Tag: South Africa

Legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar has urged the need for a ‘post-mortem’ of the India Test team following the whitewash against South Africa.

A day earlier, South Africa handed India a 408-run thrashing, a record Test defeat for them, to clinch the series 2-0.

It was India’s fifth defeat in their last seven home Test matches, dating back a little over a year to New Zealand’s 3-0 series victory.

“You need to do a thorough post-mortem as to areas that you need to strengthen at the Test level,” Gavaskar said. “Bring in an outside perspective.”

He stressed the need for a discussion with former greats of Indian cricket to devise a strategy for the upcoming years.

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“Take Ravi Shastri, Rahul Dravid — your two earlier coaches. Take Anil Kumble, Sourav Ganguly, and Sachin Tendulkar. Sit with them and formulate for the next five years what Indian cricket should be doing,” he said.

The 76-year-old backed Gautam Gambhir, who is under severe scrutiny after India’s dismal show. Gavaskar said that Gambhir also deserves credit for bringing several laurels in recent times, if he is to be put in the spotlight for recent losses.

“He’s a coach,” said Gavaskar. “The coach can prepare a team. But it’s out there in the middle that the players have to deliver,” Gavaskar said on Gambhir.

“If you’re not prepared to give him credit for the Champions Trophy and the Asia Cup win, then please tell me why you want to blame him for the team out there on that 22-yard strip not doing well,” Gavaskar continued.

For the unversed, India’s batting flopped in the series, with their first innings total of 201 in Guwahati, their best against an inspired South Africa spin attack led by Simon Harmer.

The hosts lost the opening Test inside three days in Kolkata and in the second match mustered only 140, chasing a mammoth 549 target on day five.

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India Test and ODI skipper Shubman Gill shared a cryptic post after his side’s 2-0 whitewash in the Test series against South Africa.

Shubman was not part of the second Test against the Proteas after being ruled out of the series in the opening match at Kolkata.

The right-hander had sustained a neck injury and was under observation in the hospital, later being ruled out of both the Test and ODI series against South Africa.

In his absence, Risabh Pant was named stand-in captain and led the side in the second Test.

Shubman took to his social media account and wrote a meaningful post, mentioning the defeat, noting that challenges forge resilience, and reaffirming his commitment to the team’s unity and progress.

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“Calm seas don’t teach you how to steer, it’s the storm that forges steady hands. We’ll continue to believe in each other, fight for each other, and move forward – rising stronger,” he wrote.

 

 

For the unversed, India were completely outfoxed by the visitors, who handed them their biggest Test defeat by a hefty margin of 408 runs. Notably, this was also India’s first home series loss to South Africa since 2000.

The architects of the mastery were South Africa’s Marcon Jansen, who displayed all-round performance, and Simon Harmer, who spun a web around Indian batters, hence bundling them out for 140 runs in their second innings.

Jansen bagged the player of the match award for his 93 in the first innings and seven wickets in the match, while Harmer, who took nine wickets in the match, was deemed the Player of the series.

Overall, Harmer took 17 wickets in the two-match series at an astonishing average of eight.

South Africa and India will now meet in the three-match One-Day International (ODI) series, starting on Sunday, 30 November in Ranchi.

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GUWAHATI: Defending world champions South Africa delivered a commanding statement in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025–27 by crushing India in the second Test on Wednesday to seal a historic 2-0 series victory.

The result not only reshaped the WTC points table but also marked South Africa’s first Test series triumph on Indian soil since the year 2000 and only their second overall in the country’s history.

Led by Temba Bavuma, the Proteas rewrote history with a dominant performance across the series.

With this win, South Africa surged to second place in the WTC standings with three wins and one defeat, collecting 36 points at an impressive win percentage of 75.

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Australia continue to lead the WTC points table after winning all four of their matches, sitting comfortably on 48 points with a perfect 100 percent record.

India, meanwhile, slipped to fifth place following back-to-back defeats in the series. The Men in Blue now have four wins, four losses and one draw from nine matches, accumulating 52 points with a win percentage of 48.15.

Pakistan currently occupy fourth position with one win and one defeat from two Tests, holding 12 points at a 50 percent win rate, while Sri Lanka sit third with one win and one draw from two games, earning 16 points with a win percentage of 66.67.

ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 points table:

Team	Matches	Won	Lost	Draw	Points	Win%
Australia	4	4	0	0	48	100
South Africa	4	3	1	0	36	75
Sri Lanka	2	1	0	1	16	66.67
Pakistan	2	1	1	0	12	50
India	9	4	4	1	52	48.15

The second Test ended in emphatic fashion as South Africa bowled out India for just 140 while defending a massive target of 549 on the final day.

Off-spinner Simon Harmer starred with remarkable figures of 6 for 37, dismantling India’s batting lineup.

Ravindra Jadeja offered brief resistance with a fighting 54 before being stumped off Keshav Maharaj, who also took the final wicket of Mohammed Siraj.

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GUWAHATI: Spinner Simon Harmer took six wickets as South Africa romped to victory by 408 runs in the second Test for their first series win in India in 25 years on Wednesday.

World Test champions South Africa bowled out a dismal India for 140 in a mammoth chase of 549 on day five in Guwahati for a 2-0 Test sweep.

It is India’s biggest defeat at home by runs and a fifth loss in seven home Tests, having been whitewashed 3-0 by New Zealand last year.

Off-spinner Harmer, 36, returned figures of 6-37 as South Africa clinched a Test series in India for only the second time, the first in 2000 under Hansie Cronje.

Ravindra Jadeja resisted with 54 before Keshav Maharaj had him stumped, and the spinner soon got the final wicket of Mohammed Siraj, with Marco Jansen pulling off a stunning catch in the deep.

India lost the opening Test in Kolkata inside three on a pitch with uneven bounce before South Africa once again beat the hosts in their own game of spin on a batting-friendly track.

The visitors declared their second innings on 260-5 on day four to hand India a record chase, but the hosts’ batting once again failed, and they never threatened to get close.

India rode their luck early in the day when Jansen had Sai Sudharsan caught behind, but the delivery was declared a no-ball after the bowler overstepped. The batter was on four.

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In the next over, another overnight batter, Kuldeep Yadav, survived a reprieve on four when Aiden Markram dropped him at first slip off Harmer.

But the relief was short-lived for India as a relentless Harmer soon bowled Kuldeep for five for the first wicket of the day.

The off-spinner then dismissed Dhruv Jurel for two, three balls later and soon sent back skipper Rishabh Pant for 13 as India slumped to 58-5.

The batters fell like nine pins on a pitch where South Africa posted 489 after they elected to bat.

India were bundled out for 201 to concede a first-innings lead of 288, but South Africa did not enforce the follow-on and decided to bat again.

Left-arm quick Jansen returned figures of 6-48 in India’s first innings after the bowler hit a quickfire 93 with the bat.

South African all-rounder Senuran Muthusamy led the batting charge with his 109, his maiden Test century.

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South Africa had India tottering at 27-2, after declaring their innings and setting a mammoth target of 549, to be on the brink of a series win in the second Test on Tuesday.

South Africa declared on 260-5 in the final session on day four in Guwahati after Tristan Stubbs made 94.

World Test champions South Africa lead the two-match series 1-0, and even a draw would seal their first series victory in India since 2000.

India suffered their fourth defeat in six home Tests in the opener in Kolkata, and the hosts need to bat for three more sessions to avoid another loss.

The highest successful run chase in Test cricket was West Indies’ 418 against Australia in 2003. India’s highest chase was 406 against West Indies in 1976.

Sai Sudharsan (2) and nightwatchman Kuldeep Yadav (4) were battling for survival when bad light ended play in the northeastern city, where the sun sets early.

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South Africa pace spearhead Marco Jansen dismissed left-handed Yashasvi Jaiswal with a short delivery outside the off stump to have him caught behind for 13.

Left-arm quick Jansen took his match tally to seven wickets after figures of 6-48 in India’s first innings.

Off-spinner Simon Harmer bowled KL Rahul, the other opener, for six.

South Africa needs eight more wickets to make it 2-0, while India needs to bat out day five to salvage a draw.

Stubbs was earlier the last man out when he was bowled by left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja, who took 4-62. Wiaan Mulder was unbeaten on 35.

Stubbs put on 101 runs for the fourth wicket with Tony de Zorzi, who was on 49 when Jadeja broke through.

Jadeja had de Zorzi lbw to deny the batter his fifty, but Stubbs stood firm to frustrate the Indian bowlers in a 180-ball stay peppered with nine fours and a six.

South Africa resumed on 26-0 after bundling out India for 201 on day three to lead by 288 on the first innings.

They did not enforce the follow-on and decided to bat again to pile the misery on the hosts.

Left-handed opener Ryan Rickelton hit three fours in the first session before he fell to Jadeja while attempting another hit over cover, but was caught for 35.

Jadeja bowled the other overnight batter, Aiden Markram, for 29 before fellow spinner Washington Sundar dismissed skipper Temba Bavuma for three.

The Indian fielders looked tired during a South African innings that lasted for 78.3 overs, as disappointed home fans at a largely empty stadium waited for the agony to end.

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GUWAHATI: Towering pacer Marco Jansen took six wickets to put South Africa in sight of a first Test series win in India in 25 years after bundling out the hosts for 201 in the second match on Monday.

Replying to South Africa’s 489, India were 288 behind in their first innings, but the tourists did not enforce the follow-on and decided to bat again on day three in Guwahati.

After winning the first Test in the two-match series in Kolkata, South Africa are closing on a first series win in India since Hansie Cronje’s team triumphed in 2000.

India are under massive pressure once more, having suffered their fourth defeat in six Tests at home in the first match.

A dominant South Africa reached 26-0 at stumps to extend their lead to 314 in the second innings.

Left-handed Ryan Rickelton, on 13, and Aiden Markram, on 12, were batting when bad light ended the day’s play in the northeastern city, where the sun sets early.

Jansen, a left-arm quick, claimed his fourth five-wicket Test haul before wrapping up the Indian innings with his sixth strike of the day in the final session.

India slumped to 122-7 despite Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 58 as wickets kept tumbling on what still seems like a good pitch to bat on.

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Washington Sundar, who made 48, and fellow left-hander Kuldeep Yadav resisted in a partnership of 72 off 208 balls before off-spinner Simon Harmer struck to end Sundar’s defiance.

Jansen then dismissed Kuldeep for 19 and Jasprit Bumrah for two to pack a shell-shocked India off in under three sessions.

Earlier, the left-handed Jaiswal lost overnight partner KL Rahul for 22 in the first hour of play before reaching his 13th Test half-century.

Jaiswal used the sweep to good effect and took on the bowlers, hitting seven fours and one six until his departure off Harmer.

Harmer had Sai Sudharsan caught at mid-wicket for 15, and Jansen removed Dhruv Jurel for a duck to further put India on the back foot at the first break.

The 6ft 8 in (2.03 metres) tall Jansen, who made 93 in South Africa’s imposing first-innings total, used the bouncer to snare the Indian batters with Jurel falling to the pull off a short ball.

Skipper Rishabh Pant fell caught behind for seven to Jansen soon after in the second session, and the batting fell apart like nine pins.

Aiden Markram took a stunning catch as he ran from second slip to take a one-handed diving catch to his right to dismiss Nitish Kumar Reddy off Jansen. Reddy made 10.

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Senuran Muthusamy struck his first Test century and Marco Jansen hammered 93 to guide South Africa to a commanding 489 all out on day two of the second match against India on Sunday.

The left-handed Muthusamy made 109 and put on 97 runs for the eighth wicket with Jansen, who was the last wicket to fall in the final session in Guwahati.

Muthusamy praised Jansen’s knock, saying, “Marco was sublime when he came in. He’s a clean striker of the ball, and he really, really showed his skills today. So, that was an awesome treat to watch from the other end.”

Janson struck six fours and seven sixes in his 91-ball blitz before he dragged a delivery from Kuldeep Yadav onto his stumps, and the innings ended after 151.1 overs.

The hosts reached nine for no loss in 6.1 overs at stumps, trailing South Africa by 480 runs on a pitch still looking good to bat at India’s newest Test venue.

Yashasvi Jaiswal, on seven, and KL Rahul, on two, were at the crease when bad light stopped play for the day in the northeastern city where sunsets are early.

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The 6ft 8in (2.03m) Jansen frustrated the Indian attack as he hung on with numbers nine and 10 after he reached his fourth Test half-century and surpassed his previous best of 84 not out in the longer format.

Jansen’s seven hits over the fence are the joint-most in a Test innings against India. Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi hit as many during his 103 in Lahore in 2006.

Muthusamy reached his hundred in 192 balls off pace bowler Mohammed Siraj, as he punched the air and raised his bat to a standing ovation from the crowd and the dressing room.

He fell soon after the second break, but Jansen, a right-hand batter and left-arm quick, kept up the charge with Simon Harmer (5) and Keshav Maharaj, unbeaten on 12.

Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja ended an 88-run seventh-wicket stand after a wicketless first session when Kyle Verreynne was stumped for 45 by captain Rishabh Pant.

Kuldeep finished with four wickets with his left-arm wrist spin.

The tourists, who won the toss and elected to bat on Saturday, are in the hunt for their first series victory in India in 25 years after they won the opener of the two-match series.

Earlier, Muthusamy and Verreynne used their feet to tackle spinners in a sedate first hour of play when only 28 runs were scored, including two fours.

Muthusamy survived a scare on 48 when Jadeja had him given out lbw, but the batter’s review showed a murmur when the ball passed his glove, and the decision was overturned.

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GUWAHATI: Spinner Kuldeep Yadav took three wickets as India rattled South Africa with late strikes to leave the tourists 247-6 at stumps on the first day of the second Test on Saturday.

Tristan Stubbs, who made 49, and skipper Temba Bavuma (41) put on 84 runs for the third wicket after South Africa elected to bat in their bid for a first Test series win in India in 25 years.

The World Test champions won the first Test of the two-match series by 30 runs at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens.

Ravindra Jadeja sent back Bavuma with his left-arm spin in the final session before Kuldeep denied Stubbs his fifty to raise the noise of a large weekend crowd in Guwahati.

Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep (3-48) dismissed Wiaan Mulder for 13, and pace bowler Mohammed Siraj ended Tony de Zorzi’s defiance on 28 with the second new ball to further dent South Africa.

Left-hander Senuran Muthusamy, on 25, and wicketkeeper-batter Kyle Verreynne, on one, were batting when bad light forced stumps with only 81.5 overs possible, fewer than the usual 90 overs in a day.

Aiden Markram, who scored 38, and Ryan Rickelton (35) fell either side of the first break to Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep after an opening partnership of 82.

Bavuma and Stubbs, promoted to number three in the batting order, then got to the grind and slowly took the attack to the hosts with regular boundaries as the pair used their feet against the Indian spinners.

Jadeja broke through with his left-arm spin to dismiss in-form Bavuma, who scored the only fifty in the opener in Kolkata, after the batter chipped to mid-off.

Stubbs attempted to keep up the tempo as he hit Jadeja for a six, but soon Kuldeep had him caught at slip.

Play started 30 minutes earlier than usual, with the order of the session breaks reversed, meaning tea came before lunch at India’s newest Test venue, which attracted an opening-day crowd of over 15,000 fans.

Bumrah had Markram bowled at the stroke of tea when the batsman inside-edged a delivery on to his stumps.

Kuldeep struck on the third ball after the break to cut short Rickelton’s 82-ball stay.

The openers had started cautiously, and Markram got off the mark on his 17th ball with a crunching cover drive for four off Bumrah.

Bumrah nearly had his revenge next ball, only for KL Rahul to drop a regulation chance at second slip. The bowler covered his face in dismay.

South Africa, who recently drew 1-1 in Pakistan, are chasing a first series win in India since Hansie Cronje’s team triumphed there in 2000.

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GUWAHATI: South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has been ruled out of the second and final Test against India, starting here on Saturday, because of injury.

The World Test champions won the first match and are chasing a first series win on Indian soil since Hansie Cronje’s team triumphed there in 2000. They must again do without Rabada, who also missed the victory in Kolkata with a rib injury.

“Lungi Ngidi has been added. In terms of starting XI, we will finalise that tomorrow once we take one last look at the wicket,” captain Temba Bavuma said on Friday.

The tourists won a low-scoring opener at Eden Gardens inside three days after they bundled out India for 93 while chasing 124.

“The mood is buoyant amongst the boys,” Bavuma said. “We’re excited to try and replicate our performances as we did in the first Test.”

“We’ll just try and make sure that we lock in for the next five days.”

South Africa beat India at their own game of spin in Kolkata on a turning pitch with uneven bounce.

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Pundits slammed the track, where South African spinner Simon Harmer returned match figures of 8-51.

Bavuma made a best individual score of 55.

“I think it will be a more traditional sub-continent wicket,” Bavuma said of the Guwahati strip.

“Good for batting the first two days, and then on day three, the spinners should come into play.

“So I think all the fundamentals that come with playing in the sub-continent, first innings becomes crucial from a batting point of view to really set the game up.”

South Africa beat Australia to win the World Test Championship (WTC) final in June at Lord’s and recently drew 1-1 in Pakistan.

Bavuma has an unbeaten record as Test captain in 11 outings, winning 10 and drawing one.

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GUWAHATI: India Test captain Shubman Gill has been ruled out of the second Test against South Africa, scheduled to begin here on November 21, ESPNcricinfo reported on Thursday.

Gill, who suffered a neck injury on the second day of the first Test in Kolkata, has failed to recover sufficiently ahead of the Guwahati Test.

The 26-year-old retired hurt on four and did not return to complete his innings, nor did he take the field for the remainder of the match.

India ultimately lost the first Test by 30 runs, after being dismissed for 93 while chasing 124 on a pitch with uneven bounce.

He had previously missed a Test against New Zealand in October 2024 due to a neck spasm, too.

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With Shubman Gill sidelined, vice-captain Rishabh Pant will assume the captaincy for the Guwahati Test.

According to ESPNcricinfo, medical advice suggests that playing too soon carries a high risk of recurrence for Gill, prompting doctors to recommend additional rest.

Gill’s absence also casts uncertainty over his inclusion in India’s ODI squad for the three-match series against South Africa starting on November 30, with selections expected to be announced on November 23.

India now face a selection dilemma, with Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, and Nitish Kumar Reddy emerging as potential replacements for the injured captain.

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