India dominated and won the first ODI against South Africa. Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan played important roles in the victory.
After the three-match T20 series, the first ODI match was played between India and South Africa in Johannesburg. As expected, India started the series with their backup players, who completely dominated the hosts in the opening ODI.
Arshdeep, who had faced criticism in recent months, made a brilliant comeback and led the team to important successes. Avesh Khan complemented his performance by maintaining control and taking four important wickets. Phehlukwayo’s courageous innings of 33 played a vital role as South Africa managed to achieve a modest total of 116 runs. India successfully chased this score in less than 20 overs and won the match.
First ODI: Full Match Highlights
In the first ODI, luck favored the hosts, and Aiden Markram once again won the toss. However, the toss was the only thing that went in favor of the South Africans. After winning the toss, Markram decided to bat first, but this decision backfired when Arshdeep started bowling.
Arshdeep inflicted early damage on the South African team by dismissing Reeza Hendricks and Van der Dussen. Hendricks lost his wicket without scoring after facing eight balls, while Van der Dussen did the same with just one ball. Youngster Tony de Zorzi showed some character on the ground and scored 28 crucial runs for his team. In his short but impressive innings, Zorzi hit two fours and two long sixes. However, he, too, could not last long against Arshdeep and returned to the pavilion in the form of LBW.
Klassen was the only hope now for South Africa, but Arshdeep destroyed even that small ray of hope. He took the wicket of Klassen when South Africa was on a total score of 52.
Now, it was the time for Avesh Khan to come and enjoy the fall of continuous wickets. Avesh also took a dip in the flowing river and took four important wickets. He took important wickets of captain Markram, dangerous Miller, Wiaan Mulder, and Maharaj.
Five Wickets for Arshdeep Singh
After facing significant criticism in earlier matches, Singh made a remarkable comeback, securing five wickets. With South Africa struggling at 73 for 8, both Arshdeep and Avesh aimed for five-wicket hauls, having claimed four wickets each. Captain KL Rahul provided equal opportunities to both bowlers to achieve this milestone.
While Arshdeep succeeded in reaching five wickets, Avesh fell short. Kuldeep Yadav unintentionally took the final wicket and ended the South African innings with a total of 116 runs.
The fifties for Sudharshan and Iyer
Despite the not-so-big target, India had a steady start. South Africa found a ray of hope with the early wicket of Ruturaj Gaikwad, but it was short-lived. After Gaikwad’s dismissal at 23 runs, Sai Sudharshan and Shreyas Iyer took charge of the innings. Both batsmen went on to complete their half-centuries, leaving no room for South Africa to make a comeback.
Although South Africa managed to take the second wicket in the form of Iyer, it was already too late. By then, India had scored 111 runs, and they quickly reached the target after Tilak Varma joined the game.
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