Tuesday’s last One-Day International between the Proteas and India ended with the visitors being bowled for only 99 in 27.1 overs, a humiliating collapse of their batting.
The Proteas struggled to adjust to the challenging conditions and strong bowling from India, tying the series at one game each. They will almost probably need to compete in the World Cup qualification in Zimbabwe to guarantee their place in the 2023 50-over World Cup.
It was South Africa’s second-lowest ODI total, after only the 83 scored against England in Nottingham in 2008.
It was yet another illustration of the Proteas’ worrying batting inconsistency, which has been brought to light by this series against India.
In the first game, it took David Miller and Heinrich Klaasen to save the team, but in the Proteas’ second encounter on Sunday, the loss of two fast wickets late in the innings prevented them from reaching a score that could be held.
Simply put, Tuesday was a horror show. The Indian capital had severe nighttime rainfall that persisted through the morning, making the toss crucial. Shikhar Dhawan won, so it seems sense that he choose to bowl.
The two balls were favorable for the bowlers since they seemed, bounced, swung, and spun. But the absence of applicability raised serious questions. In the third over, Washington Sundar sliced a short wide ball to Avesh Khan at backward point, fooling Quinton de Kock much too easily.
Janneman Malan, who was his opening partner, scored 15 and was caught at deep square leg, precisely one ball after a fielder had been placed there. While attempting to divert a bouncer from Mohammad Siraj to fine leg, Reeza Hendricks was out because the ball went straight to a fielder at short fine leg.
After 10 overs, the Proteas were 26/3 and their innings need urgent repair. That was avoided because India’s spinners immediately began to spin.
Shahbaz Ahmed received a thin outside edge from Aiden Markram, Miller, the team’s captain, saw a Sundar delivery spin back into him, dislodging the off bail through the space between bat and pad, and Andile Phehlukwayo, one of three changes from the squad that lost on Sunday, missed a cut and was bowled.
The only hitters who shown even a semblance of application were Heinrich Klaasen and Marco Jansen, who replaced Keshav Maharaj in the starting lineup on Tuesday morning because he wasn’t feeling well. In his 34-ball innings, Klaasen hit four boundaries. Jansen, playing in only his third ODI, scored 14 off of 19 balls, which was the third-highest score in the Proteas innings.
The Proteas squad’s participation in a World Cup qualifying event is somewhat humiliating, but given how the team has performed, nothing in that competition can be taken for granted.
The Proteas have a 9-9 win/loss record in 22 ODIs since the Pakistan series in South Africa last year, which has left them firmly on the outside looking in as far as automatic qualification is concerned.