During his reckless knock, the Karnataka batsman hit six fours and two sixes. He finished with a strike rate of 153.49, helping India set a huge target of 359 for South Africa to chase in the second innings. The Proteas batted extremely well to reach the target with four balls and as many wickets to spare.
Steyn praised Rahul for the way he played his innings to perfection even as Ravindra Jadeja struggled to find his timing at the other end.
“He just knows how to do it. Again, if he hits three or if he opens the batting, I’m pretty sure he would go into the hundreds too because of the lack of deliveries. But those positions are for other players, and he knows what his role is in this team. And both matches so far he has played a fantastic innings,” Steyn said while analyzing the innings on Star Sports.
“A good, handy knock from the skipper, KL, and he led his team well in the first, managing to up the ante when necessary. And today there was another period where he went semi-slow with Jadeja. South Africa bowled well in that little transition period there, and the last over picked up the most expensive over of the innings,” he added.
Rahul had also scored a crucial 60 off 56 balls in the first ODI in Ranchi last week. However, that was in a winning case.
The three-match ODI series is on a razor’s edge with both teams winning one match each. The final match will be played on Saturday, December 6 at the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam.
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