KL Rahul admits ignoring Virat Kohli’s advice, reveals brain behind India’s left-hand toss move

KL Rahul revealed that he ignored Virat Kohli’s advice after winning the toss in the third ODI against South Africa at the ADA-VCA Stadium in Vishakhapatnam on Saturday (December 6). This victory was a pivotal moment for the Men in Blue as they ended their streak of 20 consecutive wins.

For those unfamiliar with this situation, India had broken a world record by losing the toss in 20 consecutive matches. The record for most consecutive shooting losses was at 11. This unusual series, which is mathematically rare, started in the 2023 Cricket World Cup final.

Rahul, acting as captain, was seen flipping a coin with his left hand, a move that proved effective. He conveyed the idea to team analyst Hari and also stated that Virat Kohli gave him some suggestions.

“What worked for me today was Hari, our analyst, and he gave me a few tricks. He asked me to spin the ball from my left hand and cross it with my right hand. At this point, before the toss, there are a lot of superstitions and a lot of things that everyone says. Virat gave me a different idea. I stuck with Hari because he said the same thing in the last game too and he was the most aggressive out of everyone,” said Rahul. Interaction with BCCI.TV

Skipper KL Rahul breaks the series – #TeamIndia | #INDvSA | @klrahul | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/RIaxJMBPxv

— BCCI (@BCCI) December 6, 2025

During the 20-innings series, Rahul has captained all 20 matches, including three ODIs in the away series against South Africa in 2023 and two matches in the current series. Rohit Sharma led the team in 12 matches covering the entire 2025 Champions Trophy season, while Shubman Gill took charge in three matches.

Talking about the match, opener Yashasvi Jaiswal scored his maiden one-day international century as India secured the three-match series 2-1 with a dominant nine-wicket win against South Africa on Saturday. Chasing a target of 271, India took advantage of Jaiswal’s unbeaten 116 and an opening partnership of 155 with Rohit Sharma, who contributed 75 runs, to reach the target with 10.1 overs remaining in Visakhapatnam. Jaiswal celebrated his century in 111 balls by jumping for joy and raising his bat to greet the applause of the crowd; This was a major turning point in only his fourth ODI since his debut earlier this year.

Virat Kohli, who had scored centuries in the previous two matches, reached the winning mark and completed an unbeaten 65 off 45 balls, which delighted the weekend crowd.

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