South Africa vs India 2018: 5 SA players to watch out for in the ODI series
A gruelling Test series between India and South Africa has just concluded, where the hosts won 2-1. India’s fragility when it comes to batting overseas on fast, bouncy, swinging pitches was exposed in the first two Test matches, leading to yet another series defeat for the Men in Blue in South Africa.
But India’s courage and self-belief must be credited for the way they bounced back and in almost unplayable conditions at the Wanderers. They battled against all the hardships and came out on top.
South Africa played to their strengths but their batting was exposed in the third Test, but, overall, they had a great series against the number one ranked Test team and will be looking to carry the positive momentum into the ODI series.
With the return of some familiar faces in the limited overs format and inclusion of some youngsters, this SA team look formidable and look set to dominate come February 1.
Here’s looking at 5 players we can look forward to who would play integral roles for SA.
#5 David Miller
Everyone is familiar with the attacking Proteas batsman David Miller. He has gained prominence as a finisher, lower down the order. His ability to score runs quickly in any given situation is a big positive.
David Miller has had a mixed 2017 in the ODI format, where he was not able to convert starts into bigger scores and was struggling to rotate the strike often.
In 13 ODIs he scored a total of 370 runs at an impressive average of 61.29 but what's missing in these statistics is the fact that Miller was unable to create an impact in the ICC Champions Trophy and the series against England in England.
With AB de Villiers out of the team due to injuries and personal reasons for the most part of 2017, it was expected that David Miller would step up and play a more responsible role but that didn’t happen.
SA witnessed many batting collapses and lost some prominent series like their loss to hosts England. Their batting hasn’t been able to support the good work done by their bowlers.
Viewers got to see a resurgence of sorts when David Miller smashed the fastest ever T20I hundred against Bangladesh recently. His ability to strike big and clear the boundary at will was evident in that record-breaking knock.
Miller is one of the finest fielders in world cricket currently, and that is a big bonus for any team to have. He is equally effective in the ring as he is in the outfield. And his fielding and catching standards haven’t dipped despite a lean run with the bat off-late.
For a player who has scored 2396 runs in 100 ODIs at an impressive average of 39.23 with a career strike rate of over 100, it’s only a matter of one good knock in the middle to be able to get back to his demolishing best. The hosts will be hoping he can make an impact in the upcoming ODI series.