Stand-in captain KL Rahul shared a light moment with South African player Keshav Maharaj in the second innings of the 3rd ODI on December 21 at Boland Park in Paarl.
Keshav Maharaj came to bat in the 34th over after South Africa lost their sixth wicket. While he was taking guard to face the bowler, the ‘Ram Siya Ram’ song from the Indian movie Adipurush was audible in the stadium.
KL Rahul, positioned as the wicketkeeper behind Maharaj, remarked:
“Keshav Bhai… Every time they play this song (Ram Siya Ram) when you come to crease.”
Keshav Maharaj promptly responded to KL Rahul with a smile, stating:
“Yes.”
You can watch the video here:
https://x.com/on_drive23/status/1737893015879057886?s=46
KL Rahul joins Virat Kohli as the second Indian captain to secure an ODI series victory in South Africa
India convincingly defeated South Africa by 78 runs, securing a 2-1 victory in the three-match series. Opting to bat first, India posted a total of 296/8 in 50 overs, with significant contributions from Sanju Samson (108), Tilak Varma (52), and Rinku Singh (38). Despite a solid start, South Africa reached 141/2 in the 26th over.
Washington Sundar’s dismissal of Aiden Markram and Arshdeep Singh’s crucial wicket of Tony de Zorzi turned the game in India’s favor. South Africa, losing wickets regularly, was bowled out for 218 in 45.5 overs. KL Rahul is now the second Indian captain to win an ODI series in South Africa after Virat Kohli in 2018.
Proteas captain Aiden Markram shared his thoughts on the defeat during a post-match presentation, stating:
“We were up for it. It’s great to play the series decider in front of a good crowd but unfortunately not our best skills on display. We were there in small patches but failed to stretch those to get a firm grip on the game and get momentum on our side.”
Markram added:
“We will reflect on this in the break as we don’t play a white-ball series now for some time. The surface didn’t change much throughout and I thought 290 was chaseable. I backed our batting unit to chase it but things didn’t go in our way. I am not sure the toss played a massive factor today.”
The upcoming contest between the two teams is the two-match Test series starting on Boxing Day in Centurion.
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