Team India won the toss in the second test of their ongoing series against South Africa and opted to bat first as expected. Unlike the first test that was played at the Centurion, the Blues did not get a suitable start this time out. Kl Rahul was the only batsman who was staying put on the crease from one side when the other batsmen were departing in quick succession.
The Indian middle order collapsed unexpectedly quickly with the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane scoring 3 and 0 respectively. Hanuma Vihari tried to bring some stability but he too departed after making 20 runs.
After the departure of KL Rahul, the blues batting lineup went haywire and had it not been for Ravichandran Ashwin’s responsible knock of 46 off 50, they would have all been sent back to pavilion much earlier at a much more shameful total.
The South African bowlers wreaked havoc on Day 1 of the second test and sent the entire batting lineup of India back to the pavilion within the first day. The only batsman they were not able to dismiss was tailender Jasprit Bumrah who was surprisingly good with the bat in his hand today.
While the other batsmen were falling down like a deck of cards, Jasprit Bumrah stared Kagiso Rabada straight in the eye and hit him for as much as 14 runs in an over – which is exhilarating not only because Jasprit Bumrah is a tailender but also because he just did the unthinkable against one of the best test bowlers in modern cricket !
The encounter between Bumrah and Kagiso Rabada was a treat to eyes. It was the 62nd over in which Jasprit Bumrah scored – 4, 0, 6, 0, 4, i,e, a boundary on every alternate delivery.
Unfortunately Mohammad Siraj gave away his wicket pretty cheaply in the very next over. Who knows what would have happened if Bumrah played a couple more overs !