For the first time in the History of Test Cricket between India and South Africa India have whitewashed South Africa and won the Test Series by a convincing margin of 3-0; and in last 2 Test Matches South Africa lost the Test Match by an innings defeat. Virat has now become the most successful captain of India going past Sourav Ganguly as he now has won 31 Test matches out of 50 which augurs and somewhat predicts that Virat is on verge of something very exceptional accomplishment. South Africa’s skipper Faf Du Plessis made a funny record as he now has lost all the 5 Tosses in the Sub Continent and previously he had made an appeal or we can say put a suggestion to the ICC that the visiting team should get advantage of the Toss but ICC refused to give any team such type of favors. This is South Africa’s second consecutive Series defeat; as earlier in 2019 Sri Lanka dismantled South Africa by 2-0 and for the first time an Asian Country which even today everyone doubts their ability to win a Test Series in South Africa which is none other than Sri Lanka who achieved this astonishing feat even without their two eclectic batsman Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews and now India in India have completely bamboozled the Proteas without giving them a chance to counter attack which showcases the character and quality of performance which Virat and Team displays.
#India
This Test Series was whether Rohit Sharma can fill the void of an opener which the Team Management and Selection Committee were eagerly looking at. Rohit Sharma the dashing opener in the ODI’s played his natural game even when the spotlight and radar was on him as he amassed 529 runs which included 3 centuries and one double century of 212 runs in the 3rd Test Match ; in the 1st Test match of the Series he made a record as he smashed centuries in both the innings and in doing so he became the first opening batsman to attain this feat. Rohit Sharma didn’t change his technique as he took ample time in the initial phase of the innings and when he got his eye in, he thrashed the pacers and spinners to all the parts of the ground. Rohit Sharma looked a nervous starter against the likes of Rabada and Philander as these bowlers forced him to play the outside off deliveries. Mayank Agrawal took the pressure off from Rohit Sharma and he was the main aggressor throughout the Series as he scored 340 runs which included 2 centuries and one double century of 215 runs in the 1st Test Match. It can be said that India finally have a stable opening partnership in which both the players know their roles and a proper opening partnership is the base and key for a Champion Team who can succeed in any condition. King Kohli once again was in sublime form as he notched up his 7th Double Century in his Test Career as he scored 317 Runs in this Test Series and an unbeaten double century knock of 254 runs and it can be said that Virat has an addiction to convert his starts into a humongous knock when the team needs and this addiction or we can say habit every skipper and veteran batsman should have to take the team out of trouble. Ajinkya Rahane rediscovered his old form which was impeccable as he scored 216 runs which included 1 century and 1 half century and Rahane indeed is a savior for Team India. Cheteshwar Pujara’s last 2 Test Series against West Indies and South Africa are a concern as in he has failed to convert his half-century into a big knock which is badly needed from a No.3 batsman as the No.3 batsman is the heart of the middle order; earlier Pujara was expelled from the playing 11 when India toured England in 2018.
India’s spin duo Ashwin and Jadeja were lethal with the ball as Ravindra Jadeja in this Test Series became the fastest left arm spinner to reach to 200 wickets. Jadeja has an invaluable skill of finishing his over in a span of hardly 2-3 minutes which is one of the reasons and factor as he takes wickets of big batsman promptly. Ashwin who was ignored for the Caribbean Tests made a mark about his spin bowling that he may be aging a little bit but he still has got all the deliveries in his armory to confuse, annoy and perplex the batsman as he took 15 wickets in this Test Series which included 1 five wicket haul. Jadeja took 13 wickets in this Test Series and his bowling in tandem with Ashwin was a treat to watch as both the bowlers kept on taking wickets at regular intervals but at the same time both the spinners toiled a lot and were also taken to the cleaners by Proteas. Jadeja was absolutely phenomenal with his batting skills as he scored 212 runs which included 2 half centuries and whenever there was a need to accelerate Kohli and Management send Jadeja to thrash the bowlers. Mohammed Shami who now has earned the tag of 2nd innings bowler who goes for the kill as he takes wickets whenever the skipper gives the ball to him. Shami shook the bowling department of Proteas as the experienced Faf Du Plessis, Temba Bavuma and Quinton De Kock struggled a lot against his balls which were a type of Jaffa as a result the entire batting department of South Africa went through nightmares. Umesh Yadav the fast bowling sensation ripped through South Africa’s batting line up whether it was 1st inning or 2nd innings as he took 11 wickets in the Test Series; Umesh got 2 Matches to play as Jasprit Bumrah the Yorker specialist was injured. Umesh made the most of the opportunities and made a statement that he still has go that hunger to perform and excel on the big stage. Ishant Sharma the lanky fast bowler played ideally the role of a senior fast bowler as he groomed and guided the entire bowling department and he took 2 wickets in this Test Series. Shahbaz Nadeem accidentally was named in the squad of 3rd Test Match as a cover for Kuldeep Yadav the left arm china-man who got injured. Shahbaz Nadeem made his debut in the 3rd Test Match and he was a decent left arm off spinner to have in the team as the management decided to play 3 off spinners and in that test match, he was economical as he took 4 wickets.
The next assignment which Virat and Team has in the Test Format is of Bangladesh as they are going to play 2 Test Matches in the month of November. This challenge will nothing be a cake walk for Team India as the level of Cricket which Virat and Co have displayed from the last couple of years the Bangladesh Team won’t be able to create an upset or disturb Team India’s environment in the dressing room. The only worry which Team India and Virat would have is the form of Pujara as now Virat doesn’t want a new batsman at No.3 because the performance and result which team India is now showcasing is of culmination. Even in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah India has got a fantastic bench strength and even if Bumrah is not fit for Bangladesh Tests , the Team Management and Virat would want him to be fully fit for New Zealand’s Tour which is in January – February 2020 which is a vital tour for Team India as Virat would be captaining the TEST team in New Zealand for the First Time. Prithvi Shaw the U-19 young sensation and who was believed to open the innings along with Mayank Agrawal now finds himself a bit lost as currently he serving a doping violation which is until November and now Prithvi not only has to perform but exhibit his performance with colossal scores i.e. he needs to score centuries that too double centuries then and only then Prithvi Shaw can make his way back into the Team India.
#South Africa
In this Test Series South Africa were blown away in the last 2 Test Matches. The absence of the veteran, legendary and a prolific batsman Hashim Amla was clear cut seen as the entire batting line up got bundled out very quickly when Elgar, Faf and Quinton were dismissed. Dean Elgar the elegant batsman was one of the positive thing came out of this Test Series for Proteas as he scored 232 runs which included 1 century and throughout his all the innings he had a positive approach to pacers and spinners which was unbelievable as he was finding the gaps with ease and strike rotation looked like innocuous but after scoring a century in 1st Test match his form declined as after that inning he didn’t score a single half century nor a century . Quinton De Kock the aggressive wicket keeper batsman scored 156 runs which included 1 century in 1st Test match but he failed to play a knock with defensive technique as he lacked the mental application to survive India’s threatening and dominating bowling attack. Faf du Plessis the skipper didn’t trouble the scorers and he was targeted by the fast bowlers as he scored 142 runs which included 2 half centuries. There were lot of questions raised about Faf’s batting position as he came to bat at No.5 position but later in the Test Series he came at No.4. Faf wasn’t leading the team from the front and also not by an example as a result the team succumbed to defeat quite early than everyone thought. The likes of Aiden Markram, Theunis De Bruyn and Temba Bavuma didn’t show any sort of fight throughout the Test Series i.e. they failed miserably to put up a partnership of at-least 70 runs and they also didn’t spend some time on the crease and if you want to succeed in Test Cricket then every batsman needs to get acclimatize to the conditions. Zubayr Hamza the debutant showed a lot of talent and promise through his stroke play and his style of playing shots and cricket was a treat to watch as he was playing innocuous shots but the runs kept on coming that too with a healthy strike rate as he scored 62 runs in the 3rd Test Match which included a knock of 62 runs in the 1st innings. In the 3rd Test Match the Proteas management and Faf made whole sale changes as the entire batting and bowling department had new faces but their performance got deteriorated a lot
The entire bowling department of South Africa got beating as each and every bowler was taken to the cleaners by Team India. Kagiso Rabada and Vernon Philander were scintillating with the new ball but they didn’t rattle the opposition as they both are used to do in their home conditions. When the ball lost his shine both of them were nothing but helpless as India’s batsman completely destroyed them. Rabada too 7 wickets in the Test Series but he wasn’t disciplined with his line and length as the batsman rotated the strike on a consistent basis. Keshav Maharaj the crafty left arm off spinner gave headaches to India’s batsman initially but he wasn’t that much economical as a result the wickets column was a bit less filled as he took 6 wickets and in the 2nd Test Match he played a luxurious knock of 72 runs in the 1st inning. George Linde the debutant made a mark in the 3rd Test match as he took 4 wickets. The entire bowling unit of South Africa couldn’t live up to the expectation as India amassed totals of 500 and 600 quite easily and frequently. After such a humiliating performance now there are a lot of questions being raised over the captaincy of Faf and also about his batting, the opening combination conundrum as in the 3rd Test Match Proteas tried Quinton De Kock as an opener and also over the spin department as there should be a witty spinner who can help Keshav Maharaj to bowl in tandem and also over the fitness of Lungi Ngidi who was injured for the first 2 Test Matches. South Africa will somewhat forget about this Test Series in the near future as there next Test Series assignment is in their own backyard that too against the Resurgent British; but South Africa should remember that the performance in this Test Series would be repeated because when South Africa would be touring Pakistan (UAE) for 2 Test Match Series in 2021 which is quite at a long distance right now but it is definitely on the cards ; in order to avoid such below par performance South Africa should change their mindset and game-plan while playing cricket in Sub-Continental Pitches.
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