Raipur: The coin has once again turned its back on India. In the second ODI between India and South Africa at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, Raipur, skipper Temba Bavuma won the toss and opted to bowl first — marking India’s 20th consecutive toss defeat in ODI cricket.
This rare and almost unbelievable streak began in the 2023 ODI World Cup final in Ahmedabad on 19 November, and has continued uninterrupted ever since.
KL Rahul’s Reaction: Smile That Hid the Frustration
As soon as the match referee announced that South Africa had won the toss, KL Rahul looked visibly stunned. Though he smiled, the expression revealed more frustration than humour — almost as if he himself could not understand what else must be done to win a toss.
The cameras caught that moment clearly: Rahul laughing, yet unable to mask the helplessness behind the ongoing series of toss setbacks.
Speaking after the toss, Rahul said:
“We haven’t won a toss in a very long time. We did well in the last game. They pushed us hard, and we know what to expect. Before the series, we discussed the possibility of dew everywhere. We’ll try to put runs on the board and pick early wickets. The wicket looks good. We are unchanged.”
Bavuma Explains Decision to Bowl
South African captain Temba Bavuma said:
“We will bowl first. Dew may make batting easier later. It’s tough to predict how the pitch will behave. We take a lot of positives from the last match. We must start well. There are three changes — myself, Keshav Maharaj and Lungi Ngidi come in. This is a big game for us.”
Series Situation
India won the first ODI in Ranchi by 17 runs, taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. They will aim to seal the series in Raipur, while South Africa fight to stay alive.
Eyes will again be on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who smashed 135 and 57 respectively in the previous match.
Playing XIs
India
- Yashasvi Jaiswal
- Rohit Sharma
- Virat Kohli
- Ruturaj Gaikwad
- Washington Sundar
- KL Rahul (wk & captain)
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Harshit Rana
- Kuldeep Yadav
- Arshdeep Singh
- Prasidh Krishna
South Africa
- Quinton de Kock (wk)
- Aiden Markram
- Temba Bavuma (captain)
- Matthew Breetzke
- Tony de Zorzi
- Dewald Brevis
- Marco Jansen
- Corbin Bosch
- Keshav Maharaj
- Nandre Burger
- Lungi Ngidi
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