The buildup to the India vs South Africa second Test in Cape Town was about the capitulation of the visitors in the first Test. After a loss by an innings and 32 runs in Centurion, the odds were stacked against the Rohit Sharma-led Indian cricket team. But it did not take long for the Men in Blue to dish out a cold revenge – only 107 overs, to be precise. India won the match by seven wickets in less than five sessions and drew the two-match series 1-1.
Jasprit Bumrah’s 6-61 triggered an early collapse in South Africa’s innings and put the Indian cricket team in a strong position. South Africa added only 55 to their overnight total as the home team crumbled under the pressure of India’s bowlers and ran out of steam in the final session.
It was a remarkable turnaround for the Proteas after they lost their nerves in the previous Test in their backyard, but it was a result of the hard work done by the Indian cricket team. The visitors made a spirited effort to reach the target on a pitch difficult for batters to cope with, but they ran out of steam.
South Africa was a shell-shocked side, a massive contrast to the high-flying, turbo-charged team they were in the previous Test. It is an indication of the kind of damage that a good bowling unit can cause.
Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul kept the scoreboard ticking with a handful of easy singles, but they were always behind the run-rate. Bumrah had the best of it when de Zorzi caught Rohit at short leg off a bouncer that got under his bat and threw the ball away from his stumps.
He then had Kohli caught at gully off a back of a length delivery that he misjudged while trying to play a pull. Ngidi soon followed suit with a short ball that he could only edge past third slip.
The Indian cricket team was on the brink of a big upset when they were reeling at 86-5 in the third over, with Dean Elgar playing a superb innings of 12 balls for South Africa. But Bumrah regrouped his troops and struck again when he had Rohit caught at slip off a bouncer that moved off the seam. He then had the leg-spinner trapping Elgar lbw off the back foot, and he was out for a duck to make it 271-8 in 34.1 overs, the shortest total in a Test that has produced a result in history. A somber-looking Elgar stood to his feet and thanked the crowd. The Indian cricket team, too, joined him in paying their respects. It was an extraordinary moment indeed.