hold the fort for long and failed to accelerate and the innings which could have ended well past 300, was limited to 274/7 courtesy some tight bowling led by Lungi Ngidi.

South Africa had a decent start to the chase as Hashim Amla and Markram added 52 runs for the first wicket. But Jasprit Bumrah came to India’s rescue and sent back the opposition skipper for 32. Hardik Pandya then struck gold by dismissing JP Duminy and AB de Villiers in successive overs to leave the opposition reeling.

Amla, who had settled in the middle, was striking the ball far easier than the new guys joining him. The pitch was getting sluggish with each passing over and runs were hard to come by. The opener was involved in 2 decent partnerships, first with David Miller and then with Heinrich Klassen.

All the hopes for the Proteas rested on his shoulders but it was difficult to keep Pandya out of the game as he ran Amla out for 71 courtesy an accurate direct hit from mid-off. The score read 166/5 in the 35th over when the right-hander departed. It was time for the wrist spinners to enjoy from then on as Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav ran through the tail. While Klassen struck a couple of boundaries but that didn’t prove to be enough.

Ultimately, the hosts were bowled out for 201 in the 43rd over and Kuldeep ended with 4 wickets while Chahal bagged 2. It was another commanding performance from India as the Men in Blue were ecstatic with their maiden series win in the country.

Here’s how Twitter reacted to the historic Indian victory

 

Stay updated with all the cricketing action, follow Cricadium on FacebookTwitter and Instagram

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

You might also likeRELATED
Recommended to you

India have achieved something very special in the Rainbow Nation as Virat Kohli and his men become the first Indian team to win a bilateral ODI series in South Africa. It all started with the victory in the third and final Test in Johannesburg and the momentum carried on to the ODI leg as well. India won the first 3 ODIs quite comprehensively and narrowly lost the 4th one. They came back strong and got back to winning ways in the 5th ODI in Port Elizabeth and clinched the 6-match series by a margin of 4-1 with a game still to be played. At the St George's Park, the South African captain Aiden Markram won the toss and elected to field. The pitch offered assistance to the seamers with the new ball and the run-making was difficult in the initial overs. But Shikhar Dhawan went on the offensive that eased the pressure on India as well as his partner Rohit Sharma who had struggled in the series thus far. When Dhawan departed for 34 in the 8th over, the score was already 48. Then, Rohit and Virat Kohli had a wonderful partnership of 105 runs as the duo carried the momentum forward and once again, a solid platform was built. But when Kohli looked like shaping up for another century, a confusion in the running led to his downfall. Ajinkya Rahane too fell prey to the same mode of dismissal soon. Rohit, who was involved in 2 run-outs had to the take the innings forward and he did that in style by notching up his 17th ODI hundred and his first on the tour. But when he got out for 115 in the 43rd over, the same old story of Indian middle-order repeated itself as none of the batsmen could hold the fort for long and failed to accelerate and the innings which could have ended well past 300, was limited to 274/7 courtesy some tight bowling led by Lungi Ngidi. South Africa had a decent start to the chase as Hashim Amla and Markram added 52 runs for the first wicket. But Jasprit Bumrah came to India's rescue and sent back the opposition skipper for 32. Hardik Pandya then struck gold by dismissing JP Duminy and AB de Villiers in successive overs to leave the opposition reeling. Amla, who had settled in the middle, was striking the ball far easier than the new guys joining him. The pitch was getting sluggish with each passing over and runs were hard to come by. The opener was involved in 2 decent partnerships, first with David Miller and then with Heinrich Klassen. All the hopes for the Proteas rested on his shoulders but it was difficult to keep Pandya out of the game as he ran Amla out for 71 courtesy an accurate direct hit from mid-off. The score read 166/5 in the 35th over when the right-hander departed. It was time for the wrist spinners to enjoy from then on as Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav ran through the tail. While Klassen struck a couple of boundaries but that didn't prove to be enough. Ultimately, the hosts were bowled out for 201 in the 43rd over and Kuldeep ended with 4 wickets while Chahal bagged 2. It was another commanding performance from India as the Men in Blue were ecstatic with their maiden series win in the country.

Here's how Twitter reacted to the historic Indian victory

https://twitter.com/bhogleharsha/status/963480440161136640 https://twitter.com/virendersehwag/status/963487790670499840 https://twitter.com/VVSLaxman281/status/963481352921329670 https://twitter.com/robbie13flair/status/963480752284368896 https://twitter.com/tiwarymanoj/status/963485391939604482 https://twitter.com/ImRaina/status/963407909005811713 https://twitter.com/sanjaymanjrekar/status/963411791807221762 https://twitter.com/MohammadKaif/status/963481836423995394 https://twitter.com/cricketwallah/status/963480894219702272 https://twitter.com/gauravkalra75/status/963481480897888256 https://twitter.com/sudeep_tyagi/status/963483412169289728   Stay updated with all the cricketing action, follow Cricadium on FacebookTwitter and Instagram