5 reasons why India lost the 3rd ODI
India lost the plot completely after being in a commanding position most of the timeAfter pulling off an improbable victory from the jaws of defeat in the 2nd ODI, the Men In Blue found interesting ways to be on the backfoot in the 3rd ODI, even after being in a commanding position most of the time. However, the fluctuating series got even more exciting, with South Africa taking a 2-1 lead in the series.After winning the toss and electing to bat first, the Proteas got a really good start, thanks to the fantastic century of Quinton de Kock. However, Indian spinners Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra kept things tight in the middle, with Akshar Patel claiming the crucial wicket of AB de Villiers. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohit Sharma chipped in with some quality death bowling as they restricted South Africa to a modest total of 270 on a flat Rajkot pitch.However, even after getting a good start to the chase, India lost the plot completely in the middle and found themselves short of 18 runs, as South Africa snatched their 2nd triumph in the 5 match ODI series.Let’s have a look at the 5 reasons why India failed in the chase:
#1 The pitch got slower
This was the reason that Dhoni mentioned in the post match presentation as he said that he and Virat found it very difficult to play the big shots, as the wicket got slower and slower as the game progressed. Although everyone expected it to get better under the lights, the ball stopped after bouncing and did not come on to the bat easily. Both Dhoni and Kohli struggled to find timing in their shots.