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Dissecting the reasons behind where India lost the ODI series

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India had started their tour of South Africa on a bright note, winning the Centurion Test by 113 runs. But after that, South Africa came back to win the next two Tests and take the series 2-1. One expected that with the ODI series, there will be a change in results.

But the same script followed as India were blanked 3-0 by South Africa in the ODIs. Playing ODIs for the first time after July 2021 (for first-choice players, after March 2021), India were rusty and looked out of sorts in the 50-over matches. We dissect the reasons behind India’s 3-0 loss in the ODIs against South Africa:

Batting returns not up to the mark

A quick glance at the batting cards of both teams will show the difference between South Africa and India. Three of the four highest run-scorers in the series were all from the hosts. Quinton de Kock topped the chart with 229 runs at an average of 76.33 and strike rate of 96.62 with a hundred and a fifty, Rassie van der Dussen at number two with 218 runs with a whopping average of 218.00 (was unbeaten twice in the series) and strike rate of 112.95 with a hundred and fifty as well.

Skipper Temba Bavuma made 153 runs at an average of 51 and strike rate of 80.10, including a century in the first match.

For India, Shikhar Dhawan was their top run-getter in the series, sandwiched between van der Dussen and Bavuma, making 169 runs at an average of 56.33 and strike rate of 86.66, with just two fifties.

India’s batters failed to aggregate 200 runs in the series. Moreover, no Indian batter got to the three-figure mark. While Dhawan and Kohli gave starts but were unable to make it big, the middle-order failed to stand up to the occasion and India’s batting lost the plot from there.

With the ODI series against West Indies at home in February, India will be hoping to fix the glitches in batting.

Middle overs muddle

It is no denying that India has a middle overs problem in batting, which was clearly illustrated in the ODIs against South Africa. In the first ODI, compared to South Africa’s 171/2 in that stage, India were 148/6, unable to stop the wickets from falling and thus weren’t able to make as many runs as they would have liked.

The script repeated when India batted first in the second ODI, making 160/5 in the middle overs phase. Then the script again repeated itself when chasing 288 on Sunday, India could muster 160/5 in the middle overs. Also, in terms of partnership, South Africa had at least a three-figure stand in every match of the series, something India did only once (in the second ODI).
Spinners outplayed
Much was expected of Ravichandran Ashwin’s off-spin and Yuzvendra Chahal’s leg-spin against South Africa. But they couldn’t put up a good show as South Africa’s spinners outplayed them. In a complete reversal of 2018, where Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav bamboozled the South Africa batters, here the Proteas’ spinners were getting the better of India’s batters.
Overall, the troika of Tabraiz Shamsi, Keshav Maharaj and Aiden Markram took nine wickets in 65 overs while conceding 218 runs. On the other hand, combining Ashwin, Chahal, Jayant Yadav and Shreyas Iyer’s numbers, India had just three wickets from spin in 32.1 overs while conceding 343 runs. In terms of pace, South Africa took 15 wickets while their Indian counterparts could get ten wickets. Clearly, the spin attack didn’t do wonders for India.

National

Market volatility over Greenland issue to continue due to ‘few sticking points’: Report

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New Delhi, Jan 24 : Investors are likely to remain on edge over the proposed US framework on Greenland, and near-term volatility related to this issue can continue, a report has said.

The report from Bank of Baroda said that market participants are awaiting more details that could determine whether negotiations succeed or unravel.

“Going ahead, investors are likely to await more details of the deal, as there are a few sticking points which can derail the negotiations. Hence, some volatility can be expected,” the report said.

Several analysts expect the arrangement to resemble an update of the existing security agreement between the US and Denmark, which was signed in 1951, the report noted.

Further negotiations will follow in due course which will cover areas such as US military presence in Greenland, as well as use of its mineral resources and sovereignty, said Aditi Gupta, Economist, Bank of Baroda.

US President Donald Trump has framed Washington’s interest in Greenland as driven by national security concerns, but the island’s largely unexplored mineral wealth including oil, gas and rare earth elements is of interest to US, the report said.

“The announcement of a framework deal between the US and NATO has helped to soothe investors’ nerves, however the details of the deal are still fuzzy,” it added.

Geo-political tensions escalated and markets went into turmoil after the US President intensified rhetoric to annex Greenland and threatened economic measures against European countries that oppose US plans. In response, several European nations, including France, Germany, Sweden amongst others increased military deployment in Greenland, further escalating tensions.

Trump had announced a 10 per cent additional tariff on goods from the UK, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, Netherlands and Finland from February 1, 2026. The rate was expected to increase to 25 per cent by June 1, 2026.

Later, he backed off from his threat of imposing tariffs on European countries along the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos.

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Crime

Two Held With ₹68 Lakh Cash Near India-Myanmar Border In Mizoram; Heroin Worth ₹78 Lakh Seized

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Aizawl: Two persons were arrested with Rs 68 lakh in cash near the India-Myanmar border in east Mizoram’s Champhai district, officials said on Thursday.

Acting on a tip-off, the Assam Rifles intercepted a vehicle at Zote village on August 11, they said.

Upon thorough checking, Rs 60 lakh in cash was recovered from two persons in the vehicle.

The duo, identified as Joseph Lalthansanga and Vanlalruati, could not state any proper reason why they were carrying such a huge amount of cash. They were subsequently handed over to the police for legal action, officials said.

In another operation, the Assam Rifles recovered 94.6 gram of heroin, worth Rs 78 lakh, from the village on Wednesday.

The drugs were handed over to the Excise and Narcotics Department, officials said.

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National

India’s AI Tech Spending Projected To Reach Rs. 92 Thousand Crore By 2028: Report

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India’s AI technology spending is projected to grow at an annualised rate of 38 per cent from 2023 to reach $10.4 billion (approximately Rs. 92 thousand crore) in 2028, a report said on Thursday.

Around 40 per cent of organisations in India have already implemented agentic AI, and close to 50 per cent are planning to use the technology within the next 12 months, IDC InfoBrief and UiPath said in a joint report.

In 2025, AI investments are focused on building the foundational infrastructure required to power transformative, high-value use cases.

According to the report, the adoption is surging, fueled by a tech-savvy workforce, expanding digital infrastructure, and government-backed initiatives.

Organisations’ spending on enterprise automation, multilingual AI models, and agentic deployments is driving this momentum further.

The benefits are already visible, as 80 per cent of Indian companies say agentic AI boosts productivity, while 73 per cent say it improves decision-making, the report said.

According to the report, agentic AI is gaining strong traction across the manufacturing, retail and wholesale, healthcare, and life sciences industries, which heavily rely on data and repetitive decision-making cycles.

“Agentic automation is rapidly redefining business operations across India. While enterprises in this region are embracing the full potential of AI agents to streamline workflows and autonomously execute complex business processes, trust and security remain barriers to widespread implementation,” said DebDeep Sengupta, Area Vice President, South Asia, UiPath.

Our agentic automation platform directly addresses these challenges, breaking down barriers to enterprise AI adoption by enhancing security and compliance, improving accuracy and reliability for agentic outcomes, Sengupta added.

About 69 per cent of Indian organisations are using agentic AI to enhance productivity, 59 per cent to drive personalised customer engagement, while 57 per cent apply it to risk and fraud detection, highlighting how agentic AI is being applied across front and back-office functions, the report highlighted.

“Becoming an AI-fueled business is no longer an option in today’s unpredictable climate. For many organisations, it’s fast becoming a strategic necessity,” said Deepika Giri, Associate Vice President, IDC Asia/Pacific.

Across the region, organisations are embracing agentic AI and agentic automation at scale, Giri added.

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