An all-round display led by Rassie van der Dussen and Temba Bavuma centuries helped South Africa beat India by 31 runs in the first ODI in Paarl. With the win, the Proteas took a 1-0 lead in the 3-match series. The second ODI will be played at the same venue on Friday. Rassie van der Dussen (129*) and Temba Bavuma (110) were the bright spots with the bat as South Africa posted 296/4. Bavuma and van der Dussen put on a stand of 204 runs for the fourth wicket and this is the second-highest by a South African pair in ODIs against India.
Opting to bat first, South Africa got off to a bad start as the hosts lost opener Janneman Malan (6) in the fifth over of the innings. The batter was sent back to the pavilion by pacer Jasprit Bumrah and this brought skipper Temba Bavuma to the middle. After the first ten overs, the Proteas' score read 39/1.Indian bowlers were able to maintain a stranglehold over the Proteas batters and Bavuma and de Kock found the going tough in the middle. The 39-run stand for the second wicket came to an end in the 16th over as Ravichandran Ashwin bowled De Kock (27). Soon after, Venkatesh Iyer's direct hit got the better of Aiden Markram (4) and Proteas were reduced to 68/3 in the 18th over. Rassie van der Dussen then joined Bavuma in the middle and the duo revived Proteas' innings by mixing caution with aggression. The partnership saw both batters going past their respective fifty-run mark. Bavuma brought up his ton in the 45th over while van der Dussen brought up the landmark in the 48th over of the innings. In the last five overs, the Proteas added 51 more runs to the total, taking the score past the 250-run mark.
