Former Indian head coach Sanjay Bangar lauded Virat Kohli and Ruturaj Gaikwad for their stellar batting effort in the second ODI of the series against South Africa in Raipur. The Kohli-Gaikwad duo put on a massive 195-run off just 156 deliveries for the third wicket. Bangar credited Ruturaj for easing the load off Kohli's shoulders by pacing his innings perfectly at No. 4.

"Today's [Wednesday's] innings was special because after the first 20 runs, he [Kohli] understood the pitch was such that the South African bowlers might not be able to dismiss him if he didn't make a mistake.

When he got a player like Ruturaj Gaikwad at the other end, who was pacing his innings extremely well, things became easier for him," stated Bangar during a discussion on Star Sports.

Bangar also praise on Kohli for taking the backseat momentarily, with Ruturaj scoring at a greater rate than the senior batter.

"He played second fiddle. Ruturaj Gaikwad went far ahead, but he wasn't affected by that at all. He increased the pace whenever he wished. Although he hit fewer sixes, his strike rate was higher in today's innings. This is an incredible thing," he added.

Indiaamassed 358/5 in their 50-over quota thanks to centuries from Kohli (102 off 93) and Gaikwad (105 off 83). Standby ODI skipper KL Rahul also contributed with an unbeaten 43-ball 66 to give some late impetus to the innings while Ravindra Jadeja remained unbeaten on 24 off 27.

However, the hosts' batting efforts were overpowered by a majestic ton from Aiden Markram (110 off 98) and handy contributions from Temba Bavuma, Matthew Breetzke and Dewald Brevis.

The series-deciding third ODI will be played at the ACA-VDCA Stadium in Visakhapatnam on December 6. 

The series-deciding third ODI will be played at the ACA-VDCA Stadium in Visakhapatnam on December 6.