The 1st India vs South Africa ODI game turned out to be a nail-biter and though the Proteas came out on top, the Indian middle-order showed great signs. However, the fielding was awful from the Men in Blue as Mohammed Siraj and Bishnoi put down a catch each while others also had a horror day at the field.
Dhawan opted to field first and his bowlers proved him right, reducing South Africa to 4 for 100 odd runs.
However, Miller The Killer (75*) and Heinrich Klaasen (74*) stiched a 139-run partnership after that to help South Africa reach 249 for four.
Ball boy shows Mohammed Siraj how to take a catch
There’s no denying that Miller and Klaasen did awesome with the bat. However, some poor fielding from India also helped the SA batting duo a little.
Samson was substandard behind the stumps and while Gill and Rutu dropped easy chances.
Ravi Bishnoi put one down and Mohammed Siraj also dropped a catch in the 2nd last over; only to be taught how to capture the cherry by a Ball Boy.
The second last over of the game from Avesh deserved two wickets but got none as both the catches were put down by Siraj and Bishnoi.
Nonetheless, in the same over, a Ball Boy caught Miller (although outside the field), putting everyone, and Mohammed Siraj in particular to shame.
— Richard (@Richard10719932) October 6, 2022
— Richard (@Richard10719932) October 6, 2022
Notably, this wasn’t the 1st time when Siraj dropped a catch in recent times. He had dropped one catch while stepped on the boundary cushion taking another during the 3rd T20I between IND and SA.
During the IND vs SA 1st ODI, the skier that Siraj offered him enough time to settle under it. Nonetheless, Mohammed Siraj couldn’t catch it.
The game was eventually won by South Africa as India’s top-order was left shattered by some brilliant bowling from the visitors.
Though Sanju (86* off 63) and Shreyas Iyer (50 off 37) tried their best to get the cricket giants over the line, they fell short of it by 9 runs.