SAF Series - India lose series

South African fielders came to the fore during the 2nd ODI, claiming catches that were out of the ordinary. AB De Viliers catch of Jadeja was the highlight while Miller and de Kock snapped catches that were awesome, to say the least. The bowling was tight but the Indians seemed to be desperate to show that they belonged to the highest level. Desperation led to their downfall but the time they have spent in the first two ODIs will be fruitful.

The Indian bowlers showed that they had learnt from the first ODI. They did well to restrict the opposition to a total that was very less than what they looked set for scoring at half-time. The bowlers were changed and that was probably the trick that MSD was looking for - Shami still picked wickets for his team while Umesh and Ishant complemented well. Shami has probably taken same number of wickets as Steyn but surely the value will be much better considering the quality and experience of wickets taken.

Indians play the final match today but they will be trying to spend more time at the crease to prepare for the test series. The top-order should try to play it more like a high-quality net practice rather than anything else. Fans and pundits will criticise but MSD knows how to forget everything and concentrate on the game. He will surely be telling his team the same message.