One in 1,048,576! India's coin toss curse in ODIs continues

India's bad luck with the coin toss continued, as the team lost for the 20th consecutive time in a one-day international.

Stand-in captain KL Rahul tried his luck with the coin in Raipur, hoping to break the losing run that started back in the 2023 World Cup final. However, when the coin landed at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, it was South African captain Temba Bavuma who called it correctly ('heads') and chose to field first.

Statistically, the chances of losing a coin toss 20 times in a row are an astonishing one in 1,048,576.

Rahul's wry smile summed up his disbelief, but the wicketkeeper-batter, leading in place of the injured Shubman Gill, managed to find the funny side of it. "Honestly, this is the most pressure I have had because we haven't won the toss in a long time," he joked. "So, I have been practising, but clearly it is not working."

Kohli, Gaikwad help India post 358/5

Despite losing the toss, India put on a powerful batting performance, scoring a massive 358 for five against South Africa in the second ODI, thanks to back-to-back centuries from Virat Kohli, and a maiden hundred from Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Kohli (102) and Gaikwad (105) put on a record-breaking partnership of 195 runs for the third wicket. Rahul then came in at number five and blasted 66 not out, his second fifty in a row, to ensure India finished strong.

India lost opener Rohit Sharma (14) early, caught out by Quinton de Kock off Nandre Burger after hitting three fours.

Yashasvi Jaiswal (22) also looked promising with a couple of fours and a six, but he was dismissed early by a bouncer from Marco Jansen, continuing his struggle against left-arm pacers.

However, losing two early wickets didn't slow India down. The in-form Kohli joined Gaikwad, who looked much more comfortable than in the previous match and proved to be the perfect partner. The partnership with Gaikwad surpassed Kohli's previous record stand of 189 with Ajinkya Rahane in 2018.