1st ODI: Dhoni loses toss again; South Africa opt to bat

Having eased to a 2-0 win the Twenty20 Internationals, South Africa may not seem to need more firepower, but the addition of Steyn and Morkel adds significant strength to the contingent ahead of the first One-Day worldwide of a five-match series on Sunday.

0852 hrs IST: In 23 ODI matches against South Africa played in India, the home team has a 13-10 advantage, reveals Harsha Bhogle. Mahendra singh Dhoni will lead the ODI team while A.B de Villiers leads the African team.

Head to Head- According to ESPNCricinfo, both India and South Africa have faced each other 71 times in ODIs since 1991, and it is latter that maintains a better winning percentage.

Regardless of the outcome of the series, Australia, who now have 127 points, will continue to enjoy their position at the top of the table.

Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, and AB de Villiers have been in good form with the bat for the visitors.

Asked at the post-match presentation ceremony as to what kind of pitches he would prefer during ODIs, Dhoni said: “We would like to play on the surface that is provided to us”.

India: MS Dhoni (capt, wk), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane, Stuart Binny, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Amit Mishra, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav.

1049 hrs IST: South Africa T20 captain gets to his half-century with a SIX! A packed stadium erupted when de Villiers (104 not out off 73 balls) smacked the ball over long-on boundary to bring his 21st ODI hundred, also ensuring that South Africa became the first to score 300 at the Green Park Stadium here. We are all very happy for him, it’s a great achievement and we are looking forward to walking onto the field with him. “We are a far better side in the one-dayers and I expect very good contest over the next month”, he said.

As for the batsmen, the team management might stick to the same combination that lost the series against Bangladesh, and Dhoni made it clear that there is no place for Ajinkya Rahane in the current set-up.

– If the series loss is an indication, India have much to do if they are to prove competitive in the World Twenty20 to be held in the country in March and April.

India finally managed to break the Amla-Faf stand that was threatening to take the game away from India.

On the bowling front, Dhoni faces a bigger headache with his attack putting up a pedestrian performance at Dharamsala and Cuttack. De Kock will partner Amla at the top of the order and keep wicket to free AB de Villiers up to concentrate on batting and captaincy. T20, you’ll see a ton of sides that play well and win the World Cup, only if their No. 6 be an essential player.