"Kicking myself for losing toss": Indian skipper KL after SA chases down 359 at Raipur

Raipur (Chhattisgarh) [India], December 3 (ANI): Following his side's loss to South Africa in the second ODI, Indian skipper KL Rahul said that the dew and consequent difficulty while bowling in the second innings and losing the toss contributed to the loss.

He also pointed out that the team were not up upto the mark with their fielding and gave away a "few soft runs".

Aiden Markram's explosive ton and well-calculated fifties from Dewald Brevis and Matthew Breetzke outshone the centuries from Ruturaj Gaikwad and Virat Kohli as the Proteas chased down 359 runs at Raipur to set up an exciting series decider at Visakhapatnam on Saturday. India's sloppiness on the field, particularly Markram being dropped by Yashasvi Jaiswal and extra runs given by Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna in their spells, cost India what could have been an unassailable series lead.

Speaking after the match, Indian skipper KL said during the post-match presentation, "Not really (if he is upset with the loss). Considering how much dew there is and how difficult it is to bowl in the second innings, the umpires have been nice enough to change the ball. Toss plays a huge role, and I am kicking myself for losing the toss. There are things we could have done better. 350 looks good, but the chat in the dressing room was how can we get that extra 20-25 runs for the bowlers, we also gave away a few soft runs in the field."

He hailed the centuries from Ruturaj and Virat, calling them "beautiful to watch".

"He goes on about doing his job, just to see the way Rutu take on the spinners, the tempo that he batted is what gave us that extra 20 runs, the lower order could have contributed more," he added.

Rahul also revealed that he was slotted at number six in the batting order, but after a nice platform was laid down by Virat and Ruturaj, he decided to walk to bat at number five, a position where he has batted for most of his career and dominated statistically with an average of over 59 and a strike rate of above 98.

"Today is the first time that I have been slotted at six and walked in at five. Virat and Rutu had set the tempo, so I walked in. I had got a fifty in the last game, was feeling confident, so it was better to walk in at number five," he concluded.

Coming to the Raipur ODI, India was put to bat first by the Proteas, who had the hosts down at 62/2 after dismissals of Rohit Sharma (14) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (22). Virat (102 in 93 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) and Ruturaj (105 in 83 balls, with 12 fours and two sixes) put on a 195-run stand for the third wicket, putting India in command. Later, KL Rahul (66* in 43 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) and Ravindra Jadeja (24* in 27 balls, with two fours) finished off in style with a quickfire 69-run stand for the sixth wicket.

Marco Jansen (2/63) was the top bowler for the Proteas.

The Proteas started off the chase with a flurry of boundaries, but they lost Quinton de Kock early. After that, skipper Temba Bavuma (46 in 48 balls, with three fours and a six) and Markram had a 101-run stand. Markram struck his fourth ODI ton and first as an opener, scoring 110 in 98 balls, with 10 fours and four sixes.

Another partnership of 92 runs between Matthew Breetzke (68 in 64 balls, with five fours) and Dewald Brevis (54 in 34 balls, with a four and five sixes) changed the game in favour of the Proteas. In the end, despite Nandre Burger and Tony de Zorzi's injuries making things easier for India, Keshav Maharaj (10*) and Corbin Bosch (25*) took SA to a memorable win with four wickets and four balls in hand.

Arshdeep Singh (2/54) was the top bowler for India, while Harshit Rana's (1/70) figures changed for the worse after one poor over. Prasidh Krishna's poor show, conceding 82 in 8.2 overs, was a massive point of difference in SA's win.

An exciting decider awaits on Saturday. (ANI)

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