South Africa beat a flat Indian side by seven wickets in the second ODI, clinching the series 2-0 with one match remaining. Janneman Malan and Quinton de Kock set the stage for a fairly easy win for South Africa.
Chasing 288 was never as difficult as it appeared in the middle of the innings. De Kock and Malan put on a fantastic opening partnership to help India lose the game. The pair put on 132 runs in as many balls for the first wicket, beating an Indian bowling attack that appeared lifeless.
De Kock was the more aggressive of the two, scoring 78 off 66 balls, including seven fours and three sixes. During his turn at the crease, he faced no problems. After missing a full toss in front of the stumps from Shardul Thakur, he was out.
In the next 76 balls, Malan and Temba Bavuma added another 80 runs to put India out of the game. As India failed to establish pressure in the middle overs, none of the bowlers looked dangerous.
When Malan swiped on his stumps against Jasprit Bumrah at 91, he missed out on a well-deserved century. With South Africa still needing 74 runs, India sensed a comeback when they also got Bavuma in the next over.
Aiden Markram and Rassie Van der Dussen, on the other hand, made sure there were no delays by scoring the remaining runs with two overs to spare, ensuring their series win in only the second game.
After winning the toss, Indian captain KL Rahul chose to bat first with an unchanged XI. India got off to a good start to openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rahul. In the 60-run opening stand, Dhawan was the aggressor, scoring 29 off 38 balls with five fours.
Rahul went into his clam to stop the wickets from one end as Rishabh Pant entered at the crease with two wickets lost in rapid succession. Pant responded with a counter-attack. Pant and KL are a couple. For the fifth wicket, Rahul added 115 runs in 111 balls, with Pant scoring 83 runs.
Rahul scored 55 runs off 79 balls, including four boundaries, before being removed in the 32nd over of the innings. Pant attempted to maintain his momentum, but he was unable to reach the fence and was bowled for 85 from 71 balls, hitting 10 fours and two sixes.
Shreyas Iyer couldn't put up much of a fight and was dismissed at the eleventh hour. With Shreyas and Shardul Thakur, Venkatesh Iyer added 24 and 32 respectively but was stumped as India finally looked to shift gears.
Shardul, playing at number seven, struck again, this time for 40 runs off 38 balls, including three fours and a six. R Ashwin, who added 25 from 24 balls, was his teammate. India passed 280 runs with a 39-run partnership for the seventh wicket.