South Africa vs India 2018: 1st ODI, 5 things we learnt from the match

#2 Ajinkya Rahane stamps down class in bludgeoning knock

Rahane justified his inclusion ahead of Iyer with a superb knock

"We had said earlier that Ajinkya will be looked at as a third opener, but that situation can change because he has batted at No. 4 in a World Cup before," Virat Kohli had said before the series. He might as well have specifically mentioned Rahane's superb cameo against the Proteas in the 2015 World Cup, as this was among the very few memorable knocks from the Mumbaikar in the middle-order in ODIs.

As though to justify his skipper's stance, Rahane, picked ahead of Shreyas Iyer who had back to back half-centuries coming into the series, waltzed his way to a brilliant fifty. With stable support from Virat Kohli, Rahane appeared least perturbed by the South African attack, which went from good to average to poor to pathetic during the course of the game. Rahane was dismissed with India pretty close to sealing the game.