Lions at Eden

Updated On: 05 November, 2023 10:54 PM IST | Kolkata | R Kaushik

Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Pune, Dharamsala, Lucknow, Mumbai and now Kolkata. India are proving unstoppable as South Africa are the latest to be overwhelmed by Rohit & Co, who rule the points table

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Ravindra Jadeja (left) and Virat Kohli celebrate the wicket of SA captain Temba Bavuma at Kolkata yesterday. Pic/AFP

With his ODI record-equalling 49th century on his 35th birthday, Virat Kohli was the obvious headline act, but Sunday was more than just about the former skipper. This was expected to be a blockbuster contest between the two form teams of the World Cup, but India reduced this to another one-sided contest with a 243-run annihilation of South Africa, thereby ensuring that they will finish on top of the league standings. Their eighth straight win of the competition was courtesy another command all-round display, Kohli’s hundred the perfect gift from him to more than 65,000 spectators who simply couldn’t have enough of him.

Solid start by skipper

It’s hard to tell if South Africa were overawed by the stage, but they were clearly overwhelmed by the ferocity of the Indian charge from the time Rohit Sharma chose to bat first. The skipper read the conditions beautifully and launched a sensational assault on Lungi Ngidi and Marco Jansen up front, ensuring that 61 were on the board without loss after the first five overs. Batting would get increasingly difficult on a slow track where there was grip, putting Rohit’s brilliance in perspective. Kohli produced a workmanlike knock, especially once he saw Keshav Maharaj procure appreciable turn to knock over Shubman Gill in his first over, allowing the others around him to bat with greater freedom.

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