India’s Elite bowler Jasprit Bumrah took six wickets in the first session, while South Africa’s Aiden Markram batted his way to a battling century for the Proteas on Day 2 of the series finale at Newlands. After the Proteas were all out for 176, Rohit Sharma and his team chased down the 79-run mark to defeat the hosts by 7 wickets at Newlands. In Dean Elgar’s farewell Test, India achieved its first-ever victory in Cape Town after the visitors came back from a horrible 11-ball collapse on the first day where Virat Kohli was the top scorer for India scoring 46. On Thursday, India won the shortest completed Test match to tie the series 1-1.
On the crazy first day of the New Year’s Test match between India and South Africa in Cape Town, as many as 23 wickets fell. In the opening session of the series decider at Newlands, Mohammed Siraj dismantled the Proteas lineup with his maiden six-wicket haul, sparking a startling batting collapse by the hosts in the first innings.
The Game for Pacers
Siraj’s career-best figures of 6-15 set the stage for Rohit Sharma and company to skittle the hosts for 55 in their opening match in Cape Town. India too suffered a dramatic collapse in Elgar’s farewell Test, as South Africa recovered after the tea break. Lungi Ngidi bowled a triple-wicket maiden after tea to turn the game on its head. Kagiso Rabada took two wickets alongside speedster Ngidi as India was knocked out for 153 in the space of 11 deliveries.
Nandre Burger, who picked up three wickets before the break to keep the Proteas in the game, had previously supported Ngidi and Rabada. On Day 1 of the Cape Town final, Rohit and his team restricted South Africa to 62-3 in 17 overs after recovering from the huge Indian collapse. Elgar, South Africa’s stand-in captain, became the second batter to be removed twice on the first day of the Test match. In South Africa’s second innings, India’s pacers Mukesh Kumar, Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Bumrah shared 10 wickets. India became the first Asian team to defeat South Africa in Cape Town.
Expert’s View on the Pitch
Gavaskar stated that the cracks at Newlands were around 8 meters long, which shouldn’t be a problem for Test hitters.
The pitch at Newlands in Cape Town for the second Test match between India and South Africa is far from perfect for Test cricket. As Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli discovered on Day 1, the sharp and unpredictable bounce on offer from decent length makes it nearly hard for hitters to feel secure even after spending a significant amount of time in the middle. Sunil Gavaskar and Shaun Pollock’s pitch report before the start of the second day’s play added to their confidence.
Pollock and Gavaskar pointed out that the grass used to keep the cracks on the pitch from expanding too quickly due to the harsh sunlight causing the irregular bounce. Pollock stated that the grass cracks are in a small region and that if the ball pitches there, the bounce will be unexpected.
Records that were broken in INDIA vs SA
Team India became the first Asian team to beat South Africa in Cape Town, led by Rohit Sharma. India won the shortest completed test match against SA in the second test match in terms of balls bowled (642), the previous shortest match was AUS vs SA (656) in 1932.
The first day of the Test match saw 23 wickets fall, which is the second-highest total for wickets lost on the first day of a Test match. 25 wickets in a day have been recorded since the AUS vs. Eng test in 1902.
The Bizarre Collapse of India: WOWOWOOWOWW! India became the first team in cricket history to lose six wickets in a row without scoring any more runs. When India was at a comfortable 153/4 at one point, this extraordinary collapse took place.
India registered an unbelievable six ducks throughout their innings, matching the record for most ducks in a single Test innings by a side. Pakistan, South Africa, Bangladesh, and New Zealand have previously shared this record.
Elgar’s Farewell: Dean Elgar is just the second player to be dismissed twice on the same day of his final Test match, following Australia’s Jack Barrett in 1890.
