Cape Town: Without (Dale) Steyn, with rain, we can still inflict pain! That was one of the slogans which appeared at the Newlands during the South Africa-India Test match which ended here Monday.
Well that slogan aptly summed up India’s predicament as the visitors collapsed to 135 all out while chasing a victory target of 208 to hand a 72-run victory margin to the hosts.
On a day when pacers ruled, 18 wickets fell in 64 overs. Mohammed Shami (3/28), Jasprit Bumrah (3/39) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/33) conjured up hopes of an Indian victory by dismissing South Africa for 130 in their second innings (Steyn did not bat), but worse was to follow.
Even without Steyn, the South African trio of Vernon Philander (6/42), Morne Morkel (2/39) and Kagiso Rabada (2/41) simply tore apart the much-vaunted Indian batting line-up. The Indians found the going tough right from the word go and their habit of planting their foot forward found them wanting while negotiating the bounce.
The only time India looked like making a match out of it was when skipper Virat Kohli (28) and Rohit Sharma (10) put on 32 runs for the fourth wicket. Kohli tried to take the game to the South Africans with an aggressive approach, but once Philander had him in plumb in front with one that jagged back, the writing was clear on the wall. The others simply did not have the technique to carry the team through.
Ravi Ashwin (37, 53b, 5×4) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (13, 41b, 1×4) did offer some stoic resistance while putting 49 runs for the eighth wicket. But Philander returning for his fourth spell of the day simply ran through the tail to complete a memorable win for the hosts.
Earlier Shami and Bumrah bowled brilliantly in the first session to dismiss South Africa for 130 on the stroke of lunch. Both looked sharp and with the pitch offering them assistance, they were quite a handful for the hosts’ batsmen. AB de Villiers (35, 50b, 2×4, 2×6) was the only one to offer solidity in the middle.
The question that will haunt the Indians however, is their inability to tackle the bounce, even though before the tour, they had boasted ‘preparations were perfect’. This was a great opportunity… chasing 208 would have been difficult, but not impossible had they perfected the ‘art of leaving’. In the end, they were found ‘leaving’ the ground as the second best side.
What a predicament!
Agencies