India vs South Africa, 3rd ODI: As it happened...

Over 50 || Score 252/6 (Axar 15, Harbhajan 20)​

Steyn to bowl the over. Double came from the first ball. Two singles came off the next two balls. A double came from Harbhajan's willow. Another risky single. Last ball, Axar hit a six straight down the ground. And with that South Africa beat India by 18 runs in the 3rd ODI at Rajkot to take 2-1 lead in the five-match series.    

Over 49|| Score 239/6 (Axar 7, Harbhajan 14)​

Rabada to bowl the penultimate over of the match. Six runs from the over. India need 32 runs off 6 balls. 

Over 48 || Score 233/6 (Axar 6, Harbhajan 10)​

Steyn to bowl the over. It seems that India have thrown in the towel. Outstanding over by the speedster. Six from the over. India need 38 runs off 12 balls. 

Over 47 || Score 226/6 (Axar 2, Harbhajan 7)​

Tahir with his last over. Bhajji collected a boundary off the 2nd last ball. Match is slipping away from the hands of India. Hosts need 45 runs off 19 balls. 

Over 46 || Score 220/6 (Axar 1, Harbhajan 1)​

Kohli Out! Trying to clear the long on fence, Kohli gave a simple catch to Miller off Morkel. Rahane Out! It was a recap of Kohli's wicket. Morkle has accounted for four wickets now. Axar and Harbhajan are two new batsmen in the middle. India need 51 runs off 24 balls.      

AM Rahane c Miller b Morkel 4 (7b)

V Kohli c Miller b Morkel 77 (99b)

Over 45 || Score 217/4 (Kohli 68, Rahane 0)​

Rabada is back into the attack. Onus is on Kohli to take India through as he is a set batsman. Four runs from the first four balls. The young pacer is mixing his balls well. Another good over for the bowling side as six runs came off it. India need 55 runs off 30 balls. 

Over 44 || Score 210/4 (Kohli 77, Rahane 1)​

Tahir to bowl his penultimate over. Kohli played a reverse sweep off the 1st ball to get a boundary off the first ball. Raina Out! Tahir once again gave his side a breakthrough at crucial juncture of the match. Rahane is the new man in. Nine runs from the over. India need 61 runs off 36 balls. 

SK Raina c Miller b Imran Tahir 0 (2b)

Over 43 || Score 201/3 (Kohli 68, Raina 0)​

Steyn to continue. No run from the first two balls. Then came a risky double. Off the 4th ball Kohli came down the track and hit the bowler towards cover region for a boundary. India need two to three good overs. India crossed the 200-run mark. India need 70 runs off 42 balls.  

Over 42 || Score 193/3 (Kohli 62, Raina 0)​

Dhoni hit Morkel for a boundary towards long off. Dhoni Out! Soft dismissal as the skipper gave a simple catch to point fielder. Morkel took the crucial wicket. Raina is the new man in. 

MS Dhoni c Steyn b Morkel 47 (61b)

Over 40 || Score 185/2 (Kohli 60, Dhoni 41)​

Duminy with his 8th over. Two singles from the first three balls. Then came a wide. Off the fifth ball, Dhoni hit a powerful cover drive to get a boundary. Seven from the over. India need 86 more runs off 60 balls to win the match. 

Over 39 || Score 178/2 (Kohli 59, Dhoni 36)​

Morkel with his 8th over. Either Dhoni or Kohli has to take the charge and break the shackles. Another tight over as the lanky speedster conceded five in it. India need 93 more runs in 66 balls. 

Over 38 || Score 173/2 (Kohli 58, Dhoni 32)​

South African bowlers are not offering any room what so ever. And they are finishing their over quickly. India can take heart from the fact that they have wickets in hand and two set batsmen in the middle.   

Over 36 || Score 165/2 (Kohli 52, Dhoni 30)​

Required rate is now swelling with every passing over. Kohli and Dhoni need to hit few boundaries to get some pressure back on the bowlers. India need 106 more runs in 14 overs and they have eight wickets in hand. 

Over 35 || Score 162/2 (Kohli 51, Dhoni 28)​

Rabada too is bowling on a tight line and frustrating the batsmen by not giving them easy singles. Another tight over. three came from it. 

Over 34 || Score 159/2 (Kohli 50, Dhoni 27)​

In the last few overs South African bowlers have successfully stopped the run-flow. Now Dhoni and Kohli must be feeling a bit of pressure. Imran Tahir has made an excellent comeback. India still need 112 more runs to win the match in 16 overs. In the meantime, Kohli completed his fifty in 64 balls with the help of three boudaries.   

Over 29 || Score 142/2 (Kohli 40, Dhoni 20)​

It's time for part timer Behardien to bowl some quick overs. Good over first up the medium pacer as he gave mere three runs. 

Over 28 || Score 139/2 (Kohli 38, Dhoni 19)​

Morkel is back. And the speedster finished his over quickly. Two from it.  

Over 27 || Score 137/2 (Kohli 37, Dhoni 18)​

Dhoni played Steyn fine towards fine leg to hit a boundary. Runs are coming easily, India batsmen just need to hang in there. They will win the match if play the complete quote of 50 overs,  

Over 26 || Score 131/2 (Kohli 36, Dhoni 13)​

Dhoni cut Duminy off the 4th ball to run three. Singles and doubles will take India close towards the target. Kohli is set batsmen in the middle and Dhoni needs to hang in there and gives as much strike to Kohli as possible.   

Over 25 || Score 124/2 (Kohli 34, Dhoni 8)​

Steyn with his 5th over. Rahane has once been demoted once again. In the meantime, Dhoni played a superb cover drive to collect his first boundary. Balling is rolling nicely on to the bat. Seven from the over.  

Over 24 || Score 117/2 (Kohli 27, Dhoni 3)​

Rohit Sharma Out! The right-hander stepped out of the crease but played the ball away from the body and gave a simple catch back to the bowler. Duminy was the wicket-taker on the occasion. Good over for the visiting side.       

RG Sharma c & b Duminy 65 (74b)

Over 23 || Score 113/1 (Rohit 65, Kohli 31)​

First ball by Tahir was a low full toss as Rohit swept it for a boundary towards square leg. Easy picking for India. Expensive over by the leggie as he leaked nine from it. 

Over 21 || Score 99/1 (Rohit 55, Kohli 27)​

Sharma danced down the track to launch Tahir for a six over his head. What a massive strike by the Mumbaikar. And with that Sharma completed his half-century as well. He reached the mark with the help of six boundaries and two sixes.  

Over 20 || Score 91/1 (Rohit 48, Kohli 26)​

Seven runs have come in the last two overs. India need 180 more runs in 30 overs and they have nine wickets in hand. India have a slight upper hand at the moment. 

Over 18 || Score 84/1 (Rohit 45, Kohli 22)​

Rabada is back. The speedster made an excellent comeback. He is bowling at a good pace with decent line and length. But Indian batsmen are playing sensibly. 

Over 17 || Score 81/1 (Rohit 43, Kohli 21)​

Premier spinner Imran Tahir is being introduced for the first time. 4th ball was a full toss and Rohit slapped it towards cow corner to get his sixth boundary. 

Over 16 || Score 75/1 (Rohit 38, Kohli 20)​

Off the 4th ball came a boundary from Kohli's willow. He is looking determined today. He has quickly reached to 20 off 19 balls. Eight runs in the over. 

Over 15 || Score 67/1 (Rohit 38, Kohli 13)​

Steyn to continue. No seam and swing for the speedster as both the batsmen are laying him with an ease. Tight over.  

Over 14 || Score 64/1 (Rohit 38, Kohli 10)​

Kohli played an expensive cover drive to get a boundary off the fourth ball off Duminy's over. Another good over for India as seven runs came off it.

Over 13 || Score 57/1 (Rohit 37, Kohli 6)​

Steyn is back into the attack. Kohli's feet are moving well today. Rohit smacked the bowler out of the park. What a massive hit by the opener. Ten runs from the over. In the meanwhile, India crossed the 50-run mark. 

Over 11 || Score 42/1 (Rohit 21, Kohli 1)​

Dhawan Out! The southpaw tried to charge the bowler straight down the track but only managed an outside edge and de Villiers took a sharp catch behind the wickets. Virat Kohli is the new man in.   

S Dhawan c de Villiers b Morkel 13 (29b)

Over 10 || Score 40/0 (Rohit 26, Dhawan 13)​

Duminy with his 2md over. Rohit played a half-sweep towards square leg to get a boundary. Indians are finding it difficult to rotate strike at the moment. Five from the over.   

Over 9 || Score 35/0 (Rohit 21, Dhawan 13)​

Morkel to continue. Both the batsmen are middling the ball well. But in this over the speedster did give any room to the batsmen to free their arms. It's a maiden over.   

Over 8 || Score 35/0 (Rohit 21, Dhawan 13)​

Bowling change! JP Duminy to bowl the over. Rohit dropped by Morkel at short square leg. Will the visitors have to play a big price for dropping Rohit? Tight over by the offie first up. 

Over 7 || Score 31/0 (Rohit 18, Dhawan 12)​

Rohit pulled Morkel for four off the first ball as the bowler banged it too short. Lucky Dhawan survived a chance of a run out. Running between the wickets has been a concern for India in the series. Five came from the over.  

Over 6 || Score 26/0 (Rohit 13, Dhawan 12)​

Smoking cover drive followed by a perfectly timed straight from Shikhar Dhawan's willow as he collected two consecutive boundaries. Expensive over by Rabada as he leaked eight in it.

Over 5 || Score 18/0 (Rohit 13, Dhawan 4)​

First bowling change! Morne Morkel has been introduced into the attack. Tight over first up by the lanky speedster as he conceded mere three runs.  

Over 4 || Score 15/0 (Rohit 12, Dhawan 2)​

Rabada to continue. Another boundary from Rohit's willow as he placed the ball towards mid-wicket to get his third boundary. What a balance he possesses. Sensible cricket by Indian openers.   

Over 3 || Score 11/0 (Rohit 8, Dhawan 2)​

Rohit played a crunchy cover drive off Steyn to collect his 2nd boundary. What a shot by the elegant right-hander - stand and deliver. Six from the over.  

Over 2 || Score 5/0 (Rohit 4, Dhawan 1)​

Kagiso Rabada has the ball in hand. Dhawan opened his account with the help of a single off the 2nd ball. Ball is coming nicely on to the bat. Single from the over. 

Over 1 || Score 4/0 (Rohit 4, Dhawan 0)​

Dale Steyn to start the bowling proceedings for Proteas. Off the fifth ball Rohit Sharma played an exclusive shot towards point to get a boundary. 

Over 50 || Score 270/7 (Behardien 33, Rabada 0)​

Bhuvi to bowl the last over of the innings. Three runs came from the first three balls. Off the next came a double. Steyn run out! Trying to steal a single Steyn fell short of his crease. In the last ball Behardien smacked the bowler for six over long on as the visitors put up a total of 270.  

DW Steyn run out 12 (9b) 

Over 49 || Score 258/6 (Behardien 23, Steyn 10)​

South Africa have managed to cross the 250-run mark. Off the fifth ball, Steyn picked the slower one from Mohit and smacked him out of the park. 11 runs came in the over.  

Over 48 || Score 247/6 (Behardien 20, Steyn 2)​

Kumar to bowl. Indian bowlers are not offering any room to the batsmen to score runs quickly. Four runs from the over. 

Over 47 || Score 243/6 (Behardien 18, Steyn 0)​

Mohit to bowl the over. The medium pacer has variations up his sleeves. Duminy Out! The southpaw failed to spread his magic today with the willow as he gave a simple catch to Raina at deep long on. 

JP Duminy c Raina b MM Sharma 14 (14b) 

Over 46 || Score 238/5 (Behardien 14, Duminy 14)​

Bhuvneshwar  Kumar is back into the attack. After three dot balls came a single off the fourth from Behardien's willow. Two runs came off the last two balls. Another good over for India.  

Over 45 || Score 235/5 (Behardien 12, Duminy 13)​

Patel to continue. Indian spinners have pegged back South African batsmen thus far from scoring runs freely. Four runs from the over.

Over 44 || Score 231/5 (Behardien 10, Duminy 11)​

Mishra with his last over. Can he provide India another breakthrough? Outstanding display of spin bowling by the leggie as he gave mere 38 runs in his ten overs and picked up a wicket.  

Over 43 || Score 226/5 (Behardien 7, Duminy 9)​

Both the batsmen are capable of hitting big shots. Duminy collected a boundary off the first ball from Patel with the help of a reverse sweep. Expensive over as nine runs came off it.  

Over 42 || Score 217/5 (Behardien 4, Duminy 3)​

Mishra with his penultimate over. Both the batsmen are new to the crease. It's a good time for India to stop the run flow and put some pressure on the batting side. Another excellent over by the leggie. 

Over 41 || Score 213/5 (Behardien 2, Duminy 1)​

De Villiers Out! Patel picked up the dangerous wicket as he trapped AB in front of the wicket. Visitors have lost a few wickets in a heap here. 

AB de Villiers lbw b Patel 4 (5b)

Over 40 || Score 210/4 (De Villiers 0)​

Bhajji with his last over. Stage is set for skipper AB de Villiers to play a quickfire knock. Off the fifth ball he hit the offie for a boundary towards cover region. De Kock run out! A bit of confusion in calling and the centurion has to sacrifice his wicket.   

Over 39 || Score 205/3 (AB 0, de Kock 102)

Mohit to bowl the over. Quinton de Kock completed his ton in style by hitting the bowler for a boundary. It's his 7th ODI century. He hit 11 fours and a six to reach the landmark. What a matured knock by the youngster. Faf out! In trying to play a scoop, Faf ended up giving a catch to Mohit.   

F du Plessis c Kumar b MM Sharma 60 (63b)

Over 38 || Score 195/2 (Faf 56, de Kock 97)

Faf and de Kock have added 100 runs for the third wicket. Bhuvi to bowl the over. On one end where de Kock is looking for singles, Faf is looking for some big hits on the other. No big hit in the over.    

Over 36 || Score 190/2 (Faf 54, de Kock 94)

Patel to bowl his 6th over. Tight over by the left-arm spinner as he conceded mere two runs in it.   

Over 36 || Score 188/2 (Faf 58, de Kock 93)

Harbhajan has the ball in hand. De Kock is looking a bit tired as he touched the 90 runs mark. Now he is dealing in the singles and doubles.   

Over 35 || Score 183/2 (Faf 51, de Kock 90)

Mishra with his 8th over. Another tight over by the leggie. In fact, both the batsmen doesn't want to take any kind of risk off Mishra who is getting a fair bit of turn from the track.  

Over 34 || Score 181/2 (Faf 50, de Kock 89)

From here on Saffers will look to put up a total of around 320 plus. Anything less than that would be a disappointment for the visitors. Bhuvi is back into the attack. By hitting two boundaries in the over Faf completed his half century in style. Nine from the over.       

Over 33 || Score 172/2 (Faf 42, de Kock 88)

Mishra is back into the attack. Another tight over by the leggie as he gave mere three runs in his comeback over.  

Over 31 || Score 16 4/2 (Faf 39, de Kock 83)

Patel leaked 11 runs in the over as Faf hit two boundaries off the the spinner. The right-hander is now breaking the shackles.   

Over 30 || Score 153/2 (Faf 29, de Kock 82)

Part time spinner Suresh Raina has been introduced into the attack. De Kock is now eyeing a ton here as he crossed the 80-run mark. Off the fifth ball he hoisted Raina for a boundary towards deep mid-wicket for a boundary.     

Over 28 || Score 139/2 (Faf 24, de Kock 73)

Mohit is mixing up his deliveries well. In the mean time, Faf and de Kock have already added 50 runs for the third wicket. India should break this dangerously growing partnership. Expensive over as eight runs came of it,   

Over 27 || Score 131/2 (Faf 22, de Kock 67)

Faf is breaking the shackles now. He played an inside out off the third ball by Axar to collect a boundary. But at the same time the right-hander is living dangerously in middle.   

Over 26 || Score 123/2 (Faf 16, de Kock 65)

Mohit with his fifth over. Medium pacer bowled a superb slower one, from back of the hand, to get Faf caught at long on, but the bowler overstepped. What a dramatic over it was.    

Over 25 || Score 117/2 (Faf 12, de Kock 64)

Axar to continue. The left-arm spinner is bowling slow in the air, which is a good thing on this track. Super over as he conceded mere a single in it.   

Over 24 || Score 116/2 (Faf 11, de Kock 64)

Double bowling change. Mohit is back into the attack. The medium pacer is mixing up his deliveries well. But off the penultimate ball he conceded a boundary, which came from de Kock's willow. 
 

Over 22 || Score 111/2 (Faf 10, de Kock 60)

Bowling change! Axar Patel has been given the ball for the first time in the innings. De Kock welcomed the spinner with a boundary off his 2nd ball. The left-arm tweaker leaked seven runs in the opening over.    

Over 22 || Score 104/2 (Faf 8, de Kock 55)

Spinners have put some breaks on the South African scoring rate. In the meantime, visitors have crossed the 100-run mark. Off the last ball de Kock played an inside out shot to perfection off Bhajji to get a boundary.   

Over 21 || Score 98/2 (Faf 7, de Kock 51)

De Kock completed his half-century in the over with the help of a single. A matured knock by the southpaw. It's his sixth fifty in ODIs.   

Over 20 || Score 94/2 (Faf 5, de Kock 49)

Both the spinners -- Bhajji and Mishra -- have picked up one wicket apiece and are looking dangerous. Five runs from the over. 

Over 19 || Score 84/2 (Faf 2, de Kock 47)

Hashim Amla Out! His poor run continues as he got out on mere five runs. Mishra deceived the right hander with his flight and spin and Dhoni took no time to dislodge the bails within a flash. It's always a delight to watch a leg spinner on song. Faf du Pelssis has walked into the middle.   

HM Amla st Dhoni b Mishra 5 (15b)

Over 18 || Score 86/1 (Amla 5, de Kock 46)

Bhajji bowled another tight over as he conceded mere two runs. On this batting track, visitors should at least score above 300, otherwise it would be difficult for their bowlers to defend the total.  

Over 17 || Score 84/1 (Amla 4, de Kock 45)

De Kock is heading towards his half-century. He has played a matured innings thus far. India need a couple of wickets to put some pressure on the visitors. Nine runs have come in the last two overs. 

Over 15 || Score 75/1 (Amla 2, de Kock 38)

Mishra to continue. Mishra is looking dangerous on this track as he is getting the turn. Superb over by the leggie. Two from the over. 

Over 13 || Score 72/1 (Amla 0, de Kock 38)

Miller Out! Bhajji provided India their first breakthrough. The southpaw failed to play the tossed up delivery and gave a catch to Rahane at backward point. Hashim Amla is the new man in. 

DA Miller c Rahane b Harbhajan Singh 33 (41b)

Over 13 || Score 71/0 (Miller 33, de Kock 36)

Both the batsmen are set in the middle and now they should convert the start into a big one. Mishra is getting a bit of turn from the track. 

Over 12 || Score 65/0 (Miller 28, de Kock 35)

Spin from both the end as Bhajji and Mishra are bowling in tandem. Tight over by Turbanator as he conceded mere a single.  

Over 11 || Score 64/0 (Miller 27, de Kock 35)

Immediately after the Powerplay, Dhoni introduced leggie Amit Mishra. Third ball was too short and wide by the tweaker and Miller hit it towards point region for a boundary. This opening stand is now getting dangerous with every passing over.     

Over 10 || Score 59/0 (Miller 26, de Kock 31)

Bhajji with his 2nd over. Miller collected his 3rd boundary by cutting the offie towards backward point off the 3rd ball. Five runs from the over.  

Over 9 || Score 54/0 (Miller 21, de Kock 31)

De Kock hit Bhuvi for two consecutive straight drives and on both occasions he collected boundaries. Flying start by the visitors as they crossed the 50-run mark within nine overs without losing a wicket.  

Over 8 || Score 44/0 (Miller 20, de Kock 22)

First bowling change. Harbhajan Singh has been introduced into the attack. Decent over first up the offie as he gave mere five in it.    

Over 7 || Score 39/0 (Miller 17, de Kock 20)

Bhuvi to continue. First ball by the medium pacer was hit for a boundary by de Kock. Still the bowler managed to conceded mere five runs. India still looking for the first breakthrough.  

Over 6 || Score 34/0 (Miller 17, de Kock 15)

Miller is getting into the groove. He is finding the gaps well. Indian bowlers are bowling way too short. In the 3rd ball came another boundary from Miller's willow, this time towards mid-wicket region.  

Over 5 || Score 30/0 (Miller 13, de Kock 15)

Indian strike bowlers haven't really troubled the openers thus far. Miller and de Kock are playing Mohit and Bhuvi with an ease. Off the last ball, de Kock slogged Bhuvi towards fine leg for a six. Expensive over as ten runs came off it. 

Over 4 || Score 20/0 (Miller 12, de Kock 6)

Mohit with his 2nd over. Miller has a good opportunity to score big today. Off the last ball, Miller played a splendid drive towards cover region to get his first boundary.   

Over 3 || Score 12/0 (Miller 5, de Kock 5)

Kumar to continue. There is no seam and swing available for the seamers. Bhuvi is bowling on a decent line and length.     

Over 2 || Score 5/0 (Miller 1, de Kock 4)

Mohit Sharma is set to bowl the 2nd over. Off the 2nd ball, a loose delivery by the medium pacer, de Kock played a perfect cover drive to open his account with a boundary. Five from the over.    

Over 1 || Score 0/0 (Miller 0, de Kock 0)

David Miller has been promoted  up the order to open the South African innings along with Quinton de Kock. Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled a maiden over first up. 

David Miller has been promoted up the order as he set to open the innings for South Africa along with Quinton de Kock. 

Can three spinners strategy will work for India in today's encounter? 

Its always an amazing feeling when u have an international match in ur home town, excited ! #INDvSA @BCCI Win it Team India

— cheteshwar pujara (@cheteshwar1) October 18, 2015

MSD has done one change. Leggie Amit Mishra has replaced speedster Umesh Yadav.    

IND XI: RG Sharma, S Dhawan, A Rahane, V Kohli, MS Dhoni, S Raina, A Patel, B Kumar, H Singh, M Sharma, A Mishra

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 18, 2015

SA XI: H Amla, Q de Kock, F du Plessis, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, D Miller, F Behardien, D Steyn, M Morkel, K Rabada, I Tahir

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 18, 2015

Toss: South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first. 

South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first.