IND vs SA 2022: 3 areas of improvement for Team India heading into the 2nd ODI

Team India went down to South Africa by nine runs in the rain-affected first ODI in Lucknow on Thursday, October 6. Bowling first after losing the toss, the Indian bowlers did a good job of restricting the Proteas to 110 for four in the 23rd over. However, Heinrich Klaasen (74* off 65) and David Miller (75* off 63) played fantastic knocks to lift South Africa. The duo added an unbroken 139 for the fifth-wicket stand as the visitors recovered to post an impressive 249 for four in 40 overs.

The Men in Blue got off to a disastrous start in response, losing Shubman Gill and skipper Shikhar Dhawan for single-figure scores. Ruturaj Gaikwad (19 off 42) and Ishan Kishan (20 off 37) hung around for a few overs but never looked in any sort of control. Following their dismissals, Sanju Samson (86* off 63) and Shreyas Iyer (50 off 37) played valiant knocks to reduce the margin of defeat.

Down 1-0 in the three-match series, Team India face a must-win situation in the second ODI, which will be played in Ranchi on Sunday, October 9.

We analyze three key areas of improvement for the Men in Blue ahead of the game.

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#1 The sixth bowling option

Ravi Bishnoi went for 69 in his eight overs in Lucknow. Pic: Getty Images

It was rather bizarre that despite having the likes of Shahbaz Ahmed and Deepak Chahar in their squad, Team India went into the opening ODI with only five bowling options, with one of them being all-rounder Shardul Thakur. He was, in fact, the team’s best bowler with figures of 2/35 from his eight overs.

Left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav (1/39) was also economical. However, the other three bowlers - Mohammed Siraj (0/49), Avesh Khan (0/51) and Ravi Bishnoi (1/69) - went for plenty. But since Team India did not have any other bowling options, they were forced to complete the full quota of all three expensive bowlers.

South Africa took full advantage of the situation as they recovered from a somewhat precarious situation to post a highly competitive total. The Indian think tank will have to rethink their strategy of going in with only five bowlers.

As former India opener Wasim Jaffer pointed out, while speaking to ESPNcricinfo:

“That (going with only five bowlers) is something that you don’t do in this day and age. You’ve got to have 6-7 bowling options.”

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#2 A long tail

Shardul Thakur (left) and Sanju Samson. Pic: Getty Images

This is another aspect of their playing combination that hurt Team India in a big way in the first ODI against South Africa in Lucknow. While Samson played a terrific knock to take the hosts close to the target, he had no support in the end after Thakur was dismissed.

After being reduced to 118 for five, a 93-run sixth-wicket alliance between Samson and Thakur gave Team India hope, albeit a very faint one. But the latter had to bat very cautiously, knowing that India did not have anyone after him in the line-up who could chip in with the willow.

As long as Thakur was out there with Samson, the Men in Blue managed to put some pressure on the South African bowlers and fielders. However, as soon as he was dismissed, the Proteas knew the game was back in their command. Kuldeep and Avesh perished in quick succession and although Samson went after Tabraiz Shamsi in the last over, the game had already been decided.

Team India will need to consider bringing in either Chahar, Shahbaz, or both. Their presence will not only give the hosts additional bowling options, but will also shorten the tail, which began at No. 8 in the first match. Chahar is also one of the T20 World Cup standbys, so he ought to be getting some game time.

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#3 Shoddy fielding

India’s fielding has not been up to the mark in recent matches. Pic: Getty Images

Fielding is one area where Team India have been struggling for a while now. They are clearly missing the presence of Ravindra Jadeja, arguably the finest fielder of the current generation. Arshdeep Singh ropping a sitter offered by Asif Ali had a major impact in India’s Super 4 clash against Pakistan in the Asia Cup.

Although India won the T20I series against Australia and South Africa recently, their fielding efforts left a lot to be desired. In almost every game, they were guilty of poor fielding efforts. A change in format did not lead to any improvement in their fielding in Lucknow. There were as many as three dropped catches in 40 overs.

Gill put down Janneman Malan at slip in the ninth over, while Gaikwad put down a tough chance of Miller in the 37th over. At the start of the next over, Siraj failed to judge a skier from Klaasen.

The duo went on to strike crucial boundaries in the last two overs. Considering that Team India fell short of South Africa’s total by just nine runs, it can be stated that the let-offs had a massive impact on the result in the end.

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