A disappointed Indian skipper Virat Kohli felt that lightning and rain played a major role in deciding the fate of the 4th One Day International which eventually went in the way of the hosts who won by 5 wickets via DLS method. On a rain-hit ODI which eventually turned into a T20 match, South African swashbucklers David Miller and Henrich Klaasen hammered away to lead the Men in Pink to victory.
The Indian skipper felt that after all the distractions and interruptions, it was South Africa who deserved to win as the Men in Blue could not grab the chances that were presented to them at Johannesburg.
"In the second innings when the game was placed after the interval, we got a difference of 35 between runs and balls, it was almost a T20 game. We had to take our chances, no balls aren't easy. In hindsight you have to give credit to South Africa, we didn't grab our chances and they deserved to win", said Kohli after the 4th ODI at Johannesburg.
The Indian skipper mentioned that after the first lightning break, the wicket immediately paced up and the weather got cooler which resulted in the ball turning more.
"After the first lightning break when Shikhar and Jinks (Rahane) came off, the guys felt that the wicket got faster and the weather got cooler and they felt that the ball wasn't coming on nicely", said the Indian skipper who was dismissed at 75.
Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav were not spared this time. The duo were hammered as Miller and Klaasen took their chances with the ball turning. Kuldeep's 51/2 and Chahal's 68/1 didn't contribute much in the helping as South Africa's middle-order batsmen saw the 4th ODI off in style.
Kohli said that Proteas batsmen improvised spontaneously and had deserved to win, however, the skipper did mention that the game getting shorter worked in the favour of the hosts but in a full match one may never know as the Kohli led Team India need one more match to win the series.
"The ball was getting a little wet, our spinners got a bit of turn but the South African batsmen took their chances and they came off. They improvised well and they deserved to win. The game getting shorter worked in their favour, had it been a full game you never know", said Kohli.
Kohli lauded Miller's performance and said that the power hitter smashed the way he normally does as the One Day International eventually became a T20 match after the Duck Lewis Method which saw the target become 202 from 289 in 28 overs.
Miller, who has the joint fastest T20I hundred along with Indian opener Rohit Sharma, knows his way around the shortest format of the game which helped the hosts wrap up the match as quickly as possible.
"It was more like a T20 game and you have to go after the bowlers. If a side has momentum in their favour, it is very difficult to stop them. Especially guys like Miller and their keeper batted brilliantly as well."
AB de Villiers who returned from injury helped the hosts with his 26 runs, but his time at the crease was short as Hardik Pandya's saw him off. Kohli felt that de Villiers' dismissal brought them back in the game but it was Miller and Klaasen who stole the show.
"When AB got out we felt we were in the game but these two took it away from us. No balls are something that hurts you as a team and it is something we hope to rectify and not repeat them in the next games. They are a quality side and we know that. We also know that we have to be at the top of our game to get a win and that's what we'll do for the next game", concluded Kohli.
The Indian skipper feels that the Men in Blue will hope to rectify their mistakes and will look forward towards the fifth ODI in Port Elizabeth.
