New Delhi. Test cricket is called a game of patience but would you believe that in a Test, South Africa team comprising of legends like AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis and Hashim Amla scored just 143 runs after batting for 143.1 overs in the last innings. In this match, Umesh Yadav took 3 wickets for just 9 runs in a spell of 21 overs. The Test held at Delhi’s Kotla ground in December 2015 had left a deep stain on the image of South Africa’s team (India vs South Africa). This Test is remembered for the great performance of one team and the weak performance of the other team having a good reputation.
To save the test, South Africa had made a strategy of batting at a very slow pace. Under this, the team scored 143 runs in 143.1 overs at a run rate of 0.99. The interesting thing is that 360 degree player AB de Villiers, who strokes all around the wicket, scored only 43 runs in 297 balls and Faf du Plessis scored just 10 runs in 97 balls. However, this strategy of the team proved to be a flop. The team was out after scoring 143 runs and had to face a crushing defeat of 337 runs against India. During this, almost all the bowlers of Team India were very economical. This test was special for Ajinkya Rahane in batting and he scored centuries in both the innings.
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Only 22 runs were scored in 35 overs in the lunch session on the 5th day
In this test match held between 3rd and 7th December 2015, the excessive defensive strategy of the South African team in the second innings still remains a mystery. In the two hours of the first session of the last day, the visiting team had scored only 22 runs, out of which 19 runs were made with the bat. From 72 runs for 2 wickets on the fourth day (72 overs), South Africa’s score reached only 94 runs for 3 wickets in 107 overs till lunch on the fifth day. This is the lowest number of runs scored in a session of 30 or more overs till lunch in cricket history.
After Rahane in the first innings, Ashwin became the support of Team India
In this fourth and final test of India-South Africa Test series, captain Virat Kohli won the toss and chose to bat first. Batting first, the Indian team scored 334 runs in which Ajinkya Rahane contributed the highest 127 runs (215 balls, 11 fours and four sixes), R Ashwin contributed 56 and captain Kohli contributed 44 runs. At one time, Team India lost 7 wickets for 198 runs, but Rahane and Ashwin took control of the situation by adding 98 runs for the 8th wicket. Ashwin later added 38 runs with Umesh Yadav for the 9th wicket and took the team to 334. South Africa’s Kyle Abbott took 5 wickets and Dane Piedt took 4 wickets.
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South Africa were bowled out for 121 runs in 49.3 overs
In response, the South African bowlers’ hard work was wasted by the batsmen. In the first innings, the team was reduced to a small score of 121 runs and lost the opportunity to put pressure on Team India. The Indian spin duo – Ravindra Jadeja (5 wickets) and Ashwin (2 wickets) shared 7 wickets among themselves. The special thing is that while struggling against the Indian bowlers, the South African team scored these 121 runs in 49.3 overs.
Rahane had also scored a century in the second innings
Team India had reached the ‘driving seat’ on the second day itself after gaining a big lead of 213 runs on the basis of the first innings. Declaring the second innings on the fourth day of the match at a score of 267 runs for 5 wickets, Team India set a huge target of 481 runs in front of the guests. In this score Ajinkya Rahane Rahane also scored a century in the second innings (100 not out off 206 balls, eight fours and three sixes) while captain Kohli scored 88 runs. During this period, Rahane became the fifth Indian batsman to score a century in both innings of a Test after Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar, Rahul Dravid and Virat Kohli.
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South Africa was overly defensive in the second innings
Due to the presence of strong batsmen like de Villiers, Dean Elgar, Amla, Du Plessis and Duminy in the South African team, fans were expecting a fight from South Africa in the second innings. More than 140 overs were left in the test but contrary to expectations, the team became more defensive and not only suffered a shameful defeat of 337 runs in the test but also ruined its reputation. By becoming more defensive, the South African team gave the Indian bowlers a chance to dominate. The team was out after scoring 143 runs in 143.1 overs. Captain Amla scored 25 runs in 289 balls. De Villiers also played 297 balls to score 43 runs while Du Plessis scored 10 runs in 97 balls. According to experts, the excessive defensive approach proved costly for the team. Due to playing very few aggressive shots, the fielder’s circle kept tightening around the batsmen. Ashwin took 5 wickets, Umesh Yadav took 3 and Ravindra Jadeja took 2 wickets to bundle out the South African innings for 143 runs in 143.1 overs. The effect of the batsmen’s extreme defensive approach was also seen in this analysis of India’s 4 major bowlers in the second innings.
Umesh Yadav : 21 -16-9-3
Ravindra Jadeja : 46-33-26-3
Ishant Sharma 20-12-23-0
Ashwin 49.1-26-61-5
The defensive approach of South African batsmen on the slow wicket of Kotla was such that out of 143 overs bowled by India in the second innings, 89 were maiden. Jadeja bowled the maximum number of 33 maiden overs while Ashwin bowled 26 and Umesh Yadav bowled 16. The last 5 wickets of the South African team fell with a difference of just 7 runs.
Tags: AB De Villiers, Ajinkya Rahane, India vs South Africa, Test cricket, Umesh yadav
FIRST PUBLISHED : September 10, 2024, 07:46 IST