KL Rahul loses control, celebrates hilariously as India finally win a toss after ages; Temba Bavuma reacts

India finally ended their shocking run of bad luck at the toss, as the stand-in captain KL Rahul got it right in the third and final ODI against South Africa at the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam, breaking a streak of 20 straight toss losses.

The last time the Indian cricket team won a toss in an ODI was back in the 2023 World Cup semi-final against New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Since that match, Indian captains, including Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, and KL Rahul, have lost 20 successive tosses.

KL Rahul breaks India’s 20-toss curse with a joyful celebration in Visakhapatnam

The moment the coin showed tails, KL Rahul couldn’t hide his relief. The Indian skipper broke into a funny little celebration that instantly made everyone around him laugh, including the match officials, commentators, and his teammates in Visakhapatnam.

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South Africa captain Temba Bavuma had called heads, but the coin fell the other way, and it almost felt like India had won a mini-match even before the three-match ODI series decider began. Rahul looked genuinely happy, and he didn’t waste a moment in choosing to bowl first.

pic.twitter.com/bIed5oMqvF Funny side of KL Rahul🤩😂#KLRahul #INDvsSA

— KLR/AA (@klr_aa) December 6, 2025

India won the toss after decades & look at that happiness on face of KL Rahul 😂#INDvsSApic.twitter.com/wCOGHM9pvO

— Natasha 🎀 (@heyyNatashuu) December 6, 2025

🚨 INDIA WON A TOSS IN ODI CRICKET. 🚨

- The celebration from captain KL Rahul. 🤣pic.twitter.com/Zca4HnYu3V

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) December 6, 2025

Washington Sundar makes way for Tilak Varma for ODI series decider

India made one change to their playing XI, dropping the struggling all-rounder Washington Sundar, who made way for the young, explosive batter Tilak Varma for the ODI series decider against the Proteas.

India’s stand-in captain also explained why they decided to bowl first in Vishakhapatnam. Rahul said that they checked the conditions during training last night, and the staff noticed some dew, but not as much as in Ranchi or Raipur, so they wanted to try defending later. He felt the pitch looked good and expected it to stay fair throughout the match.

India XI: Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul (C/WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna

What KL Rahul said at the toss?

KL Rahul said at the toss, “Rahul: We'll bowl. We trained here last night and the feedback from the coaches was that there was dew, but it didn't come in as early as Ranchi and Raipur. We were obviously planning to bowl second, keeping our track record in mind. I don't think it's going to play such a big part like Raipur and Ranchi.

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But, we just want to change the total and see how we can bowl first. Yeah, it looks like a good wicket. We just need to stay consistent with what we're doing and stay consistent with that process. We know that the results will follow. Not many things that we're looking to change. Just trying to sharpen a couple of things in the field and the results will go our way.”

Temba Bavuma eyes strong start as injuries force major changes for ODI series decider

On the other hand, Temba Bavuma said that they would have preferred to bowl first as well, but now their focus is on getting a strong start and building a total good enough to challenge India in the series decider. Bavuma said that his team will give everything to finish on the winning side.

The South Africa captain confirmed two changes in their playing XI, with Ryan Rickelton and Ottneil Baartman coming in after Nandre Burger and Tony de Zorzi were ruled out of the final ODI due to injuries. Bavuma said that this match is a big chance for the duo to deliver for them.

Temba Bavuma said at the toss, “A good start upfront will set it up for the middle order; we'll try and put a competitive score on the board and then hopefully defend it. It's been entertaining, hasn't it? From the red ball stuff now to the white ball stuff. The crowd has come out, and I'm sure they'll be rooting for the Indian side. Today is another important one, and like always, we'll do our best to make sure we're on the right side of the result.”

South Africa XI: Ryan Rickelton, Quinton de Kock (WK), Temba Bavuma (C), Matthew Breetzke, Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman