Kohli trumps Du Plessis
Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane shared a 189-run third wicket partnership and took India to a comfortable six-wicket win in the first one-day international against South Africa at Kingsmead yesterday.
Kohli made 112 -- extending his record of centuries in one-day run chases to 20 -- and Rahane scored 79 as India reached the winning target of 270 with 27 balls to spare.
India ended a sequence of 17 successive home wins by South Africa and comprehensively outplayed the team that went into the match as the top-ranked one-day international team.
Second-ranked India controlled most of the match despite a century by South Africa captain Faf du Plessis.
India's decision to pick two wrist spinners paid off as Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav shared five wickets and were mainly responsible for restricting South Africa to 269 for eight. Kohli made his runs off 119 balls with ten fours, while Rahane struck five fours and two sixes in an 86-ball innings.
Du Plessis made 120 off 112 balls but it was only late in the innings that South Africa were able to lift their scoring rate on a slow pitch after slumping to 134 for five in 27.5 overs.
Du Plessis reached his ninth one-day international century off 101 balls with 11 fours and added two sixes before being caught at long-off in the last over after a 112-ball innings.
SCORES IN BRIEF
SOUTH AFRICA: 269 for 8 in 50 overs (De Kock 34, Du Plessis 120, Morris 37, Phehlukwayo 27 not out; Chahal 2-45, Yadav 3-34)
INDIA: 270 for 4 in 45.3 overs (Kohli 112, Rahane 79, Dhawan 35; Phehlukwayo
2-42)
Result: India won by 6 wickets.
Player-of-the-match: Virat Kohli
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