The Indian bowling attack knows how to close out games. How about the Indian batting? Not so much.
It was a rare exception for India, as its bowling failed to defend 240 in this Test at Wanderers, a venue where they had never lost. Fair or not, everyone can have a bad day, and the bowling group certainly had an off day at Wanderers. Nevertheless, it doesn’t change the bigger picture: for the past four years, India has won more due to their bowling.
The Test series has already showcased India’s best and worst in the first two matches of the series—India won the toss at Centurion and scored 300+ in the first innings before getting ripped apart by the fast bowlers. Despite winning the toss at Wanderers, neither the bowling nor the batting were able to make the match count. Centurion is South Africa’s fortress and Johannesburg is India’s home away from home, so the series has also veered a bit off script. At the Wanderers, where the pitch quickened every day, India’s batting should have made more of an impact after ticking all the right boxes in Centurion. Instead, they folded for 202 in the first innings.
Regaining control of the game was never going to be easy, but it wasn’t impossible either. India’s batting also failed to impress. Despite an 111-run stand between Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, neither of them scored a hundred and anchored another stumbling partnership. A wild heave by Rishabh Pant was part of four wickets lost within 29 runs by Kagiso Rabada before India’s Shardul Thakur scored a 24-ball 28 to take them past 200. At the Wanderers, India lost the edge twice in the morning session-on Day 3 and Day 1 when Mayank Agarwal, Pujara and Rahane were all out before lunch, leaving KL Rahul with the task of leading the innings. Rahul did not advance beyond fifty, in contrast to Centurion.
India’s lead surpassed 100 after Pujara and Rahane led by two wickets in Johannesburg. Centurion saw India all out for 327 from 273/3. The advantage gained on Day 1 was wiped out. Personal concentration levels are what matter after a point. In the seven-wicket defeat in Christchurch in 2020, Prithvi Shaw, Pujara and Hanuma Vihari were dismissed on identical scores-54, 54, and 55-at different points in the match as India batted its way to 242. Virat Kohli’s run-out (on 74) in Adelaide later that year led to India’s collapse from 188/3 to 244 all out (when they were shot out for 36 in the second innings).
India’s batters could be hindered by their inability to adjust their natural flair to pitches that require a more traditional, black-and-white approach. Take Elgar as an example. As long as Elgar was in the middle, South Africa had the opportunity to inch towards victory during the second Test. As long as he blocked India’s bowlers, time was not an issue. India barely allowed themselves that option to pace their innings on Day 3 as evidenced by Pant’s dismissal on that day, something Dravid has promised will be a talking point in the dressing room.
Who better than Dravid to give the Indian batsmen just that little extra nudge or guidance to realize their full potential?
“The ball was kicking up a little bit in the first innings, so it could have been challenging, but we could have probably scored 60-70 runs more and that probably would have made a significant difference in a game like this,” India head coach Rahul Dravid said after the match.
