India vs South Africa: Arshdeep, Avesh destroy Proteas as Men in Blue go 1-0 up with clinical 8-wicket victory

Sai Sudharsan struck a half-century on international debut after Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan blew the opposition batting lineup away as India thrashed South Africa by eight wickets in Johannesburg on Sunday. Left-arm pacer Arshdeep led the way with 5/37 and was ably supported by right-arm quick Avesh (4/27) as India bowled South Africa out for a lowly 116 after the latter opted to bat in the ‘Pink ODI’ — a special occasion in the South African cricketing calendar in which the Proteas don pink kits to raise awareness on breast cancer.

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He strikes back to back & #SouthAfrica is on the backfoot!

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The target hardly proved a challenge for the Men in Blue despite losing the wicket of opener Ruturaj Gaikwad (5) early. Sai Sudharsan (50 not out) and senior batter Shreyas Iyer (52) brought up their respective half-centuries and stitched an 86-run partnership for the second wicket that ended whatever little hopes the South Africans had after the early wicket. Playing their first 50-over game since the World Cup final, it seemed that Arshdeep (5/37 in 10 overs) and Avesh (4/27 in 8 overs) had picked up a cue from their seniors Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah as a quality Proteas batting line-up was made to look like novices on a track that offered a lot of help due to underlying moisture. In reply, Sai Sudharshan (55 not out off 43 balls) showed during his stay at the wicket why he is rated so highly by making the chase appear a cakewalk. The sinewy southpaw looked elegant and upright while driving on the up and looked strong off the back-foot, while pulling the short ball. Against spinners, he put a big stride forward, which is hallmark of a good player. The on-drive off Tabraiz Shamsi was a treat for the eyes. Read | Netizens hail Sai Sudharsan, ‘AA Pace Batteries’ after India’s dominant win Sai had seasoned Shreyas Iyer (52 off 45 balls) for company, who looked in fine touch, something that augurs well for India, ahead of the upcoming Test series. However, the story of the day was how Indian pacers rattled South Africa with the ball jagging around for the first hour and a half which spelt doom for the home side. Arshdeep would certainly feel good having drawn a lot of flak for his inconsistency in the shortest format. In their last encounter at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens, South Africa were bowled out for 83 under lights on a slow deck but never would have Aiden Markram thought that he and his men would be bullied at the ‘Bull Ring’ which has been a safe haven for them in white-ball cricket. Only three players who played the World Cup final — skipper KL Rahul, wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav and middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer — are a part of this current playing eleven, and India’s back-up pacers gave a good account of themselves. The two Indian pacers pitched it up and ensured that most of the South African batters stayed rooted to the crease. In fact, both were on hat-tricks with dismissals off successive deliveries. Arshdeep would get more credit as he blew away the top-order within the first Powerplay with four wickets and then left it to Avesh, who bowled fast and full, hurrying the batters for pace. In between, Avesh would slip in the occasional short ball for the tailenders, who were in two minds whether to go on the front-foot or back-foot. It started with Reeza Hendricks (0), who dragged a delivery that was angled across the right-hander back onto the stumps and the dangerous Rassie van de Dussen (0) must have expected an away-going one but got one that darted back from middle-stump. De Zorzi (28 off 22 balls) chanced his arms and Mukesh Kumar (0/46 in 7 overs), who had an off-day, went for a few before Arshdeep showed his variation by digging one short and the ball ballooned for skipper Rahul to complete an easy catch. However, the wicket that completely broke the home team’s back was Heinrich Klaasen’s (6) dismissal, which would have even made the great Wasim Akram proud. Arshdeep bowled one slightly back of length but flicked his wrists in a manner that it turned into a vicious in-dipper which clipped the leg stump bail, leaving the right-hander in complete daze. The end of Powerplay didn’t end Proteas’ woes as skipper Markram played on, completely beaten for pace. David Miller (2) also fell prey to relentless pressure to a delivery pitched on drivable length while Wiaan Mulder and Keshav Maharaj found the speed of deliveries too hot to handle. It was Andile Phehlukwayo, whose 33 coming in at No 8, took the home team past the 100-run mark before Arshdeep, in his second spell, completed his coveted five-for. India had earlier registered a dominant series-leveling victory in the third and final T20I against the Proteas at the same venue on Thursday. Suryakumar Yadav, leading the Men in Blue in the T20I leg of the tour before handing the reins to Rahul for the ODIs, smashed a 56-ball ton as India posted 201/7 on the board. Left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav then led the way with 5/17 as the hosts were shot out for a paltry 95, crashing to a 106-run defeat in the process. Brief scores: South Africa 116 in 27.3 overs (Andile Phehlukwayo 33; Arshdeep Singh 5/37, Avesh Khan 4/27) lost to India 117/2 in 16.4 overs (Sai Sudharsan 55*, Shreyas Iyer 52; Wiaan Mulder 1/26) by eight wickets. With PTI inputs