South Africa vs India 5th ODI: 5 Talking Points
What's the story
Virat Kohli and his men had a good day at the office on Tuesday as India defeated South Africa by 73 runs in the 5th ODI, to clinch their first series victory in the backyard of the Proteas. The victory also propelled India to the number one ODI ranking in the world. Here are the 5 talking points from Tuesday's high octane encounter.
Watchful
Virat needs to run more carefully between the wickets
There is no doubt that Virat Kohli is one of the fittest athletes in cricket and is very quick when it comes to running between the wickets. But the Indian skipper needs to tone down his calls for runs. He decided to steal a risky single, despite Rohit Sharma screaming out no. This decision cost him his wicket.
Roars back to form
Rohit shrugs off poor form with a ton
Indian opener, Rohit Sharma has faced a lot of criticism over the past few days after he mustered just 40 runs in the first four ODIs. However, at Port Elizabeth, Rohit was the best Indian batsman and his 115 propelled India to 274. This was his 17th ODI ton and his first on South African soil.
Spin wizards
Spin does the trick for India yet again
South Africa's weakness against spin was exposed yet again on Tuesday as Kuldeep Yadav ran riot. The Chinaman bowler was difficult to read and ended up with figures of 4/57. Kuldeep is now the most successful spin bowler in a bilateral series in South Africa with 16 wickets to his name. Chahal comes second with 14 to his name.
Pandya's woes
India's middle order needs to stand up
Apart from Dhawan, Kohli and now finally Rohit, the Indian batting line up has never really turned up in South Africa. Hardik Pandya is having a torrid time with the bat making Bhuvneshwar Kumar look more like an all-rounder compared to him. Shreyas Iyer too couldn't capitalise on his good start and even Rahane hasn't been too convincing in the series.
Running out of gas
MS Dhoni is still enduring a patchy form
During his prime, Mahi was one of the most feared finishers in world cricket. However, now that is not the case. Dhoni looks a little patchy with the bat as his big blows have now disappeared from his arsenal. Dhoni, however, hasn't taken long to shake off his poor patch in the past and we can only hope for the best.