Paarl, Jan 21: South Africa beat India by seven wickets in the second ODI to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
India made 287 for six after opting to bat. Rishabh Pant top scored for India with 85 off 71 balls while skipper K L Rahul made 55 off 79 balls.
Spinner TabraizShami was the pick of the South Africa bowlers taking two wickets for 57 runs in nine overs.
South Africa chased down the target in 48.1 overs. Janneman Malan was the home team’s top-scorer with 91 off 108 while his senior opening partner Quinton de Kock made 78 off 66 balls.
For the second game in a row, the Indian bowling lacked teeth to trouble the opposition batters. Rishabh Pant played the role of an enforcer to perfection with a career-best 85 off 71 balls as India managed to set up a competitive 288-run victory target against South Africa in the second ODI here on Friday.
Pant and skipper KL Rahul (55 off 79 balls) had added 115 runs in less than 19 overs, especially the former taking the South African slow medium pacers and spinners to cleaners.
But there dismissals in quick succession saw Proteas make a comeback on a Boland Park strip where stroke-making wasn’t an easy proposition for a new batter.
The two Iyers — Shreyas (11 off 14 balls) and Venkatesh (22 off 33 balls) found it a real struggle to get going with ball not coming onto the bat as the momentum completely shifted.
India ended up with a score that was at least 20 runs less than what it could have been had Pant gone on to make a deserving maiden ODI hundred.
Shardul Thakur (40 not out off 38 balls) once again used the long handle well in the company of RavichandranAshwin (25 not out off 24 balls) to prop up the score somewhat.
Skipper Rahul dropped anchor at one end but it was more like his own runs than ones that would have really helped the team’s cause as he stayed at the wicket for more than 30 overs opening the innings and barely managed a fifty plus score.
It didn’t hurt much during their stand as Pant with 10 fours and two sixes took charge to keep the run-rate at a healthy five plus per over.
Both slow left-arm orthodox KeshavMaharaj (9-0-52-1) and left-arm wrist spinner TabraizShamsi (9-0-57-2), who otherwise looked good, were made to look pedestrian by Pant.
He not only lofted them for a six each over long-on, he played the sweep shot — both slog sweep towards cow corner and the conventional ones square off the wicket to good effect. It was one such shot off Shamsi that brought about his downfall.
Before that, rookie pacer SisandaMagala (8-0-64-1), in his second spell varied the pace of his deliveries well to force Rahul commit into an uppish flick-shot that was taken at short mid-wicket by Rassie van der Dussen.