Despite a solid start, India suffered a significant defeat, losing by just 83 runs, as they managed to score 243 runs after losing 5 wickets. In the World Cup, India played a total of eight matches and won all of them. This strengthened their position at the top of the welcome table.
At Eden Gardens in Kolkata, India won the toss and chose to bat first, accumulating 326 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. Virat Kohli showcased a magnificent century on his birthday, which was also the day he equaled Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI centuries.
Kohli, who celebrated his 35th birthday, came out to bat after a brilliant start to the match. Rohit Sharma initiated the innings with a quickfire 62 runs. Kagiso Rabada, after being hit for 40 runs in 24 balls with 6 fours and 2 sixes, took the wicket of the Indian captain in the innings.
Kohli had to be patient for his century, as he was unable to score boundaries early on. However, in the 49th over, he reached the much-anticipated milestone. The crowd at Eden Gardens was electrified as Kohli hit a single to secure his 49th century. Kohli, like Sachin Tendulkar, chose not to celebrate extravagantly but instead lifted his bat and helmet with a composed demeanor.
Scoring a century on his birthday, Virat Kohli became the seventh Indian batsman to achieve this feat in ODIs and the third in World Cup matches. Earlier, Australia’s Michael Marsh had achieved the same on his birthday before Kohli in the ongoing World Cup.
After scoring a century in 119 balls, Kohli continued to bat and had the opportunity to score runs freely. He remained unbeaten with 101 runs, hitting 10 fours in a carefully crafted innings. Ravindra Jadeja also played an impressive inning of 29 runs from 15 balls, hitting 3 fours and 1 six, partnering with Kohli.
However, South Africa struggled to provide a strong response to India’s massive total. They could only manage 206 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. Markram and Temba Bavuma both managed to reach double digits, with Markram scoring the highest at 14 runs. Others, including Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller, were only able to score single-digit runs. Ravindra Jadeja was the most successful bowler for India, taking 5 wickets. Mohammad Shami and Kuldeep Yadav also took 2 wickets each.
Virat Kohli had an outstanding match on his birthday, celebrating with a fantastic century and contributing significantly to India’s convincing win.
