South Africa defeated India by 31 runs in the Kolkata Test. Spinner Simon Harmer’s 8-wicket haul was pivotal. Keshav Maharaj hailed his performance, calling it a privilege to bowl with him. It was India’s 4th home Test loss in a year.
‘A Privilege to Bowl Alongside Him’: Maharaj on Harmer
Following Proteas’ win over India at Kolkata, South African spinner Keshav Maharaj expressed happiness at spinner Simon Harmer’s performance and said that it is a privilege to share the ball with him. India registered their fourth Test loss at home in a year, losing their first Test at Eden Gardens in 13 years. They failed to chase down the 124 runs set by the Proteas and missed out by 31 runs. A fine performance by spinner Harmer, who took eight wickets, a gutsy fifty by skipper Temba Bavuma and the absence of skipper Shubman Gill due to neck injury made the difference in the end.
Speaking after the match, Maharaj said, “I felt a little bit of nerves. It is hard to catch your breath with that sun-setting, tried to be clear on my plans. Yes, fortunately, I received the reward and made a brilliant catch by Temba (after being first bowled by Axar and then taking his wicket). He was phenomenal (on Simon Harmer). He showed why he’s got 1,000 first-half wickets. It’s a privilege to bowl alongside him.”
Maharaj said that there was “real hunger and desire” to win, and the 1-1 draw against Pakistan in Pakistan set them well for the tour and gave them confidence. “We know the task at hand here in India. It is a different ball game when you come here. The guys are highly skilled, conditions are very different, but, you know, for our team to come a long way and tick the first box of this tour has been a phenomenal effort. I think we know there is always a ball with your name on it, so consistency is key, and Simon showed it a lot better than I did in this Test, but also the fact that Temba showed us and gave us the field sets to allow us to ball the way we wanted to, one must give a lot of credit to him as well. Like I said, it’s probably the one assignment that we had not ticked from a box perspective ( a Test win in India), but, you know, it is our first leg forward, we can be really, really, really proud of what we have achieved today,” he concluded.
Match Recap: How the Proteas Secured Victory
South Africa’s First Innings
Earlier on day one, the Proteas won the toss and opted to bat first. Despite a half-century partnership between openers Aiden Markram (31 in 48 balls, with five fours and a six) and Ryan Rickelton (23 in 22 balls, with four boundaries), the current WTC champions just could not battle the pace and class of Jasprit Bumrah (5/27) and Mohammed Siraj (2/47) and were skittled out for 159 runs. Wiaan Mulder (24 in 51 balls, with three fours) and Tony de Zorzi (24 in 55 balls, with a four and a six) tried to lay down a platform with a 43-run stand for the fourth wicket, but the Proteas collapsed from 114/3 to 159 all out. Kuldeep Yadav also bowled well, getting two wickets for 36 runs. India ended the first day at 37/1, with Marco Jansen getting Yashasvi Jaiswal for 12.
India’s Response
India had resumed the action at 37/1 on day two, trailing by 122 runs in response to South Africa’s first innings total of 159. Rahul (13*) and Washington Sundar (6*) were unbeaten. The duo had a 57-run stand, which Harmer dislodged by removing Sundar for an 82-ball 29 (with two fours and a six). India was 75/2. After that, KL (39 in 119 balls, with four boundaries and a six), Rishabh Pant (27 in 24 balls, with two fours and two sixes) and Ravindra Jadeja (27 in 45 balls, with three fours) failed to capitalise on the starts they got, as Harmer (4/30) and Jansen (3/35) led to India being bundled out from 109/2 to 189/9, with skipper Shubman Gill unavailable to bat after a neck spasm following a boundary. India had a 30-run lead in response to the Proteas’ first innings of 159 runs.
Proteas’ Second Innings Sets Target
Proteas took to the field with an aim to eat into this slender lead, but Kuldeep and Jadeja constantly troubled the reigning World Test Champions with their impeccable turn, line and lengths, leaving them at 93/7 at the end of day two, with a lead of 63 runs. Temba Bavuma (55* in 136 balls, with four boundaries) and Corbin Bosch (25 in 37 balls, with two fours and a six) pushed the lead to 123 runs, with SA all out at 153 runs. Ravindra Jadeja (4/50) was the pick of the bowlers for India, unleashing destruction on day two. Kuldeep (2/30) and Siraj (2/2) also got the lion’s share of wickets. Bumrah picked up one wicket.
India’s Run Chase Falters
In the run chase, India lost openers KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal at 1/2. Washington Sundar (31 in 92 balls, with two fours) held things together as wickets fell from the other end and India was reduced to 77/7. Axar Patel (26 in 17 balls, with a four and two sixes) tried to counter-attack, but Keshav Maharaj (2/15) got him and Mohammed Siraj on two successive balls and left India restricted at 93/9, with Gill not there to bat.
Harmer, who took four-fers in both innings, got the ‘Player of the Match’ award. (ANI)
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