When the home team tries to escape another humiliating series loss to South Africa in the crucial third and final ODI on Saturday in Visakhapatnam, the focus will, as usual, be on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, but there will also be pressure on India’s younger generation.
Following their 2-0 victory in Tests, South Africa will also win the ODI series if India makes a Raipur-like blunder. In the current situation, consecutive series losses are unimaginable for India, especially when the dressing room seems to be pushing in opposite directions.
A win in the ODI series can temporarily silence rumors about the team, but Kohli and Rohit will need to put in a lot of effort once more. Both have been the 50-over format’s uncontested masters and are accustomed to tight situations. Ultimately, their legacy is based on overcoming obstacles, which has been an exciting journey in and of itself over the past 15 years.
Kohli and Rohit will now want to add another magnificent chapter to the lengthy book of accomplishments as they stand at the door that leads only to the sunset. It’s also more than just ambition.
Rohit has a hundred and two fifties in his previous four innings and Kohli has two hundreds and a fifty in his last three. Even in their late 30s, such figures demonstrate their touch, class, and hunger, suggesting that they are still capable of saving the day for the team.
However, they wouldn’t be upset with some significant assistance from the younger batsmen, such as that provided in the most recent game by Ruturaj Gaikwad, who hit his first ODI century. However, Yashasvi Jaiswal is yet to find his range as an opener in this series. The talented young player will be eager to turn his starts into a higher score for the benefit of both the team and himself.
Jaiswal’s batting against left-arm quicks, such as the West Indies’ Jayden Seales or in this series against Marco Jansen and Nandre Burger, is clearly flawed. Throughout his career, he has been removed by left-armers 30 times (9 in Tests, 19 in T20Is, and 2 in ODIs), mostly while attempting a cut and its various variations, his go-to shot outside the off-stump.
Something that evident cannot go unnoticed by Jaiswal and the team management, and work may have already started to address it. However, the management may have to consider other possibilities if the trend persists, and they have a true opener in Gaikwad.
Despite losing their most recent match against Australia, India has a fantastic record in Visakhapatnam with seven victories in ten ODIs since 2005. The pitch at the ACA-VDCA stadium frequently favors the batters.
Aside from that, though, India will carefully consider whether to rest Washington Sundar and add Tilak Varma to strengthen the middle-order batting lineup, which failed to push the tempo in the final two games. Rishabh Pant may also be a contender, although Tilak is a valuable gun fielder and utility spinner.
Dew helped South Africa move close to the target in Ranchi and cross the finish line in Raipur, even though KL Rahul’s lightning-fast fifties propelled India to a par score.
However, despite a recent drop in temperature due to cyclonic weather, the humidity factor plays a role at night in the coastal town of Visakhapatnam.
India will be able to better grasp the conditions and choose the mix by participating in a training session under lights on Friday. In any case, India will be hoping that Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana, two of their young pacers, can clean up their act and firmly back the outstanding Arshdeep Singh.
However, South Africa will try to give India their second ODI series loss following Australia’s 2-1 series victory in 2022–2023. If that’s the case, the Proteas will win their first-ever ODI series on these shores. However, as both batsman Tony de Zorzi and bowler Burger had to limp off the field at Raipur, they will be keeping an eye on their fitness.
Teams (from):
India: KL Rahul (captain, w/k), Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rishabh Pant (w/k), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Dhruv Jurel
South Africa: Temba Bavuma (captain), Ottneil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Quinton de Kock (w/k), Tony de Zorzi, Rubin Hermann, Keshav Maharaj, Marco Jansen, Aiden Markram, Lungi Ngidi, Ryan Rickelton, Prenelan Subrayen
