The South African summer was in full swing when Siddanth Deva touched down in Durban. While the Test squad, led by MS Dhoni, had fought a gladiatorial battle to draw the series 1-1—a historic achievement in itself—Deva had been watching from his house in Hyderabad, resting his body and sharpening his mind.
But now, the whites were packed away. The colored jerseys were out.
It was January 2011. The final dress rehearsal before the World Cup.
The conditions in South Africa—fast, bouncy, and hostile—were the ultimate test for a batting lineup preparing for a World Cup at home.
Deva joined the squad at the team hotel on the Durban beachfront. The mood was serious.
"Welcome back, vacationer," Dhoni greeted him at breakfast, looking tired but focused.
"Ready to run, Skipper," Deva replied, grabbing an apple.
"Good," Dhoni said. "Because Steyn is bowling thunderbolts. And you're batting at Number 3."
1st ODI
Venue: Kingsmead, Durban.
Date: Jan 12, 2011.
Kingsmead was humid, but the pitch had its traditional bounce.
South Africa, led by Graeme Smith, won the toss and elected to bat.
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1st Innings
Hashim Amla was in the form of his life. He caressed the Indian bowling, scoring a fluid 60. Jacques Kallis and AB de Villiers built on the foundation.
Deva was given the ball as the first-change bowler.
He looked rusty. His line was slightly off.
AB de Villiers punished him, hitting him for two boundaries through the covers.
But he got 2 wickets of the tailenders.
Deva bowled 8 overs for 55 runs and took 2 Wickets.
South Africa posted 289/9.
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2nd Innings
Chasing 290 under lights in Durban is historically difficult.
Murali Vijay fell early to Dale Steyn.
Siddanth Deva walked out at No. 3.
He looked good initially. He pulled Lonwabo Tsotsobe for a six. He drove Morne Morkel down the ground.
He reached 40 off 35 balls.
But then, he got overconfident. He tried to cut a ball from Tsotsobe that was too close to his body.
Chop on.
WICKET: S. Deva b Tsotsobe 40.
The middle order crumbled. Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh, and Dhoni failed to build partnerships.
India was bowled out for 224.
Result: South Africa Won by 65 Runs.
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The silence was heavy.
Gary Kirsten, the coach, stood in the center.
"We were soft," Kirsten said, his voice hard. "We are the Number 1 team in the world. We played like schoolboys. Deva, you threw your wicket away. You were set."
Deva nodded, staring at his boots. "Won't happen again, Coach."
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2nd ODI
Venue: New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg.
Date: Jan 15, 2011.
The "Bullring" was intimidating. The stands were steep, enclosing the ground like a coliseum. The pitch was fast—the fastest in the country.
Dhoni won the toss. "We will bat first. Let's put the pressure on them."
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1st Innings
India lost Murali Vijay on the second ball of the match (Steyn special).
Deva walked in at 0/1.
Steyn was breathing fire. 150kph. Outswing.
Deva took guard.
He left the first ten balls alone. He let Steyn glare at him.
Over 10: Steyn went off. Wayne Parnell came on.
Deva shifted gears.
He drove Parnell for three consecutive boundaries.
He was joined by Virat Kohli (batting at 4).
The two young guns tried to stabilize the innings.
Kohli fell for 22, run out in a mix-up.
Yuvraj Singh fell cheaply.
India was 100/4.
Enter MS Dhoni.
Deva and Dhoni.
Deva reached his 50 off 60 balls.
Then, he targeted the spinners, Botha and Peterson.
He launched Botha over long-on for a massive six that landed in the upper tier.
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In the 42nd over, Deva faced Morne Morkel. A steep bouncer.
Deva rocked back and hooked it. He didn't roll his wrists; he swatted it.
The ball flew over square leg.
CENTURY.
100 off 105 balls.
He didn't celebrate wildly. He just punched his glove. Job not done.
He accelerated at the death, scoring a blistering 135 off 128 balls before getting caught on the boundary in the last over.
India posted 298/6.
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2nd Innings
Chasing 299, South Africa started well. Graeme Smith was hitting hard.
Deva was given the ball in the 15th over.
He was angry about his bowling in Durban.
He decided to use the conditions. The pitch had bounce.
He bowled a heavy ball, hitting the deck hard.
Wicket 1: He bounced out Graeme Smith. Top edge to Fine Leg.
Wicket 2: He bowled the perfect outswinger to AB de Villiers. Edged to Dhoni.
Wicket 3: He trapped JP Duminy LBW with a cutter.
Wicket 4: He cleaned up Wayne Parnell.
Deva Figures: 4/35 in 9 overs.
South Africa collapsed to 240 all out.
Result: India Won by 58 Runs.
Series: 1-1.
Man of the Match: Siddanth Deva (135 Runs, 4 Wickets).
Presentation:
Mike Haysman: "Siddanth, you looked like a different player today compared to Durban."
Deva: "Durban was a wake-up call. I realized I couldn't just trust my eye on these pitches; I had to respect the bounce. With the ball, I just tried to hit the seam."
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3rd ODI
Venue: Newlands, Cape Town.
Date: Jan 18, 2011.
Cape Town. Table Mountain in the background. A picturesque venue for a brutal game.
South Africa batted first.
Hashim Amla and JP Duminy played brilliantly.
They were cruising towards 300.
Dhoni was running out of options. Zaheer Khan was expensive.
Deva came on in the death overs (Powerplay 3).
Over 41:
Ball 1: Deva to Duminy. Yorker. BOWLED.
Ball 2: Deva to David Miller. Miller tried to slog. Caught at Long On.
Ball 3: Johan Botha. Slower ball. Chip shot to Cover.
HAT-TRICK!
The Newlands crowd stood up. An Indian taking a hat-trick in South Africa?
Deva didn't stop.
In his next over, he removed Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn.
Deva Figures: 5/28 in 8 overs.
South Africa was restricted to 220 from a position of 260.
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India was in trouble at 90/5. Deva had failed with the bat (10 runs), nicking Steyn.
It looked like a lost cause.
But Yusuf Pathan walked in.
Yusuf played one of the greatest ODI innings ever played by an Indian in SA.
He smashed 59 off 50 balls.
He dragged India close.
Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan supported him.
India won a thriller by 2 wickets with 10 balls to spare.
Result: India Won by 2 Wickets.
Series: India leads 2-1.
Man of the Match: Deva for 5 wickets.
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4th ODI
Venue: St George's Park, Port Elizabeth.
Date: Jan 21, 2011.
The pitch at PE is traditionally slow and low—more like an Indian wicket.
India had a chance to win the series. A historic first ODI series win in South Africa.
Dhoni won the toss. Bat First.
1st Innings
India lost Rohit Sharma (opening) early.
Siddanth Deva walked in at No. 3.
The pitch was sluggish. The ball wasn't coming on.
Deva realized that 300 was impossible. 240 was a winning score.
He played a Test match innings in colored clothing.
He rotated the strike with Virat Kohli (who scored a gritty 40).
He didn't hit a single boundary between over 15 and over 35. He just ran hard.
1s into 2s.
In the last 10 overs, he opened up.
He targeted the spinner Robin Peterson.
He stepped out and hit him for two straight sixes.
He reached his Century in the 48th over.
100 off 115 balls. A slow, grinding, match-winning century.
He finished on 112 not out.
India posted 245/7.
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2nd Innings
Defending 245 required discipline.
South Africa started cautiously. Hashim Amla anchored.
But the Indian spinners strangled them.
Deva was brought on to break the partnership between Amla and Duminy.
Wicket 1: He bowled a cross-seam delivery that stopped on Amla. Amla checked his drive and was caught and bowled. The big fish.
Wicket 2: He removed Colin Ingram.
Wicket 3: He cleaned up Rusty Theron at the end.
Deva Figures: 3/40 in 10 overs.
South Africa fell short by 48 runs.
Result: India Won by 48 Runs.
Series: India leads 3-1. SERIES WON.
The Indian team huddled in the middle. They had done it. They had conquered South Africa in South Africa.
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5th ODI
Venue: SuperSport Park, Centurion.
Date: Jan 23, 2011.
With the series in the bag, India relaxed slightly.
They made changes to the XI.
South Africa, stinging from the loss, came hard.
1st Innings:
South Africa batted first.
Hashim Amla was unstoppable. He scored a magnificent 116 not out.
They posted 250/9.
Deva bowled well but was unlucky. Catches were dropped off his bowling.
He eventually took 3 Wickets in the death overs (cleaning up the tail again), boosting his series tally.
Deva Figures: 3/45.
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2nd Innings:
Chasing 251, India had a rare top-order collapse.
Deva scored a quick 20 before being run out by a brilliant piece of fielding from Faf du Plessis (sub).
Yusuf Pathan tried to hit out, scoring a rapid 105.
Despite Yusuf's heroics, India fell short by 33 runs.
Result: South Africa Won by 33 Runs.
Series Result: India Won 3-2.
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The sun was setting over Centurion as the teams lined up.
Graeme Smith looked disappointed but gracious. MS Dhoni looked satisfied.
Ravi Shastri (Presenter): "A historic series win for India! They have adapted, they have fought, and they have conquered. But one man stood head and shoulders above the rest. With 267 Runs (2 Centuries) and 17 Wickets in 5 matches... the Man of the Series is Siddanth Deva!"
Deva walked up to the podium. The South African crowd applauded respectfully. They appreciated tough cricket.
Shastri: "Sid, you missed the Tests, but you made up for it in the ODIs. 17 wickets? You are bowling faster than some of the frontline pacers."
Deva: "I worked a lot on my fitness during the break. The wickets here suit my bowling—hit the deck hard, get some movement. And batting at No. 3 gives me time to build an innings. It was a great team effort. Yusuf bhai's innings today was unbelievable."
Shastri: "The World Cup is next. With a series win. Confidence must be high?"
Deva: "Very high. But the World Cup is a different pressure. We play for 1.2 billion people. We will be ready."
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Hyderabad Airport. Jan 25, 2011.
Deva pushed his trolley through the arrivals gate.
This time, there was no hiding.
Hundreds of fans were waiting. The moment he stepped out, the chant began.
"DE-VA! DE-VA! WORLD CUP LAO!" (Bring the World Cup!)
He waved, signing a few autographs as security rushed him to his car.
He sat in the back of the SUV, closing his eyes.
The South Africa tour was the final forge. The steel had been tempered.
He opened his phone.
A message from Arjun.
"Welcome home. The Fortress is ready. And Nexus just signed a deal with Facebook. We are live."
Deva smiled.
He looked out the window at the Hyderabad traffic.
The billboards were already up.
"BLEED BLUE. BRING IT HOME."
Faces of Sachin, Dhoni, Sehwag, Yuvraj, and Deva stared down from every flyover.
He tapped the screen of his phone, opening the calendar.
February 19, 2011.
India vs Bangladesh. Mirpur.
The first game of the World Cup.
He whispered to the empty car.
"It's time."