India maintains lead in World Championship with SA first Test win

In ongoing World Test Championship, India added another valuable 40 points to their kitty after clinching the first Test against South Africa on day 5 in Visakhapatnam on Sunday (October 6).

Bowlers Mohammad Shami, Ravindra Jadeja, and Ravichandran Ashwin took the matter in their hands and bowled their best to guide the hosts to a resounding 203-run win victory in the opening encounter of the three-Test series.

This win consolidates India’s lead in the World Test Championship table with a lead of 160 points.

Skipper Virat Kohli on Sunday hailed India’s pace attack which has showed a lot of heart to go through the grind and deliver even on slow spin-friendly wickets.

Mohammed Shami’s lethal spell of fast bowling was beautifully complemented by Ravindra Jadeja’s guile was the highlight of the day.

India thus took a 1-0 lead in the three-match Test series.

Asked if the Indian pacers are now playing a more significant role in Indias Test victories Kohli said: “It’s all about the attitude. If fast bowlers are going to think that spinners are going to do all the work, then it doesn’t justify their place.”

“They ask for shorter spells so they can give 100%. That’s when you see guys like Shami, Ishant, Jasprit and Umesh doing well. Its all about wanting to make a play for the team even in conditions that are difficult,” Kohli said at the post-match conference.

Also read: India-South Africa first match records most number of sixes in a Test

“Shami has been a strike bowler in the second innings. All the guys lived up to their strengths. While batting heroes were obvious bowlers had it tougher in this game,” Kohli said.

Chasing an improbable 395-run target, South Africa were expected to put up a fight like they did in the first innings but Shami’s (5/35 in 10.5 overs) fifth five-for topped up by Jadeja’s four-wicket burst saw South Africa dismissed for 191 in 63.5 overs.

Debutant Senuran Muthusamy (49 not out) and Dane Piedt (56 off 107) delayed the inevitable with a fighting 91-run stand for ninth wicket after South Africa collapsed to 70 for eight in the morning.

The second Test of the three-match series will be played in Pune from October 10.

The pitch, which had played fairly for the first four days with the oddball surprising the batsman, turned tricky on day five.

The spinners got the ball to turn sharply and the variable bounce also helped the pacers, as predicted by Cheteswar Pujara on Saturday (October 5).

Also read: Bowlers put India on brink of first Test victory against the Proteas

The collapse began in the second over of the day when Ravichandran Ashwin castled Theunis de Bruyn (10) with one that turned back sharply from wide outside of the off-stump for his record equalling 350th wicket.

With that dismissal, the 33-year-old became the joint fastest to 350 wickets, matching Sri Lanka legend Muttiah Muralitharan’s feat in his 66th Test.

After Ashwin provided the early breakthrough, Shami castled Temba Bavuma (0), Faf du Plessis (13) and first innings centurion Quinton de Kock (0) in two short bursts to break the backbone of South African batting.

The spin duo of Ashwin and Jadeja also shone with the ball. While Ashwin picked up seven wickets in the first innings, Jadeja ended with six wickets, including four in the second innings.

Kohli also was effusive in his praise for Rohit Sharma, who scored centuries in both the innings of his debut match as a Test opener, and Mayank Agarwal, who hit his maiden Test ton. “Mayank and Rohit played brilliantly. Pujara too in the second innings. It was a hard grind though because of the weather and the pitch slowing down,” Kohli said.

Bavuma stayed back to a delivery that kept low while jagging back in while Du Plessis offered a leave to another one which also cut back in, only to see his stumps rattled. Shami got rid of De Kock with a delivery that held its line after pitching.

“It’s difficult to bowl on such a wicket because it was getting slower. So the plan was to bowl at the stumps. Jaddu and Ash bowled well. We knew variable bounce and reverse swing would help us in the second innings. So we tried to attack the stumps. It was important to get the top batters out as early as possible,” Shami said after the match.

It became 70 for six in the 27th over when opener Aiden Markram (39) did not get the required elevation and Jadeja took a brilliant one-handed reflex catch off his own bowling.

In the same over, he trapped Vernon Philander and Keshav Maharaj in front of the stumps off successive balls to make it 70 for eight.

Also read: Ashwin joint fastest to take 350 Test wickets alongside Muralitharan

Piedt and Muthusamy frustrated India with their nothing to lose approach. Piedt’s slog sweep over deep mid-wicket went the distance for the 36th six of the game, breaking the record for most maximums in a Test. The off-spinner played well to complete his maiden half-cemtury in his eighth Test.

It seemed the game would get over well before lunch but Piedt and Muthusamy took South Africa to 117 for eight at the break. They went on to bat for one hour after lunch with India unable to find to break their stand.

Shami, who provided three quick wickets in the morning, was brought back into the attack noticeably late into the second session and struck on the very first ball with Piedt playing on to this stumps. It was a loosener but potent enough to break the off-stump.

The skipper felt the seamers role up until the final day was to hold and it was on the fifth day that Shami was able to reverse swing the ball. “You can always sit after a game like this what you can do but apart from Shami this morning, the seamers job was of holding. On a day five pitch, things happen quicker, but its the nature of Test cricket,” he said.

India’s victory was set up by Rohit Sharma, who became the first batsman to score two hundreds on debut as a Test opener, and Ashwin, who took a seven-wicket haul in the first innings.

It was also a match to remember for Mayank Agarwal, who scored a double century to take India to 502 in the first essay.

(With inputs from agencies)