(AP) — India pacer Shardul Thakur took five wickets in two telling bursts to reduce South Africa to 191-7 in its first innings at tea on the second day of the second test on Tuesday.
Thakur had three wickets in quick succession before lunch to send South Africa from a strong position at 88-1 to 102-4.
He made another two crucial breakthroughs after lunch and after Temba Bavuma and Kyle Verreynne put on a 60-run stand to lift South Africa’s hopes of a first-innings lead.
Thakur got rid of both of them in the space of two overs, with Bavuma out for 51 caught down the leg side by wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant. That gave Thakur his fifth, and Mohammed Shami added the wicket of Kagiso Rabada to give India the session.
The Proteas were still only 11 runs behind after bowling India out for 202 in its first innings on the first day at the Wanderers in Johannesburg. But they had been in position to really take control of the test when 88-1 and 162-4 before Thakur intervened.
India won the first test of the three-match series by 113 runs, and victory at the Wanderers would give the top-ranked test team its first test series win in South Africa.
What looked like being an extremely strong first session for South Africa unraveled in the space of six overs at the end as captain Dean Elgar (28), Keegan Petersen (62) and Rassie van der Dussen (1) all fell in a blistering burst by medium-pacer Thakur.
By tea, Thakur had 5-43 off 13.1 overs to revive India.
Thakur’s fabulous spell changed the dynamic of the day after South Africa made solid progress from its overnight score of 35-1. Elgar and Petersen combined for a 74-run partnership and Petersen registered his first test half-century.
Bavuma and Verreynne then built another half-century stand before Thakur broke that also with a delivery that cut back in to Verreynne to have him lbw. Verreynne failed with a review.
