South Africa wrapped up the 1st Test in three days beating India by an innings and 32 runs in Centurion.
DAY 1: RABADA STARS WITH FIVE-FOR | 1ST TEST SOUTH AFRICA VS INDIA
DAY 2: DEAN ELGAR SCORES TON | 1ST TEST SOUTH AFRICA VS INDIA
Marco Jansen partnered Dean Elgar beautifully. They capitalized on the old ball in the beginning of the morning session, with Elgar reaching his 150 and also his highest score against India.
The introduction of the new ball later on didn’t hamper the scoring rate. However, it did reveal that the sun baking on the wicket would display some tricky cracks that would cause some issues for batters later on in the day.
The pair brought up a century partnership with Jansen scoring a brilliant half-century, as they went past 350 comfortably, taking their lead past 100.
Elgar got himself to 185 but a sad groan went around the ground when he lost his wicket with SA on 360 and the lead at 115.
The lead climbed to 146 with Coetzee’s introduction, he hit a quick-fire 19 off 18 balls before losing his wicket.
SA finished the first session on 392-7 with a lead of 147 by lunch.
Jansen ended on 72 not out and by the end of the innings he was 84 not out.
Nandre Burger was the final player to fall with Bavuma not coming out to bat, SA all out for 408 with a lead of 163.
Kagiso Rabada was on the money straight away. First Markram dropped Jaiswal off the first ball of the innings.
He made up for it in his second over, when he bowled Rohit Sharma (0) beautifully, angling the ball in and hitting the top of off stump. India were 5-1 after 3 overs.
Nandre Burger was the next to strike, and Jaiswal not getting a second chance. He couldn’t get his glove out of the way of a ball that came at him with steep bounce, and Kyle Verreynne took an easy catch. India was now 13-2 trailing by 150.
Gill played some beautiful cover drives, Marco Jansen baring the majority of punishment, but the bowler held his never and clean bowled his middle stump for 26 to reduce India to 52-3.
Another dropped catch in the slips would have hurt SA, when Keegan Petersen put down Iyer in the slips, for are more difficult take.
India went into Tea on 62-3, trailing by 101 runs.
Jansen kept the pressure on India with another beautiful delivery that crashed into Iyers off stump, making up for the dropped catch earlier. India lost their fourth.
Virat Kholi batted with freedom, but SA still managed to take wickets. Burger removed KL Rahul for 4 and then Ashwin the ball after in the 26th over.
India were 96-6 trailing by 67.
Rabada then reduced India to 105-7, Thakur edging the ball to Bedingham at Gully.
Bumrah was then run out by the combination of Elgar and Rabada to reduce India to 113-8.
Burger (4-33) then took his 4th with a lethal delivery directed at Soraj’s body and he thumbed the ball to the keeper. India were on the brink of a total collapse at 121-9.
Virat Kohli was the final wicket to fall thanks to a beautiful diving catch from KG at long on.
South Africa completed a victory by an innings and 32 runs.
