South Africa shredded the Indian batting lineup to claim victory by an innings and 32 runs in the first Test on Thursday, securing the win inside three days and ensuring their proud home record against the tourists remains intact.
The home attack dismissed India for 131 in their second innings after South Africa had earlier scored 408, giving them a 163-run first-innings lead at Centurion. Only Virat Kohli provided any resistance in an alarming collapse as the debutant Nandre Burger took four wickets, Marco Jansen three and Kagiso Rabada two. With only two Tests being played, South Africa cannot lose the series and remain the only country where India have yet to win an away series.
It was a devastating bowling performance, from the first ball of India’s second innings where South Africa could have had a wicket had Aiden Markram, at second slip, not dropped an edge from Yashasvi Jaiswal off Rabada. But in his next over the fiery paceman bowled the India captain, Rohit Sharma, and Jaiswal then gloved a searing delivery from Burger to depart for five.
Shubman Gill led a brief fightback for his beleaguered team as he scored 26 off 37 balls. He was bowled by Jansen to leave India 62 for three at tea. But while Kohli proved a bulwark, wickets continued to fall at the start of the final session with Shreyas Iyer castled by Jansen (for six) and then Burger taking two wickets in as many balls. KL Rahul, who scored a century in the first innings, went cheaply for four as he edged to Markram and Ravichandran Ashwin was caught next ball as he cut straight to gully.
David Bedingham took a second catch at gully as Shardul Thakur (2) became Rabada’s seventh victim of the Test before Jasprit Bumrah was run out without scoring. A slight brush on the thumb of his glove saw Mohammed Siraj go next after South Africa had reviewed and Kohli was the last out for 76 runs off 82 balls, brilliantly caught in the deep by a diving Rabada in a fitting end.
“Honestly, look, we [were] not good enough to win this match,” said Rohit afterwards. “I thought we got decent runs on the board on that track in the first innings, KL Rahul did brilliantly to get us that century. But then we failed to exploit the conditions with the ball. Then again, we didn’t show up with the bat today as well. Our batting was poor in the second innings. If you want to win Test matches, you’ve got to come together collectively. But we failed to do that.”
South Africa had begun the day with an 11-run lead, on 256 for six, with Dean Elgar moving from 140 to 185 before he was dismissed 30 minutes before lunch. He and Marco Jansen put on an 111-run partnership for the sixth wicket, as the pair started the day with positive intent and then fended off some intimidating bowling when India took the second new ball. Jansen was 84 not out, his highest Test score.
The second Test will be at Newlands in Cape Town from 3-7 January.
