The Indian Cricket Team is in deep-deep trouble after a tough day with the bat against the Proteas. The home side is on the verge of being whitewashed at home for the second time within 12 months.
Today was Day Three of the second and final India vs South Africa Test match. The game is being played at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati, and saw the away team win the toss and decide to bat first on a pitch that was expected to deteriorate as the match went on.
Day One ended with several South African batters getting decent starts, but none of them made big runs. The day ended at 247/6. However, the pair of Kyle Verreynne and Senuran Muthusamy gave Indian bowlers a lot of trouble on day 2, forming an 88-run partnership for the seventh wicket.
Then, the eighth wicket partnership was worth 87 runs. With the help of a speedy 93 off 91 by Marco Jansen and a splendid ton by Muthusamy, the defending World Test Champions ended their inning at a staggering score of 489. Day Two ended with India at 9/0.
India Vs South Africa: India In Trouble After A Tough Day 3 With The Bat
The start of Day Three saw the Indian opening duo of Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul surviving and scoring runs. The Proteas spin unit of Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer gave some nice spin to the ball. Couple that with a lot of bounce, and the deck at Guwahati had become a batterâ€s nightmare.
Rahul would eventually fall to Maharaj, as the Indian Cricket Team lost their first wicket at 65. In the next few overs, Jaiswal would reach his half-century and would be dismissed soon after by Harmer, 95/2.
This was the start of a string of wickets that were to follow, as in his very next over, Harmer scalped Sai Sudharsan after setting a trap for the young batter. And then, before the end of the session, Dhruv Jurel would misjudge a bouncer by the tall Marco Jansen, send the ball straight up in the air, and get caught for a duck, 102/5.
The start of the second session of the day was disastrous for India as well, as wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant played a rash shot and was caught behind off Jansen after making just seven runs, 105/5.
Nitish Kumar Reddy was next, at the crease alongside Ravindra Jadeja. Reddy, despite making 10 off 18, never looked comfortable on the crease and was surprised by a quick Jansen bouner, getting caught in the slips. Jaddu would go next after just making six, becoming Marco Jansenâ€s fourth wicket of the day.
While Washington Sundar did mount some counterattack at this point, session two was won by the Proteas as well, taking three wickets and crippling the Indian middle-order.
Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav formed the best partnership for India in this inning, after the opening, making 62 runs together before Sundar got out after he scored 48 off 92. He was also Jansenâ€s fifth wicket. This was the bowling all-rounderâ€s first Test fifer against the Indian Cricket Team.
The tail wasnâ€t a lot of trouble for the South African Cricket Team. The next wicket to fall was Kuldeep Yadav, who had a fighting yet struggling inning, getting out for 19 off 134. Jasprit Bumrahâ€s wicket wrapped up the Indian innings at 201 runs. The hosts, after the first inning, trailed by 288 runs and were eligible for a follow-on.
However, seeing the deteriorating conditions of the pitch, South Africa instead chose to bat again and ended the day at 26/0, leading the match by 314 runs with two days remaining.
After a disappointing loss in the first India vs South Africa Test, the Rishabh Pant-led side is almost certainly out of contention to win this match, barring a miracle. The only result they can realistically go for is a draw. But that result too would mean that India would lose their second Test series at home within a span of 12 months, having been whitewashed by New Zealand last year.
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