India will face South Africa in the fifth ODI at Port Elizabeth tomorrow, as Kohli’s men will be looking to wrap up the series and not take it into the final game.
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After three comprehensive wins, India were beaten by the hosts in the 4th ODI, as South Africa rode on Klaasen’s brilliance to chase down the target and stay alive in the series.
India reached a competitive 289, riding on Shikhar Dhawan’s 13th ODI century. The opener scored a wonderful hundred, as Dhawan continued his good form in the ODI series.
In reply, South Africa were helped by the rain interruption, as the revised total was far more gettable on a pitch that was became better to bat on.
The rain made the ball slippery to hold on, and greased the outfield as the Indian spinners were suddenly ineffective under lights.
During the post-match press conference, Dhawan reflected on the match and felt that India lost the crucial moments in the match.
“The main reason was, of course, the dropped catch and then a wicket off no-ball. From there the momentum changed. Otherwise we were in very good position,” Dhawan said at the post match press conference late last night.
“Of course rain had an impact too. Our spinners couldn’t turn the ball or grip the ball the way they did in the last three matches. It makes a difference when the ball gets wet. That’s the reason,” added the left-hander.
“We took the decision to bat first because in the evening the ball moves here. There’s also the effect of the breeze and it can have an impact,” said Dhawan, who scored a century in his 100th ODI yesterday.
India will not be changing their line-up heading into next match, with the only question mark over Kedar Jadhav’s availability. The all-rounder injured himself in the third ODI, and is unlikely to feature in the rest of the ODI series.
But if he is fit, then Jadhav will walk into the team considering the poor performances from Pandya so far with the ball.
The team management will continue with Rohit Sharma at the top, as it is highly unlikely that India will drop their vice-captain.
Also, with slight forecasts for rain tomorrow, India will be better served if they have many options to avail in the match.
Predicted XI :
Rohit Sharma
Shikhar Dhawan
Virat Kohli (captain)
Ajinkya Rahane
Shreyas Iyer
MS Dhoni
Hardik Pandya
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Kuldeep Yadav
Yuzvendra Chahal
Jasprit Bumrah
