Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate stated that Indian team feels a certain level of desperation to win the third ODI against South Africa and clinch the series. This heightened sense of urgency stems from the team's disappointing performance in the preceding two-match Test series, which they lost comprehensively to the Proteas with a 0-2 whitewash. With the ODI series currently leveled at 1-1, the final match carries significant importance for the team's morale and overall tour results.
“It's a very different personnel of players but the guys are very aware of the responsibility of what they're representing,” Doeschate said at the pre-match press conference.
Team India desperate to win ODI series against South Africa
India initially took the lead in the series, winning the first ODI in Ranchi by 17 runs. However, South Africa successfully pulled the series level in the following game at Raipur, securing a victory by four wickets. Proteas chased down a massive 359-run target to peg back India.
“We always want to win but, yeah certainly, when a few losses do start stacking up and performances have been below what we expect from ourselves, I think it's a slight desperation from the series point of view,” he added.
I don't think pressure ever goes away for this team: Ryan Ten Doeschate
However, Doeschate was quick to mitigate the concern, adding that the team members are quite accustomed to effectively handling and tackling such high-pressure situations.
“I don't think pressure ever goes away for this team. You know, bilateral series, when the series is on the line, there is an element of pressure there in itself. We try to focus on the process. We try and assess what's going to be a good score and then the batting unit has to go about getting it,” he further stated.
The former Dutch all-rounder then talked about the dew factor and openly admitted that it played a massive and influential role in the outcome of the last two matches. He also acknowledged that the conditions team management is anticipating suggest dew could very well be a significant factor in the contest scheduled for November 6 as well.
“The dew factor is so big here. It’s obviously not our fault but it is our responsibility to find a way to get around that. I think we're doing pretty well in the defending department now (if India is bowling second). And obviously we have assessed this is a high scoring ground with fairly small boundaries. But the biggest challenge again is going to be sorting out the disparity between batting first and batting second, and that is the biggest challenge for us,” Doeschate concluded.