South Africa Vs India, 2018: Five Talking Points – Centurion Test, 2nd Test Day One

Following the comedy of errors, the quick wickets saw India right back into the game after the bowlers toiled hard throughout the day on day one of the second Test at SuperSport Park on January 13 (Saturday) as we have prepared the five talking points of the mixed-day for both the teams.

With the lack of pace on the Centurion surface, South Africa after winning the toss opted to bat first which proved to be a good sign as the first wicket post 85 runs.

However, the world-ranked No.1 Test side India made a strong comeback while pouncing on the opportunities after dropping a couple of catches throughout the day.

At stumps, the Proteas are 269 for six in 90 overs with Faf du Plessis batting on 24 off 77, and Keshav Maharaj faced 23 balls for his 10.

Let’s have a look what are the five-hot talking points of the day:  

Aiden Markram Nervous 90s:

Arguably, the technically sound batsman was marching to register his third Test hundred in his seventh innings of fifth Test fixture; however, the pressure seemed to have got better of the batsman, who played sensible cricket on a surface which didn’t offer much for the bowlers.

The 23-year-old right-handed batsman was going well with the bat which further saw his family cherishing his second half-century of his Test career.

Makram scored 94 off 150 deliveries as his innings included 15 fours before the faint edge settled into the gloves of Parthiv Patel on the bowling of off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.

After knitting 85 for the first wicket, Markram added 63 runs with batting mainstay Hashim Amla.

Lucky Hashim Amla:

The 34-year-old Hashim Amla has been solid in his defense which saw him scoring runs with ease on a surface where the odd-balls kept low and similarly kicked off from the surface.

The right-handed batsman Amla was dropped on 14 by Hardik Pandya which was somewhat a difficult chance, but in the space of half-an-hour, the former was dropped by gloveman Parthiv Patel on 30 when Wriddhiman Saha’s replacement saw a ball coming off his webbing down the leg-side.

Indian bowlers toiled hard, but the flurry of wickets brought into right into the game.

India bagged four wickets in the last session which further saw Vernon Philander was ball watching when du Plessis told him to stay in your crease in the last half an hour of day’s play.

The last session saw Kohli opting for the attacking field when his counterpart was batting on the other side.

Ishant Sharma got AB de Villiers:

The lanky fast bowler Ishant Sharma had enough experience on his back when it comes to the overseas condition, but his inclusion forced India to bench the bowling spearhead Bhuvneshwar Kumar, which has surprised many including the cricket pundits.

AB de Villiers (20 off 48), who is known for his batting prowess. He has received a short and wide delivery from Ishant. However, he played with a horizontal bat as the thick inside edge dislodged the bails.

It becomes pertinent here that, Ishant got the wicket while sending down his 75th delivery when the Proteas post 199 on board.

Throughout the day Ishant sent down 16 in which he conceded 32 runs and bowled three maidens.

Hardik Pandya’s brilliance in the field turned it on:

As the play was nearing to close and the hosts were going strong at 246 in 8.5, it was Hardik Pandya, who pulled a sensation run out while finding Hashim Amla well short of his crease.

The incident took place Amla was facing Pandya, as the well-directed short-pitched delivery saw the former getting right on to the ball before accepting the call from his captain Faf du Plessis.

Confusion for the split of a second saw Pandya racing towards the ball before aiming the direct hit at the non-strikers’ end, as the TV replays suggested Amla was out of the crease which led to the celebratory dab by the 23-year-old all-rounder alongside Rohit Sharma.

However, Amla managed to score 82 off 153 balls. His innings included 14 fours.

Follow India’s tour to South Africa: South Africa Vs India, 2018