India tour of South Africa - 2013/14

[Epic]

BCCI fault its a 2 test series for well documented reasons.

Also the BCCI's fault we didn't have a 7 match ODI series that we truly deserved!

 

[aditya123]

If S Africa would have won, that would have to rated as highly as IND Kolkotta 2001 win over AUS in terms of come back wins in test history. You just dont follow on and win in test cricket & you just don't chase 450+ in test history & win.

S Africa's recovery does aid in their aura as clear # 1 though. Similarly vs AUS in Adelaide last year - AUS dominated the S Africa for most of the test match to IND here & S Africa took that momemtun into the Perth test & destroyed AUS - so IND despite them standing up admirably in this test, should be wary of this.


Proteas made a big mistake to play Tahir though, he may have spun S Africa to victory in their most recent test in vs PAK. So he has his uses in certain conditions, but vs IND he was always likely to be a easy target, because of IND historic ease, IND bats handle leg-spinners. This is noticeably exposed when M Morkel got injured, another seamer then to support Steyn/Philander/Kallis might have stopped Pujura/Kohil partnership.

Now that they have called up Kyle Abbot, their best XI is to return to an all-pace attack and also pick Rory Klienvelt. Although i feel B Hendricks, Chris Morris or Ryan Mclaren based on form & availabity (M De Lange & Hardus Viljeon are injured or suspended) would have been a better choice instead of Klienvelth.


On IND batting, well before this series IMO & the stats showed that Kohli & Pujara were the only IND new generations batsmen who seemed to have the skills to score runs overseas. So if anyone was going to make runs was going to be them.

The likes of Dhawan, Vijay, Sharma, Rahana still have quesitons marks, while Ashwin after getting some easy wickets in 2013, after ENG made him look relatively docile in 2012, notably didn't look threatening against a proper batting line-up again.

Thus in the overall assessment of IND 2014 tour assignments; 1 test down 12 to go.

Welcome back War. Are you a little surprised that India are yet to lose a test at Jo`burg. They nearly won in 1997 where SA were 8 down and it rained on the final day, won by a big margin in 2006 and now this test match. Perplexing because many argue that the Jo`burg test match wicket is the toughest in SA. Also, lets give the Indian side its due. Most teams in recent times have come down to SA and been blown away by their pace attack. Australia for all their documented 'skills' against pace bowling got bowled out for 40 odd and Pakistan did similarly well. The heartening part of this Indian performance is not the runs but the intent. You may say that only Kohli and Pujara stood up but if you watched the test match many others did too without reflecting too much on the scores. Vijay occupied the crease long enough for the new ball to lose its sting in both the innings. He was looking really comfortable in the 2nd innings till he was out caught down the leg side. Rahane, in the first innings displayed immense maturity as well and does`nt look out of place at all. A test match like this would have been a wonderful training ground for these men and I`m now confident that our transition will be smoother than most sides.

Our bowling looked far more potent than anyone gave it credit for showing that they are`nt pushovers in helpful conditions.

 

[harishankar]

Great match. I was disappointed that India couldn't push for a win despite being 450+ on the board on the 4th innings. I think the problem is that, we need a fourth seamer in such conditions, seeing that Ashwin couldn't be effective. 3 seamers to take 20 wickets in a match, even in helpful conditions is a bit too much.

A few observations

1. wickets in SA/AUS don't deteriorate as much on the 4th and 5th days as Indian wickets do.
2. you need four seam bowlers to keep the pressure on in such conditions.
3. Zaheer khan bowled too much round the wicket on the last day. In fact, he hardly bowled over the wicket, except to the left hander.
4. Dhoni attacked too much and allowed boundaries to flow to third-man/fine-leg regions allowing SA to score quickly. I think any Test field on such conditions requires a third-man and fine-leg all day long. Every time I see a thick-edge going to the boundary at third-man, I feel sorry for the bowlers. Dhoni should have had a third man even when SA were 300+ behind India.


The problem is of course, that India don't have a seam-bowling all rounder - which South Africa do... for the next match, I suggest dropping Ashwin and getting in Umesh Yadav even at the cost of slightly weakening the batting and put the onus on the batsmen to score the runs.

Kudos to the SA batsman to save the game and nearly winning it too.

 

[greymatter776]

This is were we want a seaming allrounder like Irfan Pathan was to India,Too bad he is not playingActually I dont know what happened to him.He got good pace and is a left hander too . He could also bat a bit like Ashwin as well.So I strongly beleive he needs a chance too like Zaheer,The last time I saw him was in the T20 WC I guess.Hope he is fit

 

[harishankar]

My match analysis would be as follows:

It was a match of missed opportunities for both teams right from the beginning of the Test match.

• SA had the best bowling attack in the conditions in the first day. And they mised an opportunity to get India to a low score in the 1st innings.The way India batted was superb, yes, but SA bowlers allowed Indians to not play at a lot of deliveries outside off stump. It reiterates the point that it's far easier to win a Test by dominating early.
• India having got 255-5 on the first day ought to have scored 330-350 in the first innings. But they were blown away for 280 which was crucial in limiting their lead.
• SA got 130-1 in their first innings and ought to have really made a lead in the 1st innings which they couldn't. They got 244 all out.
• India having got SA 140-6 or thereabouts couldn't finish it off at around 180-190 all out. Those extra 40-50 runs were crucial by Vernon Philander.
• India having got a lead of over 300+ on the start of the 4th day with the opposition losing out on Morkel early, ought to have set 500+ target to SA. They miscalculated the pitch conditions. Which re-iterates the point: when you get a chance to bat the opposition out of the game, do it. It's better to set a target of 480-500 in the 4th innings with 90-100 overs for the opposition to survive than to set 400-450 with more than 130 overs to bat and have a chance to win. Much easier to attack all the time when the opposition have no realistic chance. Bowlers also won't get too tired on the last day.
• SA having got a huge partnership on the 5th day, to nearly create a historic record, batted too tamely in the last session and lost crucial wickets which made the game draw.

Overall, I think both teams will rue the lost opportunities, but will be thankful for a draw in the end. SA will be more disappointed having got so close.

 

[surendar]

This is where I still standby for tests to continue in future no matter how many formats come by. This exactly gave me the feel of India - Pakistan, Chennai classic test match ages back.

Ultimate winner being the game of cricket itself! Also it was satisfactory to see our pacers doing good, with next WC in Aussieland, I really wish we have more abroad tours like this to keep the energy level/confidence alive, in particular the bowlers to hit the consistency zone outside India.

 

[vaibhavtewatia]

I really wish we have more abroad tours like this to keep the energy level/confidence alive, in particular the bowlers to hit the consistency zone outside India.

FTP's are made keeping this mind that the next WC is in Australia, but then thanks to the BCCI, they have the potential to cut them all short.
Anyway, we're facing NZL soon, and then after the IPL-WT20, a series in England and then later that year, probably November, we go to Australia for a 4-test and Tri-Nation series including England.

 

[stefan]

Mixed feelings about this one.

Great fightback by the boys but felt having got that close should have gone for the win.

Not as bad as Dhoni's tactics at the end thought...

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Based on the dismal crowds it's not hard to see why.

A lot of people are having coastal holidays at this time of the year. Hence why Joburg didn't have a big crowd.

OFC our best attended test was cut by the BCCI. The new year Newlands test usually has the biggest crowds of all our test venues but there won't be one this year. Thanx BCCI

 

[playkid12]

Ultimate winner being the game of cricket itself!

I disagree. Cricket was winning until the last few moments of this match. When SA gave up the chase, it was like watching a really botched climax of an otherwise great movie. This match would've been truly great if SA would've went for the kill the last two overs. Then, cricket would've won. SA could've chased down the highest score in history, or India could've had a chance of a very unlikely upset. That's good cricket. Giving up the way SA did is ridiculous.

This match is one of the biggest letdowns in test history. It's like buying a gigantic firecracker, lighting it up, and waiting in anticipation as the string burns until you're finally let down because the firecracker was a dud. This is exactly the reason why people would stop watching tests. Imagine people taking 5 days off for 7 hours each day in today's world and what is it all for? A dud firecracker.

 

[angryangy]

It was still a very cricket sort of thing to happen.

 

[harishankar]

Mixed feelings about this one.

Great fightback by the boys but felt having got that close should have gone for the win.

Not as bad as Dhoni's tactics at the end thought...

Dhoni had to try and save the game after it became obvious that he couldn't win it. Picking up three wickets in three overs? Not a likely scenario. Sixteen runs in three overs? Definitely on. He had to go on the defensive. Helping South Africa create history at his team's expense isn't part of his job description.

It was South Africa who didn't risk their (unlikely) losing three wickets for a great win.

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This match is one of the biggest letdowns in test history. It's like buying a gigantic firecracker, lighting it up, and waiting in anticipation as the string burns until you're finally let down because the firecracker was a dud. This is exactly the reason why people would stop watching tests. Imagine people taking 5 days off for 7 hours each day in today's world and what is it all for? A dud firecracker.

It's obvious you didn't watch this game. Draw is still part of the game. And it was by no means a foregone conclusion until the last two overs. And we watch Test cricket for more than results - we watch it for the skills involved, the sheer dogged determination and character shown by batsmen and bowlers in trying conditions; and of course, the drama unfolding as the match ebbs and flows. Of course, we're disappointed that our respective teams couldn't win. But that doesn't take away from all that unfolded in the game over 5 days.

It's the one-sided games that get over in 3 days or less that really ruin Test cricket.

Continue watching the slam-bang format of the game if you're so keen on results. In the meantime, true Test cricket fans will still savour this game in spite of the draw.

 

[stefan]

Dhoni had to try and save the game after it became obvious that he couldn't win it. Picking up three wickets in three overs? Not a likely scenario. Sixteen runs in three overs? Definitely on. He had to go on the defensive. Helping South Africa create history at his team's expense isn't part of his job description.

It was South Africa who didn't risk their (unlikely) losing three wickets for a great win.

.

He only needed 3 good balls. Consider tahir can't bat and morkel was 90% injured and that previously in the match wickets had fallen in clusters, not that unlikely of a scenario if he tried for it.

 

[harishankar]

He only needed 3 good balls. Consider tahir can't bat and morkel was 90% injured and that previously in the match wickets had fallen in clusters, not that unlikely of a scenario if he tried for it.

Easy to say, but all the bowlers were exhausted after that effort all day long and the pitch had really slowed up on the last day's play. And the ball was old too.

All things considered, I cannot really blame either India or South Africa for taking the easy route, but South Africa almost won, India didn't. And that's why they will rue the chance.

Seeing how Steyn hit Shami for a six off the last ball, I cannot really blame the bowlers for bowling wide short pitched balls to the batsmen at that stage. It is a huge risk to fire in a yorker which becomes an easy full toss to put away for a four or six with 16 runs to play with.

If SA had been 8 or 9 down or required more than 25-30 runs to win in the last couple of overs, I would have said, Dhoni could have risked the loss going for a win.

 

[Aalay]

Just like to point out that there are 2 very good seam bowling all-rounders in the Indian domestic circuit right now.

(1) Abhishek Nayar | India Cricket | Cricket Players and Officials | ESPN Cricinfo

(2) Rishi Dhawan | India Cricket | Cricket Players and Officials | ESPN Cricinfo

If you are looking at the future, Rishi Dhawan is the one we are looking at because he is just 23 years old. He is more of a bolwing all-rounder where Abhishek Nayar is a batting all-rounder. I don't think Irfan Pathan's batting is good enough for tests.

 

[shravi]

Abhishek Nayar is a military medium bowler who bowls dibbly-dobblies. His FC batting average is also inflated by playing on some very flat pitches. He has a very limited technique with a crouch that is geared towards playing big shots at the end of a limited overs innings. I think he would be found out by the short ball.

Haven't seen too much of Rishi Dhawan.

Irfan Pathan's batting and bowling are both not good enough for test cricket. It makes me so sad every time I see his name. He genuinely could have been a world class fast bowler. He was that good.