Yuzvendra Chahal produced the second best spell by an Indian on World Cup debut, picking up 4 for 51 to derail South Africa in Southampton on Wednesday (June 5). Mohammed Shami’s 4 for 35 against Pakistan in the 2015 edition is the best performance by an Indian bowler on World Cup debut.
Chahal bagged the wickets of Rassie van der Dussen, Faf du Plessis, David Miller and Andile Phehlukwayo as South Africa struggled to get going. South Africa managed only 227 for 9 in their 50 overs after opting to bat first.
Chahal gave India breakthroughs each time South Africa tried to get partnerships going. He first had van der Dussen and du Plessis bowled in the 20th over, which was just his second in the game. The two batsmen had added 54 for the third wicket in an attempt to rebuild from Jasprit Bumrah’s quick strikes. van der Dussen tried an ambitious reverse sweep while du Plessis missed a quick, straight one.
Later, Miller and Phehlukwayo tried to rebuild with a 46-run stand for the sixth wicket when Chahal gave a double breakthrough yet again. Miller hit one straight back to the leg-spinner in just the second ball of his second spell, while Phehlukwayo was stumped trying to charge down and slog in vain four overs later.
