Over the years India and South Africa have shared a lesser-known rivalry in the world of cricket. Many have come and many have gone, from Kirsten to Azharuddin, Tendulkar to Donald, Dhoni to De Villiers and in the modern day era, it is Kohli and Rabada, everyone has graced the game in between the two cricketing nations on the field. Visiting the backyard of the Proteas has always been an Achilles heel for the Men in Blue, but gone are those days as Team India enjoyed their recent trip in the Rainbow Nation. Here is a look at how the Indian team has fared on their visits to South Africa since 2006.
2006-07: Forgettable Greg Chappell era
The Indian team were preparing for the 2007 World Cup and with only a couple of months to go, the Men in Blue were determined to go one better from their 2003 effort. But what was to follow was a dark period in Indian cricket. The Rahul Dravid-led side suffered a humiliating 0-4 loss in the ODI series, laminating flaws in the team ahead of the showdown World Cup. The team was humiliated in Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Centurion. It went down as an unforgettable period under Chappell for Team India.
2010-11: So close yet so far for Dhoni’s men
Another World Cup was due in two months, the period was crucial as players wanted to avoid injury and safety first was the approach. India led by 2-1 after the first three ODIs but MS Dhoni's army took the foot off the pedal which cost them the series. Losses in Port Elizabeth and Centurion once again meant that the Men in Blue returned empty-handed, losing the series by 2-3. The series loss didn't stop Dhoni's men from winning the World Cup as they triumphed in Mumbai in less than three months, after losing the ODI series.
2013-14: Poor bowling display in 0-2 series defeat
The team was in a phase of transition, specifically the bowling department with no Zaheer Kahn, Ashish Nehra or Sreesanth. The reliance on inexperienced players played its part as South Africa scored more than 280 runs in all the three ODIs. Damaging defeats in Durban and Johannesburg were followed by a rain wash in Centurion as Dhoni's men returned winless with 0-2 defeat in the three-match ODI series.
2017-18: Rise of a Phoenix for Kohli and company
After embarrassing losses on previous tours, not much was expected from the Indian team in the ODI series. But, an inspired performance from Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan meant that they were firing on all cylinders. Kohli led from the front to score two hundreds and was joined by both Dhawan and Rohit to dismantle the opposition. For the first time in history, Team India had beaten South Africa in their own backyard in the ODI format, and that too convincingly by 5-1. The icing on the cake came in the form of T20I series win, as Kohli and company followed it up with a 2-1 series win in the shortest format.
