IND vs SA 1st ODI: KL Rahul blamed for lack of wicket in midfield, midfield loss

India captain KL Rahul blamed a lack of wickets and a sub-par performance by the middle batsmen for his team’s 31-round loss to South Africa in the ODI series opener on Wednesday.

Resolute bats from home captains Temba Bavuma (110) and Rassie van der Dussen (129 not out) brought South Africa to a four-man 296 as Indian bowlers struggled to secure wickets.

Report: IND vs SA 1st ODI: South Africa beats India by 31 at Paarl

“It was a great game. So much to learn. We started very well, we couldn’t get a wicket in the middle. We’ll see how we can get a wicket in the middle and stop the opponent,” Rahu said. Er said at the award ceremony after the game.

Rahul, Rishabh Pant (16), Shreyas Iyer (17) and Venkatesh Iyer (2) contributed little as India caught up.

“The middle order cannot continue. We were at par for the first 20-25 rounds of the game. I thought we would chase it easily, but SA bowled very well and got the crucial wicket,” Rahul said.

Asked for his comments on the wicket, the India captain said: “I didn’t bat after the 20th, I don’t know if it has changed drastically. Virat and Shihar said it was a good wicket , you’ve just spent some time in the middle and unfortunately we can’t get the partnership going.”

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They (South Africa) did a really good job, they put pressure on the bowlers and we couldn’t put those wickets in the middle. 290+ is an extra 20 runs, but we just need more partnerships in the middle. ”

Rahul also said they had not played single-day cricket for a while, but they had the 2023 World Cup in mind.

“We want the best XI in the park. We will make mistakes but we will learn from them,” he said of the World Cup.

Meanwhile, home captain Bavuma said they played “close to perfect”. “It’s very difficult in Over-50 cricket. We can have a lot of confidence. I struggled the whole game and Lacy seemed to be hitting another wicket. This partnership was decisive. ,”He said.

Speaking of his work with Van der Dusen, he said: “I work with him as much as possible.”

He also had plenty of praise for pacemaker Marco Jansen, who didn’t come in but made an impression.

“Another great debut for him (Jensen) and we feel he can hit the wickets with new balls. He’s getting stronger and stronger, it’s great to see. Eden (Mark Ram) always has the ball. selection, especially with the new ball. He has done a fantastic job.”