The Indian and South African cricket teams arrived in Raipur on Sunday for the second ODI of the three-match series, scheduled to be played on Wednesday at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium.
India heads into the second match on the back of a thrilling 17-run victory in the series opener in Ranchi, where veteran batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli produced a sparkling batting display. The ‘Ro-Ko’ show continued from where it left off in Sydney, delighting the Ranchi crowd as Kohli struck his 52nd ODI century and Rohit reclaimed the record for most sixes in ODI cricket.
The duo added 136 runs for the second wicket. Rohit scored a fluent 57 off 51 balls, including five fours and three sixes. His three sixes in the first ODI took him past Shahid Afridi’s long-standing record of 351 ODI sixes. Kohli anchored the innings with a masterful 135 off 120 balls, laced with 11 fours and seven sixes, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar’s record for most centuries in a single international format.
India lost momentum briefly after the dismissals of Rohit, Ruturaj Gaikwad (8), and Washington Sundar (13), slipping to 200/4. However, a 76-run stand between KL Rahul (60 off 56) and Kohli, followed by a brisk 65-run partnership between Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja (32 off 20), lifted India to a formidable 349/8.
In reply, South Africa were rocked early, losing three wickets for just 11 runs. A 66-run partnership between Tony de Zorzi (39) and Matthew Breetzke steadied the innings, followed by a quick-fire 37 from Dewald Brevis. At 130/5, the Proteas remained under pressure, but a 97-run stand between Breetzke (72 off 80) and Marco Jansen (80 off 39) revived their hopes. Kuldeep Yadav’s timely strikes removed both set batters, pushing South Africa to 227/8.
Corbin Bosch (67 off 51) kept the chase alive with an energetic knock, but India held their nerve to secure a 17-run win. Harshit Rana impressed with the ball, finishing with 3/65.
With the victory, India took a 1-0 lead in the series.
