As it happened | SAvIND: India beat South Africa by 6 wickets

India won by 6 wickets

India defeated South Africa to start their World Cup campaign on a winning note on Wednesday at Southhampton. 

After winning the toss, South African skipper Faf du Plessis opted to bat first the decision backfired as the team scored just 227 runs. 

Rohit Sharma scored his 23rd ODI century and helped the team to chase down the target. 

Earlier, Indian wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal took four wickets as one of the pre-tournament favourites got their Cricket World Cup campaign off to a confident start by restricting South Africa to 227 for nine at a vibrant Rose Bowl on Wednesday.

South Africa captain Faf du Plessis won the toss in bright sunshine and elected to bat first. However, the clouds closed in and seamer Jasprit Bumrah (2-35) found prodigious movement in both directions to remove openers Hashim Amla (6) and Quinton de Kock (10) inside the first six overs.

Du Plessis (38) and Rassie van der Dussen (22) put on a patient 54 in 80 balls in a bid to rebuild the innings, but when the latter was bowled trying a reverse-sweep off Chahal (4-51), two more wickets fell in quick succession.

Chahal then bowled Du Plessis and left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav trapped JP Duminy (3) leg before wicket as India's slow bowlers squeezed the run-rate and bamboozled the batsmen.

David Miller (31) and Andile Phehlukwayo (34) got starts but could not pass 50, while Chris Morris (42) and Kagiso Rabada (31 not out) put on 66 for the eighth wicket to ensure the side posted a score that gives them a chance.

The innings mirrored South Africa's World Cup campaign to date as their batsmen struggled to find form or fluency on wickets that were good for striking. They have lost their opening two matches to England and Bangladesh, while India are playing their first game.

47th Over

Chris Morris' last over.

One wicket and 10 runs from this over. 

Wicket!

Dhoni out...

Chris Morris caught and bowled. 

Dhoni scored 34 runs. 

46th Over

Rabada's last over, his spell ends with figure 10-1-39-2. 

5 runs from this over. 

He has been unlucky in this game. 

45th Over

10 runs from Tahir's over. 

44th Over

5 runs from Rabada's over and disaster by David Miller also happened. 

He DROPPED and easy catch and Rohit is saved. 

43rd Over

An expensive over from Shamsi here...

14 runs from the Over. 

42nd Over

Another good over by Phehlukwayo. 

3 runs from the over. 

41st Over

IND are 176/3.

5 runs of the over. 

Century!

Rohit Sharma hits a hundred. It's his second World Cup century and 23rd of his ODI career. 

40th Over

IND are 171/3.

10 more overs to go, need 57 runs to win. 

3 runs from 40th over. 

39th Over

4 runs from Phehlukwayo's seventh over. 

38th Over

Chris Morris is back.

6 runs from the over.

There was massive appeal also but it was denied. 

37th Over

Andile Phehlukwayo comes back into attack.

4 runs from the over. 

36th Over

4 runs from the over, four singles between Rohit and Dhoni. 

35th Over

5 singles off Tahir's over. 

India cross 150-run mark. 

34th Over

2 runs off Shamsi's over. 

SA are 145/3. 

33rd Over

A total of 4 runs off Tahir's over. 

Wicket!

KL Rahul out.

He scored 26 runs. 

Rabada to Rahul, caught out by Faf. 

32nd Over

A wicket maiden by Rabada.

Next batsman is MS Dhoni. This explains India's plans for the World Cup that on which spot Dhoni will play. 

31st Over

10 runs from Tahir's over. 

2 singles, 2 doubles and 1 boundary. 

30th Over

Rabada's over. 

6 runs from the over, one boundaries 2 singles. 

29 Over

8 runs from Tahir's over.

28th Over

Rabada back into attack.

1 run from the over. 

27th Over

11 runs from the over, including 2 boundaries. 

Expensive over Shamsi...

26th Over

7 runs from the over. 

1 boundary, 2 singles and 1 wide. 

India crossed 100-run mark. 

25th Over

Shamsi has been economical thus far.

3 runs from the over. 

24th Over

Chris Morris is doing good at the moment for his side.

1 run from the over. 

23rd Over

Rohit hits half-century.

9 runs from the over. 

Rohit's 50 up!

Rohit Sharma completed his 42nd ODI half-century and third of World Cup. 

22nd Over

A good maiden over by Morris. 

But to change the course of the game, SA need wickets here. 

21st Over

4 runs from Shamsi's over. 

20th Over

Phehlukwayo's expensive over. 

10 runs from the over, including two boundaries.  

19th Over

Spinner Tabraiz Shamsi comes into attack. 

3 runs from the over. 

18th Over

Another good over from Andile Phehlukwayo.

3 runs from the over. 

17th Over

8 runs from Tahir's over. 

It's time for the drinks break. 

16th Over

A good over by Phehlukwayo, gets a prized scalp and three dots to KL Rahul after that. 

4 runs from the over. 

Wicket!

Phehlukwayo gets the breakthrough.

Massive wicket. 

VIRAT KOHLI out after scoring 18 runs. 

Next batsman is KL Rahul and all eyes will be on him. 

15th Over

3 runs from Tahir's wicket. 

India are looking comfortable at the moment. 

14th Over

Phehlukwayo trying to take wickets. 

3 runs from the over. 

13th Over

5 runs from Tahir's over. 

Rabada is out of attack. 

12th Over

Andile Phehlukwayo comes into attack.

3 runs from the innings.

11th Over

Spinner Imran Tahir comes back into attack.

2 runs from the over. 

10th Over

Faf is continuing with Rabada as he is looking for wickets. 

3 runs from the innings. 

End of first powerplay. 

9th Over

2 runs from the over. 

South Africa need wickets to bounce back in the game. 

8th Over

A counter attack of Rohit Sharma against Rabada.

1 sixer and 2 fours, total 15 runs from the over. 

7th Over

Chris Morris to Virat Kohli, maiden over. 

Tight bowling thus far from SA bowlers. 

6th Over

Rabada sends back Dhawan and gave 1 run. 

SA are depending on Rabada to deliver quick wickets. 

Wicket!

SA got the breakthrough. 

Rabada to Dhawan, outside edge and caught behind. 

Dhawan scored 8 runs. 

Next batsman is Virat Kohli. 

5th Over

Chris Morris' second over.

2 runs from the over. 

4th Over

Rabada is difficult to play. 

His bowls are challenging and now he has broken dhawan's bat.

Just 1 runs of the over. 

3rd Over

Chris Morris comes into attack.

First boundary of the innings. 

6 runs from the innings. 

SA are 10/0. 

2nd Over

Chance missed.

Kagiso Rabada from the other end. 

What an over it was. 

1 run from the over and a massive chance to dismiss Rohit Sharma missed. 

1st over

3 runs from the over. 

What's Faf's plan here?

Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan start 228-run chase.

Spinner Imran Tahir will open South Africa's bowling attack. 

Second innings begins...

Innings break:

South Africa set a 228-run target against India.

India's spinners plunged South Africa deeper into trouble in their World Cup match in Southampton on Wednesday, backing up paceman Jasprit Bumrah, who did the early damage.

South Africa have been hit by a spate of injuries, with pace spearhead Dale Steyn making an early exit from the tournament without playing a game.

India, among the tournament favourites, are playing their first game in the round-robin event that concludes on July 14 in London.

50th Over

Brilliant over by Bhuvi as he got two wicket and have just 3 runs. 

Wicket!

Last ball of the innings and here comes another wicket. 

Bhuvi strikes again and gets Imran Tahir's wicket.

Bhuvi to Tahir, an easy catch by Kedar Jadhav. 

Wicket!

Chris Morris out!

He scored a crucial 42 runs. 

Bhuvi gets his first wicket of Cricket World Cup 2019. 

Bhuvi to Morris, caught out by Virat Kohli. 

49th Over

There was a slight chance of wicket but Bumrah missed to take the catch. 

6 runs from the over and with this, his spell ends. 

Last over to go...

48th Over

Bhuvi comes into attack.

9 runs from the over. 

46th Over

Bhuvi back into attack. 

8 runs from the innings...

South Africa cross 200-run mark. 

45th Over

Bumrah is back into attack.

2 runs from the over. 

44th Over

Chahal's spell over.

His bowling figure was 10-0-51-4.

Excellent bowling from Chahal and what a start for Team India. 

South Africa need to rethink now that what went wrong. 

43rd Over

One boundary from the last ball, a total of 9 runs from Pandya's over. 

42nd Over

One flat six from Chris Morris' bat. 

A total of 9 runs from the over. 

41st Over

Kuldeep's last over of the spell. 

His bowling figure is 10-0-46-1. 

Wicket!

Chahal magic again and Dhoni's quick stumping. 

Phehlukwayo departs after scoring 34 runs.

Next batsman is Kagiso Rabada. 

39th Over

First six of the innings came in this over. 

Kuldeep gave a total of 11 runs. 

SA are 157/6

38th Over

Chahal's 7th over... gave 6 runs. 

SA are 146/6. 

37th Over

Kuldeep's economical over, gave just 2 runs. 

The run rate is 4 per over. 

36th Over

A successful over!

Chahal gets a wicket and gave 4 runs. 

India are dominating at the moment. 

Wicket!

Chahal strikes again and breaks the partnership which was building here. 

He gets crucial wicket.

David Miller out after scoring 31 runs. 

Next batsman is Chris Morris. 

35th Over

Bhuvi's another good over. 

2 runs from the over.

34th Over

5 runs from Jadhav's over, including one boundary. 

The batsmen, Miller and Phehlukwayo, look stable now. Such stability was needed in the first 15 overs but the opposite happened as SA lost the momentum. 

33rd Over

Bhuvi goes on with his balanced spell. No extra runs.

A total of 3 runs from his over. 

SA are 127/5. 

32nd Over

Kedar Jadhav continues his spell, just a single from his over. 

South Africa need to build a partnership here. 

31st Over

Bumrah is looking for more wickets. 

It's a maiden. 

SA are 123/5. 

30th over

Kedar Jadhav again, 5 runs added to SA's tally. 

28th Over

Kedar Jadhav comes into action! 

He gave 5 runs from his over. 

SA are 112/5. 

27th Over

Kuldeep's 7th, he gave two runs. 

South Africa are playing with a sluggish run rate. 

26th Over

2 runs from the over and pressure has been pilling up on South Africans. 

They are going to post anything like a decent total now. 

25th Over

Kuldeep's sixth over, he gave 5 runs. 

Spinners have created magic here...

South Africa crossed 100-run mark, they are 103/5.

23rd Over

Kuldeep's celebration this time as he gets a wicket in his over, gave just one run. 

South Africa are in deep, deep trouble. 

Wicket!

Kuldeep sends back JP Duminy.

He departs after scoring 3 runs. 

Next batsman is Andile Phehlukwayo. 

22nd Over

South Africa are 88/4.

Chahal gave 3 runs from this over. 

The spinner are complementing each other. 

21st Over

Kuldeep back into attack and gave 5 runs from the over. 

Indian bowlers have dominated so far. 

20th Over

What an over it was, splendid spell from Yuzi Chahal. 

He grabbed two wickets giving just two runs from the over. 

After Bumrah, it's Chahal now. 

Wicket!

Chahal strikes again, and gets the most crucial wicket. 

Faf du Plessis out after scoring 38 off 54. 

Next batsman is JP Duminy. 

Wicket!

Rassie van der Dussen out!

He scored 22 off 37 balls. 

Chahal to van der Dussen, bowled. 

Next batsman is David Miller.

19th Over

Hardik's another tight over. 

After 19 overs, SA are 78/2. 

18th Overs

Yuzvendra Chahal comes into attack, he gave 4 runs from his first over. 

16th Over

Kuldeep gave 9 runs from the over. 

15th Over

Hardik gave 8 runs from this over. 

Both the batsmen are trying to build a partnership here at this moment to reduce pressure. 

14th Over

5 runs from Kuldeep's second over.

The current run rate is 3.49. 

13th over

Pandya gave an injury scare to Faf but he resumed play which indicates that he is fine. 

3 runs from the over. 

Another injury scare for South Africa?

Faf is having trouble after Pandya's ball struck his hand. 

12th Over

Spinner comes into attack...

Kuldeep Yadav in action. 

He gave 3 runs.

The Indian bowling unit is in attack mode, they are looking for wickets. 

11th Over

Hardik Pandya comes into attack as the bowler. 

He is trying extract extra bounce from the pitch. 

Pandya gave 3 runs from his over. 

South Africa are 34/2 and 10 overs

Magnificent spell thus far from both Bumrah and Bhuvi. 

They restricted the batsmen. 

What will defendable score here?

A good over from Bhuvi...

Just one run from the over.

SA 32/2 after 9 overs.  

Bhumrah and Bhuvi are bowling from both the ends.

The South African batsmen must be under pressure after losing both the openers. 

South Africa are 31/2 and 8 overs. 

Another wicket!

Bumrah strikes again and sends Quinton de Kock back to the pavilion.

Bumrah to de Kock, caught out by Virat Kohli. 

Brilliant Bumrah is on fire!!!

South Africa are 24/2 after 5.5 overs, they are in trouble now...

Next batsman is Rassie van der Dussen. 

Bumrah gets the breakthrough!

Hashim Amla departs early after scoring 6 runs off 9 balls. 

Next batsman is the skipper Faf du Plessis. 

South Africa are 11/1 and 3.2 overs

Bumrah's debut over!

What an over it was... the star pacer has arrived in the World Cup. 

After 2 overs, South Africa are 4/0. 

Quinton de Kock and Hashim Amla are at the crease and Bhuvneshwar Kumar will open India's bowling attack. 

And the match begins...

Ten good minutes to go for the match to begin. 

But before that, both the team will come on the ground to sing their national anthems. 

Toss: 

South Africa have won the toss and elected to bat first against India in Match 8 of World Cup. 

Playing XI:

India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli(c), Lokesh Rahul, MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah

South Africa: Quinton de Kock(w), Hashim Amla, Faf du Plessis(c), Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Jean-Paul Duminy, Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir, Tabraiz Shamsi

Kohli has already warned that even with two South African pacers--Dale Steyn and Lungi Ngidi--ruled out of the match, the Proteas would be a "very dangerous side" on their day and would not like to take the opponent lightly. 

We need to approach the game focusing on our strengths, said Kohli. 

Probable XI:

India: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah

South Africa: Quinton de Kock, Hashim Amla, Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis, Rassie van der Dussen, JP Duminy, Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris, Dwayne Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir

Du Plessis believes:

South Africa captain Faf du Plessis said his struggling side could still reach the World Cup semi-finals. 

Du Plessis said despite their injury problems and their poor start to the tournament, South Africa were aiming to reach the last four of the round-robin event, in which all 10 teams play each other.

"Six games is the target, and there's seven games left," the skipper told reporters during his pre-match press conference at the Ageas Bowl.

"It would be great if we could start that tomorrow. There's no easy games any more in the World Cup.... Whether it's winning or losing, the main thing is getting to the semi-finals."

Virat said team has advantage:

India are the only team which has not played a single game so far. 

When asked whether it will turn out to be an advantage or create problems for the team, Kohli said it has been an advantage as they got an opportunity to learn and absorb from other nine teams.

"It's an advantage, understanding how the games have gone, what the conditions have to offer, what the overcast conditions bring into play, when the sun's out it's a totally different ball game altogether. What's the pace of play when you see other teams playing. What the approach is. From that point of view, we have a lot to absorb and learn from."

Conditions: 

The forecast suggests that Southampton will be cloudy and there could be light showers but chances of a downpour are very less. However, it had rained here a day earlier, so the Indian cricket fans will be keeping their fingers crossed.  

Overall, the conditions suggest that it is going to be a batting-friendly match, similar to what we have seen in the last ODI contest at this venue between England and Pakistan in which 734 runs were scored in 100 overs. 

Squad:

India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli(c), Lokesh Rahul, MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Dinesh Karthik, Vijay Shankar

South Africa: Quinton de Kock(w), Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis(c), David Miller, Rassie van der Dussen, Jean-Paul Duminy, Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir, Beuran Hendricks, Dwaine Pretorius, Hashim Amla, Tabraiz Shamsi

Stats and Facts:

This is Virat Kohli first appearance in the World Cup as a captain. 

This will be Jasprit Bumrah's 50th ODI. 

Head-to-head: 

India and South Africa's ODI rivalry has a long history considering the number of matches they have played together.  

Both the team have played a total of 83 ODI matches, India have won 34 and South Africa has emerged victorious in 46 games. 

Three matches have ended without any result. 

In World Cups, both the teams have met four times and South Africa have won thrice.  

But since 2012, India has defeated South Africa in all five ICC events (not bilateral series) they have played which includes the 2013 and 2017 Champions Trophy, in 2012 and 2014 World T20 and in the 2015 World Cup. 

Preview: 

Virat Kohli-led Team India will start their 2019 World Cup campaign against South Africa today at Southampton. 

South Africa have had a disappointing start in the World Cup, losing both matches they have played so far. They lost to hosts England by 104 runs, then slipped to a 21-run loss to Bangladesh on Sunday.  

It couldn't get worse for captain Faf du Plessis after star pacers Dale Steyn and Lungi Ngidi suffered injuries.  

Ngidi will back in the squad within the next 10 days but legendary fast bowler Steyn has been ruled out of the tournament after failing to recover from a shoulder injury.  

India, however, are fresh and are all geared up for their campaign opener.  

India will be starting their campaign late but skipper Virat Kohli termed it as team's "advantage" as the players are well aware of the conditions and pitch behaviour.  

Hello! And welcome to the Match 8 of the Cricket World Cup 2019 which is between India and South Africa at Southampton. 

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