South Africa vs India | 2nd Test | Centurion | Jan 13-17, 2018 | Day 4 | Discussion Thread

[Madplayer]

Indian players are digging their grave. 20 overs for 28 runs. This is pathetic. Just look to attack anything not on the stumps.

 

[Kashmirilion]

This is where Australia are so ruthless, after been hit with bouncer parthiv Patel would've had a bouncer barrage at him saffas taking it easy.

 

[Protea Fan]

Doubt it. Plessis would have stood up. 200 is enough on this wicket

He alone cant do if top order exploded quickly

 

[Mr.Q]

Smith only plays across the line to selective deleveries + he is more patient.
He scored 30 on more difficult pitch in banglore , got out on a grubber + he scored 100 on a mine field in pune

He plays a very large no.of shots on the on side standing in front of the stumps.

He appears patient because he doesn't even have half the shots in Kohli's arsenal. �� Good for test cricket.

 

[Varun]

Indian players are digging their grave. 20 overs for 28 runs. This is pathetic. Just look to attack anything not on the stumps.

The problem is we've been playing for the end of the day since ball 1.

 

[lehen]

This pitch should be declared poor!!!!!!!!

poor pitches are reserved for Asian sides only. btw toss did play a vital role but overall the better team in these condition is winning

 

[Dark Magician]

Lungi Ngidi looks good. His control is beautiful for one so young. The way he set up Kohli was beautiful to watch.

 

[Sam99]

Parthiv was sent as night watchman to save Mr. Talent Sharma

 

[Madplayer]

The problem is we've been playing for the end of the day since ball 1.

This is the problem. Such approach is okay until a wicket falls. The moment the 1st wicket fell, they should have changed this approach.

 

[Kashmirilion]

Come on saffas we need a bouncer barrage!!!

 

[RamLakhan]

Things would have looked reasonably better with a scoreline of at least 60/3 at this point

 

[troodon]

Really negative batting by India.

 

[DHONI_FAN]

Parthiv was sent as night watchman to save Mr. Talent Sharma

After all he is Kohli's best buddy

 

[Kashmirilion]

Saffas are softies need to be ruthless

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Really negative batting by India.

Not quite. This passage of play belongs to the saffa quicks and possibly tomorrow morning as well. If we manage to survive that long, the bowlers and pitch might ease out a bit.

 

[troodon]

Uneven bounce has dented the confidence of India.

Having Rahul and Vijay open the batting did not help either. Vijay is slow as a turtle and Rahul has lost it. Looked like a Tailender on debut.

 

[Dios]

So they are protecting Rohit as if he is a tailender? This is so pathetic from India. Why even pick him in the first place?

 

[Dark Magician]

Come on saffas we need a bouncer barrage!!!

Erm why would you do that when you can take wickets bowling normally?

 

[troodon]

Not quite. This passage of play belongs to the saffa quicks and possibly tomorrow morning as well. If we manage to survive that long, the bowlers and pitch might ease out a bit.

If there is so much uneven bounce on Day-4, then you think the pitch will improve on Day-5?

 

[Smudger]

He plays a very large no.of shots on the on side standing in front of the stumps.

He appears patient because he doesn't even have half the shots in Kohli's arsenal. �� Good for test cricket.

He can play all the shots but decides not to play.
2015 WC sf: Smith 105(90) , king all the shots kohli 1 (16)

 

[DHONI_FAN]

Uneven bounce has dented the confidence of India.

Having Rahul and Vijay open the batting did not help either. Vijay is slow as a turtle and Rahul has lost it. Looked like a Tailender on debut.

Vijay has been negative this whole series

 

[troodon]

Vijay has been negative this whole series

Vijay should be dropped for this pathetic batting. He sets the tone for the entire test with his timid batting.

 

[Lefthanded]

Looks like India is pulling a Pakistan here.

Pitch isn't easy and as disappointed as I am, I can't blame most of the players. It's not fair to expect Rahul to come in and score immediately. Or Parthiv who hasn't played in a year.

Sides make mistakes, but this team isn't good enough to win here. England were lucky to win here but SA were depleted. The AUS series should be the real deal.

Credit where credit is due. A team that's won most days and didn't have to chase under pressure, deal with uneven bounce, deserves to win.

I'm trying not sure to hope Pandya plays a KP like innings.

And if they want to win, this 0.8 RR is only going to end up exposing the tail to the new ball. If they survive that long.

 

[troodon]

Parthiv Patel played well to survive this SA onslaught.

 

[Varun]

Rohit is padded up - doubles up as a batsman and nightwatchman. Doesn't make a difference lol.

 

[Madplayer]

Really negative batting by India.

Its almost as bad as Pakistan's batting in 3rd ODI against NZ in the first 20 overs.

 

[Smudger]

He plays a very large no.of shots on the on side standing in front of the stumps.

He appears patient because he doesn't even have half the shots in Kohli's arsenal. �� Good for test cricket.

Only ab can play all the shots. Kohli and smith are on same level as far as no of shts are concerned. Smith can play reverse sweep and switch hit which kohli can only dream of.

 

[Smudger]

He plays a very large no.of shots on the on side standing in front of the stumps.

He appears patient because he doesn't even have half the shots in Kohli's arsenal. �� Good for test cricket.

Where are you hiding now ?

 

[troodon]

Ngidi looks obese. He does not look fit.

Very good bowler though.

 

[90MPH]

SA have this Test match In the bag - its nearly impossible to chase 300 runs on this wicket with your top already dismantled.

 

[Kashmirilion]

Nah that was alot worse. 4th day 3rd session on a uneven pitch Vs flat odi pitch 16-6 in 15 overs I know what I rather take
[MENTION=131678]Madplayer[/MENTION]

 

[troodon]

Had India shown some intent, they would have been 70/2 instead of 35/3.

India deserves the humiliation for that loser attitude.

 

[Itachi]

So they are protecting Rohit as if he is a tailender? This is so pathetic from India. Why even pick him in the first place?

Believe me. Every Indian is asking this question.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Two horrible run outs in the first innings, then so many drops, bad team selection all contributed to it.

 

[jagatk]

Bhai it is s3 d4. The pitch is supposed to keep a little low at that stage.
In India it turns square from ball 1. Big difference.

Ball turning square is fair as it is difficult for everyone this is just win the toss win the match as batting last is pure luck based.

 

[troodon]

Two horrible run outs in the first innings, then so many drops, bad team selection all contributed to it.

Those are excuses for poor performance.

There was no intent to score runs and batsmen were batting to survive rather than score runs and chase it.

 

[Bilal7]

Seriously - I would just ask Rohit to go into ODI mode and see what happens.

Neither he or we have anything to lose at this point.

Rohit fails in tough conditions/good bowlers regardless of format. Won't be much different from Moeen's Afridi-esque 20 runs in the fourth Ashes test.

 

[troodon]

Watching U19 India vs PNG.

Nagarkoti and Mavi are express bowlers. Hard to believe that Indian lads could bowl so fast and that too while swinging the ball.

A relief to watch Indian young lads after the pathetic performance by Kohli and men in SA.

 

[troodon]

Waiting to see Prithvi Shaw and Kohli bat together next year.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Those are excuses for poor performance.

There was no intent to score runs and batsmen were batting to survive rather than score runs and chase it.

This is not a pitch where you can throw the bat around willy nilly especially when there is no freebie on the offer.

 

[Varun]

Rohit fails in tough conditions/good bowlers regardless of format. Won't be much different from Moeen's Afridi-esque 20 runs in the fourth Ashes test.

20 you say? That's 10 more than what he usually scores, so that's a start.

 

[troodon]

This is not a pitch where you can throw the bat around willy nilly especially when there is no freebie on the offer.

I have seen KL and Vijay defend half volleys. No excuse for that. They also never looked to take singles. Just allowed the bowlers to get into a good rhythm and dictate the terms.

 

[Sarwar89]

So whose innings forever will leave an impact in losing cause/draw cause in history books of cricket
Sachin’s 137 Chennai 1999.
Pontings’s 153 Old Trafford 2005
Kohli’s 153 Centurion 2018
AB De Villiers 80 Centurion 2018.

 

[Protea Fan]

Two horrible run outs in the first innings, then so many drops, bad team selection all contributed to it.

Amla looks in midas touch before getting run outs,had he stayed their then SA's total would have been different

 

[battler]

How much will India score in the fourth innings against South Africa in chase of 287?

I'm predicting 100 all out with Pujara scoring a grinding fifty.

 

[Ab Fan]

83 all out with Pujara getting a 42.

 

[Sidilicious]

287

 

[battler]

287

Yeah if Pandya scores a run a ball 100

 

[Sam99]

Will be less than 120.

 

[Dead Ball]

150 max.

Game will likely be over by lunch.

 

[Ab Fan]

SA have this in the bag 2-0. Two match winning performance from ABDV. He is the strongest contender for MOS whomsoever plays a big part in third test.

 

[Buffet]

120-150 runs.

 

[big_gamer007]

177..

 

[Saurav]

Really disappointing

Should have been chasing around 200 on this pitch.Ashwin should have a LOTTT better.We really missed Jaddu who is made for such pitches

And less said about batting the better.Dont know why the tuk tuk,That never works in SA

 

[MMHS]

Looks like India is pulling a Pakistan here.

Pitch isn't easy and as disappointed as I am, I can't blame most of the players. It's not fair to expect Rahul to come in and score immediately. Or Parthiv who hasn't played in a year.

Sides make mistakes, but this team isn't good enough to win here. England were lucky to win here but SA were depleted. The AUS series should be the real deal.

Credit where credit is due. A team that's won most days and didn't have to chase under pressure, deal with uneven bounce, deserves to win.

I'm trying not sure to hope Pandya plays a KP like innings.

And if they want to win, this 0.8 RR is only going to end up exposing the tail to the new ball. If they survive that long.

Losing toss didn’t help either here.

But, that selection of Sharma ji 2nd time was bluffing - guy has a stats like Hafeez outside Asia and we shredded MoHa to dust here .....

 

[MenInG]

LUNGI NGIDI turned a promising debut into a memorable one as he put India on the rack with a devastating spell of fast bowling on the fourth evening of the second Sunfoil Freedom Test match at SuperSport Park on Tuesday.

Largely as a result of Ngidi’s onslaught India reached the close on 35/3 in pursuit of a target of 287 with their kingpin, Virat Kohli, among the three batsmen already back in the pavilion.

One finds it hard to recall when any 21-year-old made such an impact in his debut Test. This was only his 10th first-class match and, as Shaun Pollock pointed out, he is going to have to learn his skills on the job because he is not going to play a lot of franchise cricket going forward.

He bowled fast and straight, giving the batsmen no respite as they were forced to play all the time, and given the added advantage of uneven bounce he was quite lethal at times as Parthiv Patel found out to his cost when one delivery smacked into his ribs.

What has really stood out has been his ability throughout the match to lift his game whenever it has been needed. This has been particularly noticeable when he has had Kohli in his sights.

He finished the day with figures of 2/16 in 6 overs which in itself put him in unchartered waters as it was the longest spell Faf du Plessis had call on him to bowl.

The odds are now totally against India surviving the last day let alone winning the game. They still need 252 runs for victory and this would require a scoring rate of slightly more than 2.5 to the over which is proving very difficult on a deteriorating pitch.

The Proteas themselves only managed to score 57 in the two-and-a-quarter hour afternoon session which tells just how difficult it is to score runs.

The Standard Bank Proteas second innings was set up by the 141-run partnership for the third wicket between AB de Villiers (80 off 121 balls, 10 fours) and Dean Elgar (61 off 121 balls, 8 fours and a six).

Du Plessis and Vernon Philander then made sure that the target would be in excess of 250 with a partnership of 46 for the sixth wicket.

The Indian seamers all bowled well in preventing the Proteas from running away with the game, particularly during the De Villiers-Elgar partnership.s

Now a series-clinching victory appears to be the Proteas for the taking.

 

[Azeem Zafar]

I expect Pandya to launch a counter attack with Ashwin supporting him, India can't win this by grinding out the overs.

 

[Cricfan4eva]

130-150.


That is if we survive the first hour without losing too many.

This pitch is just too uneven for batsman to grind or hit it out.

No matter which way you play, there will that one that will bounce too much or keep too low.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Amla looks in midas touch before getting run outs,had he stayed their then SA's total would have been different

Dude atleast he made 81 before he got out. Pujara 0. Pandya > Philander.

 

[MMHS]

From that length ball hardly got up for a 6' 5" bowler. WHich uninformed cricket fan thought it was a patta wicket

You don’t think it’s a batting paradise, that too slow paradise - you can block for two days with tea & cookies in between.

 

[CricFan2012]

172

 

[bujhee kom]

155

 

[Buffet]

I expect Pandya to launch a counter attack with Ashwin supporting him, India can't win this by grinding out the overs.

No team will win chasing 280 here with uneven bounce against this attack, but I agree that best way is to attack and hope for the best.

 

[DRsohail]

less than 100.

 

[Railu Katta]

England in UAE 2012 comes to mind.

Indi got whitewashed in England during 2011

 

[Hasan123]

130.

 

[Azeem Zafar]

No team will win chasing 280 here with uneven bounce against this attack, but I agree that best way is to attack and hope for the best.

Chances of India's win are ofcourse bleak, but neutral fans like me would surely love to see a competitive chase. And afterall a firing Pandya is a treat to watch.

 

[Dark Magician]

Ngidi looks obese. He does not look fit.

Very good bowler though.

If you know South Africa you'd know that no. Player ever gets selected if they're not fit. Ngidi has lost 8kg during the off season and I have no doubt he'll continue to improve.

 

[Mr.Q]

Only ab can play all the shots. Kohli and smith are on same level as far as no of shts are concerned. Smith can play reverse sweep and switch hit which kohli can only dream of.

If you're trying to tell me that Kohli and Smith are at the same level in terms of shot range, you're drawing lines on water. Kohli has an amazing range of strokes which Steve Smith doesn't have. In fact, my first post on this forum was about it. How his seemingly solid technique becomes a limitation when it comes shot range. I can't explain the whole thing again to someone who apparently has never played any serious cricket.

Kohli creates such difficult angles even with his conventional strokes that it's difficult to set a field for him. He has such strong wrists (which basically creates the angle with the bat which in turn decides the direction of the ball). Even some of his unconventional shots look so conventional because of his sweet timing. That flick through midwicket, that shot over long on for six off short deliveries... numerous examples. He doesn't need a reverse sweep. Having said that, he can play the reverse sweep. Smith is more about prodding and running whereas Kohli is more about shot range and amazing placement. If a 'shot' to you means sticking the bat out in a particular direction, everybody has all the shots lol. Who can't do that.

In the ongoing Test, AB and Kohli batted quite similarly. They were playing their shots. AB obviously has more shots than Kohli which is why creates an even greater impact than Kohli when he's in the mood. Everybody knows it. Both players have different attitude towards a match. AB tries to create an impact on the match and Kohli tries to win a match. This doesn't mean AB don't want his team to win. But the approach is different.

Where are you hiding now ?

Sorry, posting on PP or arguing with biased people isn't my day job.

 

[Ab Fan]

Rohit fails in tough conditions/good bowlers regardless of format. Won't be much different from Moeen's Afridi-esque 20 runs in the fourth Ashes test.

Rohit is a horrible team selection. S Dhawan is a better batsmen than him. That guy opens the inning and does the tough job while Sharmaji cant even do the so called easy job of batting under the cushion of Vijay, Pujara and Kohli.

Rahul is a better pick than Dhawan but why the hell would one keep Rohit and give him so many chances. That's absurd!

 

[Sadevdesai]

Looks like SA’s Match now .... but this is Cricket .... all 3 outcomes are still possible .... theoretically !!!! I think though ..... SA win 65%, Draw 20% and India win 15%.

 

[Savage]

Kohli "25 saal ka badla" India se lega.

First indian team lead by King Kohli to get whitewash in SA is on cards now.

 

[Savage]

Game over! South Africans are bowling the right lines and hence getting the wickets. Btw, Rahul was supposed to play a miracle innings. Where are his fans? Talent ain't anything without performance. He's not in good touch.

Rahul might be greatest talent(judging by hype around him) but Dhawan should've played 2nd Test.Dhawan may be a FTB but good thing is once he get sets,he scores big hundred.Dhawan was also India's best batsmen in NZ (2014) along with Rahane.

 

[Smbhayi]

players need to come forward against pacers.

 

[Mr.Q]

Rahul might be greatest talent(judging by hype around him) but Dhawan should've played 2nd Test.Dhawan may be a FTB but good thing is once he get sets,he scores big hundred.Dhawan was also India's best batsmen in NZ (2014) along with Rahane.

Yes I feel the same too. Especially on wickets that are a bit challenging Dhawan's approach of scoring quickly works best I think. Our top order has failed miserably and bowlers weren't getting the line right. An out of form Rahane and a strictly medium pace Bhuvneshwar wouldn't have created much of a difference. I don't think it's a mere selection issue here. It's probably a bit deeper than that.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

143.

 

[Varun]

We'll reach triple figures, but 287 will be many miles away.

 

[MMHS]

Looks like SA’s Match now .... but this is Cricket .... all 3 outcomes are still possible .... theoretically !!!! I think though ..... SA win 65%, Draw 20% and India win 15%.

at this rate 250 in 98 overs looks a bit tight, so not sure about that 15%, but draw is possible.

 

[troodon]

220.

Expecting some fight tomorrow from Pujara/Parthiv/Pandya/Ashwin. India will score 150 runs between them.

Rohit will score his customary 10 runs before getting lbw.

Overall, India will not go down without a fight.

 

[SandyB]

Hopefully we take it to 3rd session . The pain of competing and losing here would surely fire up the boys on the easier (relatively) tours (ENG, NZ and AUS).