World Cup 2019: Three reasons why India defeated South Africa
India got their World Cup 2019 campaign off to a winning start with a 6-wicket win against South Africa on Wednesday.
After opting to bat first, South Africa crashed to 89-5 before recovering well to score 227-9 from their 50 overs. Rohit Sharma then hit an unbeaten century to help India reach the target with 16 balls to spare.
For the beleaguered Proteas it was their third loss from as many matches. They will have to lift their game when they play the West Indies next on 10 June. India, on the other hand, is in a different position. This team looks like a well-balanced one that can go far in the tournament.
They could not have hoped for a better start to the tournament. Let us look at three reasons why India won their match against South-Africa on Wednesday.
#3 Jasprit Bumrah’s devastating opening spell
India’s bowling attack, led by Jasprit Bumrah, is seen as the key to the team’s success at the World Cup 2019. Bumrah starred for his team in the match, taking 2-35 from his ten overs. He engineered a top-order collapse which South Africa took a long time to recover from.
Opening the bowling, Bumrah beat the bat several times in the first few overs, making full use of the seaming conditions. Hashim Amla (6) was caught at slip in Bumrah’s second over. Quinton de Kock (10) perished in the bowler’s next over, edging a wide ball from Bumrah.
Bumrah’s plan against de Kock worked quite well. The bowler’s idea was to come from over the wicket and to angle the ball across the left-hander, hoping for an edge. De Kock has struggled in the past with balls moving away from him.
South Africa was in all sorts of trouble at 24-2 after six overs. Bumrah returned in the death overs and bowled economically to restrict South Africa to 227.
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