India Tour Of South Africa, 2023–24

South Africa vs India, 1st Test Report

It has always been boring to watch a five-day cricket match ending in 3 days, whether it is in favor of your team or not. However, in Centurion, after witnessing KL Rahul slam a century, we saw another outstanding century from the Proteas’ batting lineup. The man who decimated the Indian bowling lineup was Dean Elgar, who stood as a dean of the pitch, ensuring that his 185 runs did not go to waste.

After Rahul’s century helped India get closer to the score of 250, which seemed to be a good enough first-innings total at Centurion, the Indian bowling lineup didn’t trouble Dean Elgar much. He built his innings meticulously, making sure that other batsmen also revolved around him and contributed to the runs. This strategy worked well, especially after Siraj dismissed Aiden Markram, leaving the score at 11.

Following that, Tony de Zorzi, David Bedingham, and Marco Jansen played exceptionally well, standing with Dean Elgar and giving South Africa a massive lead of 163. Speaking about the Indian bowling lineup, which excelled in Test cricket from 2018 to 2021, especially in SENA countries, there seems to be a shift in their performance.

The 2023 World Test Championship final and the recent match we saw a more defensive bowling approach, creating difficulties for Indian bowlers to take 10 wickets outside home conditions. There were issues with Shardul Thakur’s line and length, and his no-balls plagued him and india in this test match. While it’s challenging to play in different conditions, especially for visiting teams.

Rohit Sharma’s wicket fell early in the second innings to Rabada, and Shubman Gill’s dismissal again showcased his weakness of throwing his body away. Virat Kohli performed well but fell short of his century. The innings and 39 runs defeat were humiliating, and due to this loss and a slow over rate, India now sits at the 6th position on the World Test Championship table. On the other hand, with their first win, South Africa has become the table topper.

Looking ahead to the next game, Rohit Sharma’s plans will be interesting to see. Whether he makes changes or sticks with the same team remains to be seen.