Guwahati, Nov 23 (LatestNewsX) – After two days of hard‑bitten play at ACA Stadium, India’s spinners struggled to find their rhythm, yet Kuldeep Yadav still managed to haul in 4/115, describing the surface as a “proper road” – a fitting metaphor for a pitch that kept the bowlers guessing. The second Test had begun with South Africa posting a formidable 489, built on a solid 109 from Senuran Muthusamy – his maiden Test century – and an explosive 93 from Marco Jansen, whose pair of career‑best knocks left the Proteas feeling confident enough to chase a draw.
During a press briefing on Sunday, Yadav noted, “Kolkata’s wicket was different, this is a road,” before adding that the surface was undeniably challenging, an attribute that right‑handed ball‑players rarely encounter. He went on to say that despite rallying on a good day with the ball, a single session of a growing partnership slipped them behind the run‑chaser, and once again the batting side looked to dominate.
India’s openers, KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal, made an in‑field reference point, forging a 9/0 stand in 6.1 overs before stumps on day two, and the team appeared poised. Yet the light turned against them, ending play early with India trailing South Africa by a staggering 480 runs. The wicket seemed sparing, “I didn’t feel that there was a lot of help in this wicket, even for fast bowlers it didn’t seem like a lot of help,” Yadav observed, underscoring that even in tough conditions one should respect the Test format and focus on learning.
India’s frontline bowlers were equal parts effective and ineffective. Kuldeep Yadav claimed four wickets, while Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Ravindra Jadeja each claimed two. On the South African side, Simon Harmer was the only player to fall short of double‑digits despite an otherwise powerful innings that saw the Proteas dominate the scoreboard.
The final session saw Siraj deliver a breakthrough, taking a vital wicket after Muthusamy faltered on a hook that fell to fine‑leg, ending his career‑best 109 and leaving India still chasing a tall bill. “I felt yesterday in the first session there was a bit of moisture in the wicket so I got a little bit of turn there,” Siraj reflected. “There wasn’t any turn yesterday as well as today. Jadeja and I have been talking about it but the wicket is very good to bat on.”
Jansen continued to be the joy of the South African chase. He smashed two towering sixes off Jadeja and added a four and a six off Siraj to push the score beyond 440. Brother to his aggressive play, he also was part of a defiant last‑wicket stand with Keshav Maharaj, adding 18 runs. He came close to his first Test century but was dismissed for 93 after chopping onto a Kuldeep googly. His innings, punctuated by seven sixes, marked a joint‑highest tally for a lower‑order bat in India—a bittersweet note in an otherwise heroic effort. “No, all good,” Jansen told the press, smiling. “I’ve got to thank our captain for everything, and I’m happy with my numbers. We had 4‑5 bowlers and everyone bowlled well. It’s important to keep changing, you can’t just stay at one end forever. I bowled 30 overs (29.1) – that’s a solid workload for any wrist spinner.”
While Jansen and Wiaan Mulder held the Indians at bay and kept the match alive until stumps, three days remained. The pressure is mounting for India to level the series, and a second home loss in just two years would be a bitter pill. This match has shown that the Proteas, by putting up massive scores, have positioned themselves for a rare series victory on Indian soil, but their great start comes with the weight of continued performance against a determined and resilient Indian side.
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