Ranchi, Nov 30 (IANS) India survived a scare and sailed past South Africa in a closely-fought encounter to grab a 17-run victory in the first ODI and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi. It was a tough battle between the batters of both sides, and a contest to take several lessons from.

India put up a commanding first innings total, driven by a superb century from Virat Kohli and vital fifties from Rohit Sharma and K.L. Rahul. After being asked to bat, India lost Yashasvi Jaiswal early to Nandre Burger, but Rohit and Kohli quickly seized control.

The experienced pair stitched together a fluent 136-run stand, taking the pressure off after the early setback. Rohit reached a brisk 57 off 51 balls and broke Shahid Afridi’s long-standing record for most ODI sixes before Marco Jansen trapped him lbw.

Ruturaj Gaikwad’s brief stay ended with a stunning catch from Dewald Brevis, and Washington Sundar added a steady 17 before falling to Ottneil Baartman. Kohli, meanwhile, continued unruffled, bringing up his 52nd ODI hundred and 83rd international ton. He accelerated sharply after reaching three figures, taking on Prenelan Subrayen with two fours and two sixes.

Rahul provided strong support with a well-paced 60, adding 76 crucial runs with Kohli. After Kohli’s dismissal for 135, Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja pushed India towards a big finish with a 65-run partnership. However, a late mini-collapse, including wickets from Jansen and Corbin Bosch, restricted India to 349/8, still a formidable target for the Proteas.

Chasing a daunting 350-run target, South Africa were rocked early as India’s bowling attack came out firing. Harshit Rana, entrusted with the second over, made an immediate impact on his very first legal delivery. After starting with a wide, the pacer found his rhythm immediately, producing a sharp, good-length ball that jagged back into Ryan Rickelton. The South African opener offered a lazy defensive push and paid the price; his stumps were shattered, giving India the breakthrough they wanted.

Rana wasn’t done. Just a ball later, he struck again to leave the visitors stunned. Quinton de Kock, newly arrived at the crease, chased a full delivery well outside off. The ball moved away enough to catch the outside edge, and KL Rahul made no mistake behind the stumps. De Kock departed for a duck, and South Africa were reduced to early rubble.

The pressure only mounted. In the fifth over, Arshdeep Singh extended India’s dominance with a beautifully angled delivery to skipper Aiden Markram. Fishing at a ball moving away from him, Markram managed only a thick edge, and Rahul collected another clean catch. The captain fell for seven off 15, leaving South Africa three down and in deep trouble within the first few overs.

With the top-order dismantled and the required run rate towering, South Africa’s chase has wobbled heavily as India’s bowlers remained firmly in command of the contest in the first Power-play. Good strategic bowling from Prasidh Krishna to round off the 10th over handed the hosts an upper hand early in the game.

Matthew Breetzke and Tony de Zorzi anchored the innings well after the Indian bowlers dismantled the Protea top-order and went on to share a 66-run stand for the fourth wicket, but the latter’s stay ended when Kuldeep Yadav trapped him lbw.

Dewald Brevis then showed composure and took on the bowlers well as he joined hands with Breetzke to pile on runs. The Indian bowlers kept receiving threats from South Africa’s middle-order batters, but they struck timely and managed to break partnerships as Brivis and Breetzke’s stand lasted 53 runs.

Jansen’s knock, however, surprised and shook the Men in Blue as the tall all-rounder played a whirlwind knock to take his team closer to a win. Breetzke played second fiddle as Jansen confidently took on the opposition bowlers to reduce the target.

Just then, in the 34th over, a change in bowling and the move to bring Kuldeep Yadav back into the attack worked wonders for India as the spinner dismissed the in-form Jansen and Breetzke inside three deliveries, and the Men in Blue took a sigh of relief.

Prenelan Subrayen and Bosch provided some respite to their teammates in the dugout, but Kuldeep picked up his fourth wicket of the day by sending the former packing in his spell’s final over. Bosch and Burger stretched the game to their best capacity, but Arshdeep’s strike late in the 46th over to dismiss the latter kept the game evenly poised.

With India needing just one wicket to win, Bosch kept everyone on the edge of their seats and gradually got to his half-century as the visitors hoped to finish off the chase. It all went down to the last over, with the Proteas needing 19 off the final six. But the visitors’ fight finally came to an end when a mis-hit from Bosch led to Rohit completing a fine catch to hand India a victory.

With Prasidh Krishna hitting the final nail in the coffin, India clinched a close 17-run win, eventually taking a 1-0 lead in the series.

Brief scores:

India 349/8 in 50 overs (Virat Kohli 135, K.L. Rahul 60; Ottneil Baartman 2-60, Nandre Burger 2-65) beat South Africa 332 all out in 49.2 overs (Matthew Breetzke 72, Marco Jansen 70, Corbin Bosch 67, Tony de Zorzi 39. Dewald Brevis 37; Kuldeep Yadav 4-68, Harshit Rana 3-65, Arshdeep Singh 2-64) by 15 runs

–IANS

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