South Africa vs India, 2nd Test, India tour of South Africa, 2021-22 - CommentaryRSA vs IND, 2nd Test, India tour of South Africa, 2021-22 - Commentary

Harsha Bhogle: One innings where the bowlers are off-colour and India suddenly look a lesser team. Shows how much they have carried the team through 2021.

Harsha Bhogle: Superbly done by Elgar. He can sometimes make batting look a laborious pursuit but he's worth his weight in gold.

Sawant: India have missed Kohli's energy and intensity in this innings..

Vishnu: Most of them commenting like, India didn't capitalize on Pujara - Rahane partnership in second innings, but India lost the match in first innings only, and these two let India down in first innings.

Shahbaz: South African batsmen are showing great determination and grit on this demonic behaving pitch. Great contest between bat and ball, this is what Test cricket is all about.

Mayank Porwal: Elgar has played a true captain's knock in this innings!

Sachin: Ok, our bowlers lacked the venom. But Elgar and RVD should also be given credit for this terrific partnership.

Pooja: SA middle order showing India how it's done! Can't help but appreciate and admire their resolve. Definitely SA's game now...and this doesn't look like the SA of yore, they won't collapse.

Bhargav: @Srinath S: I've seen Kohli going quiet when things get too close to comfort. I believe that Indian batsmen didn't make the most of Pujara-Rahane platform and then the bowlers didn't bowl accurate lines initially.

Gowtham: Shardul Thakur should be brought into the attack now. He has been impressive in this test match and in swinging conditions like these, he might prove to be a game-changer for India. 'He's in now'

Srinath S: This is a true test of KL's captaincy skills. As much as I admire him as a batsman, I can't help but think he may be a tad bit too meek to rally the team the way we'd like to see. Not comparing him to Kohli, but a captain needs to be more vocal than how he currently is.

Harsha Bhogle: Very good from South Africa since resumption. They aren't letting the demons in the pitch affect them and aren't missing out on scoring. This wet ball isn't helping India though.

Pranay Chenreddy: All the talk about heavy roller but the fact is that Indian bowling unit hasn't been able to extract the same spice out of the wicket as that of their counterparts. Missing Siraj as well.

Shobhit: This is South Africa's game to lose now. India don't have much runs to defend with 8 more wickets to take. India will try different things to defend it, which ultimately benefit the South African batters. India's first innings not so great batting is affecting them now.

Harsha Bhogle: 135 mins play possible. Maybe 30 overs. Will need to come back tomorrow where the forecast, as it stands, isn't great.

Mani: "@Vishnu : In my view, current qualification scenario for WTC final itself is incorrect with % of points is preferred with teams playing diff no of matches. 1st - Number of series wins should be considered (since all teams playing 6 series each), if many teams are equal, then win % should come into play."

KD: "This rain-induced break should be a blessing in disguise for the Indian bowlers, they will come out fresh but, the SA batmen will still have to grind for those runs. It's a pretty even contest on the cards, weather permitting."

Vishnu: "ICC should re-think about their WTC point allocation for draws, especially if the matches end in draw due to weather. Both teams fought for a result through out the match and deserve 6 points each, instead of 4."

Zahid Afzal Thoker: "@Ram: It looks pretty similar to Trent Bridge, wherein India was like what South Africa is now''

Aditya: "Shouldn't there be any rule regarding loss of play due to rain. Many matches suffer due to rain, there should be a provision of an extra reserve day."

Prateek: "Still remember 2018 where rain made the pitch a batsmen favourite for the initial 2-3 hours before Shami's reverse swing storm came!"

Ram: "Trent Bridge feels anyone?"

Vineeth: "Even if the rain gives us one and a half sessions out of the six remaining we should be good."

syed: "India's victory will be decided on how Bumrah goes about his business today. There are other bowlers too but Bumrah is the one made for these kinds of situations."

Sooryanadh Ramadas: "Its still foggy and cloudy here in Johannesburg. Rain got little better than morning same goes with thunders. From Sandton- 3 KMs to Wanderers."

Sagar K: "South Africa will use heavy roller today, so the pitch would not misbehave for an hour or so as and when play resumes. India need to keep it tight and not go searching for wickets early on. Ashwin should start from one end due to moisture on the pitch because of rain and he has already got some spin."

Shikhar: "The first hour has been good for batting here in this match - any parallel with 2018 must also take into account that SA had scored 120 runs on the morning of day 4 then, whereas they have managed these in the last session of day 3 here. India will have to keep runs very tight whenever play resumes!"

Harsha Bhogle: South Africa favourites now. India need to attack early. Need a spell like the one Rabada produced yesterday to come back into the game.

Sagar Dombe: Looking at the trend in the previous three innings, South African middle order hasn't had decent partnerships barring the de Kock - Bavuma and the Bavuma - Verreynne ones. They're the only partnerships to last for more than ten overs. Clear chance for India if the pacers fire together and get rid of Dean Elgar early on Day 4.

Swapnil Mahajan: Elgar is doing what Pujara did in Gabba and Sydney Test. Taking blows on the body.

Prerit Srivastava: Umesh Yadav could be very useful in pitches like these in SA. Hit the deck and the reverse swing he offers with the old ball is something that could help bowlers more, Siraj isn't able to give his 100% after the hamstring pull yesterday.

KD: Dean Elgar along with Temba Bavuma are key wickets for India in this innings. They will chip away at the runs in a subtle way, that will hurt you in the long run.

Tejas: Got to respect Dean Elgar for his commitment in both Tests. He gets beaten, takes blows, plays ugly at times but he is always there to hold one end up.

Priyanshu Poddar: Excellent appeal there from Ashwin. In a game of margins, umpires' call becomes significantly important and he probably knew that the umpire had to raise his finger to get that wicket. India have another opening now. 'It turned out to be three reds'

Kishore: Irrespective of the result, the commitment shown by SA in this match compared to first, is of top class.

Mohit Bothra: The pitch seems to be getting better to bat on as the game progresses. India might rue not capitalizing on the Pujara - Rahane partnership today.

Dushyant Uppal: India needs to be patient here. RSA went from 124/1 to 177 all out at the same venue in 2018. We have seen wickets falling in clusters in this Test match.

Harsha Bhogle: Bumrah is at his best when he gets the ball to leave the right hander. We haven't seen enough of that so far. Will be watching for that in the 2nd spell...

Sid: "India has bowled slightly fuller lengths giving away easy runs and giving confidence to SA batters."

Adi: "Falling in love with the drives of Keegan Petersen"

OAJ: "I feel bowling cross-seam on this surface is more effective as compared to seam-up deliveries. The ball is coming sharply in as seen in Thakur, Olivier, and some balls of Ngidi."

Vinu: "It would be a real test of Rahul's captaincy now to see how much he attacks and keeps the field up with the target creeping close. "

Shai: "SA strategy is clear, hitting from one end and hold from the other."

Abhinav: "Hanuma Vihari is a player you would want in your team any day. Tough character, goes on with his job quietly."

Harsha Bhogle: Excellent from Vihari. Great example of why you stay in and scrape out as many as possible. India would be relatively happy with what they have set South Africa. Will need a top effort to get these

Raman Pratap Rajputt: "Hanuma Vihari deserves greater applause for every contribution he has made in his relatively short career so far be it today or be it Sydney. Such players deserve to be cherished more."

Naveen: This battle with Jansen is only going to fire up Bumrah. Ominous signs for South African batters

Suyash: I think 200 should be enough but 250 would give a bit more freedom and time to Indian bowlers to bowl SA out.

Saikishore: Vihari should start playing his shots now...... NO point hanging back...

Abhishek Anant: The strategy is clear. Vihari to hold one end up and others throw the bat around to score runs. Make sense, anyways others may not have the technique to survive on this pitch.. but a few of them can make important contributions

Anish: Vihari and Thakur should look at scoring runs. A lead of 200+ should take India to a better position

Harsha Bhogle: What a session of test match cricket! Top batting early on, then a brilliant spell from Rabada, a moment to forget for Pant and at the end of it, South Africa ahead in the game.

Ronak: Pant, except for the Australia series has mostly either kept well or batted well but rarely done both in the same match or series. While his keeping seems to have improved, his batting in tests is surely going downhill. His place has not been debated much due to lack of Test keepers in the waiting.

Arnav: While Rahane and Pujara have been under fire, I think its fair to say Pant has avoided lot of flak for his performances of late too..has thrown away his wicket way too easily on so many instances

Harsha Bhogle: Beyond the runs this partnership put together, and it could end up being the match defining event, was the intent both showed. In the boundaries struck but also in the search for singles. Top class. Pujara & Rahane!

Mayank: Rabada is bowling beautifully, just that he needs support from other end too

Jatin: Fifties for Pujara and Rahane when they were on the verge being dropped from next match (again). Hope this time they show consistency and score runs in the upcoming games as well..

Vishal: This could well be the innings that define Pujara and Rahane's inclusion in the team for the upcoming Tests. Stakes are really high for them here

Nirmalkumar: Seems like Pujara is replicating what Bavuma did in the 1st innings. There is no point on defensive play in this kind of track. And it is rewarding for Pujara.

Adarsh: We have been talking about Pujara and Rahane and how they have shown positive intent, but we should not forget that South Africa has very good bowling attack and they can pull the match back towards themselves

Vamsi: When career is on line Rahane usually plays a match winning knock. Hope he will do it this time as well.

Prashant Talreja: South African bowlers are able to extract more juice out of this pitch than their Indian counterparts.

Paras: I really want Pujara to score runs in this innings. In Test cricket, we don't have many pure specialists left in the game. Teams crave having such a player in the team. And we have one struggling with bad form. It'd be good to keep having his presence in the playing eleven.

Mohd Asif: Perfect opportunity for Pujara and Rahane to save their test careers and this Test match

Joy: The shaky Indian middle order will now decide whether India surrenders meekly or puts up a fight with their best overseas batsman in the hut.

Avi: Pujara and Rahane have so much time in the second innings to bag some runs under their belt. It's now or never, they are running out of opportunities..

Shalabh: "This game is giving the vibes of 2018 Johannesburg test. Game going in the same flow."

Jacob: "India really can't afford Pujara and Rahane to not fire in this innings."

Harsha Bhogle: Reckon India need 250 in the 2nd innings. Anything plus is a bonus for the bowlers, a target under 200 means you are pleading with the bowlers again

Harsha Bhogle: Got to admire Shardul Thakur. Love players with that kind of attitude. Captain's dream.

Ram: "Every run here is gold dust. South Africa will be the happier side right now."

Suyash: "Have to say Pant has really improved his keeping skills."

Abhi: "When nothing seems working, hand over the ball to Lord Thakur. Nothing short of a Golden arm !!"

Anant: "The new ball is still some distance away and South Africa would be desperately hoping to get into a lead before that."

Sumit: "This partnership could prove to be decisive in context of this game. Verreynne looks a good one for the future."

SST: With the wicket supporting seamers, a lead of 40-50 would put SA in the driver's seat.

Ashley: Allahudien Paleker is always spot on. Great debut as an umpire

Chris: Indeed the catch was not conclusive. That does not make it not out though. Unfortunate for SA but that is the right decision made.

Haripdkt: It was great effort from Elgar and Peterson, but what a spell we are seeing from Thakur, Take a bow man, IND pocketing an important session.

Parijat Mishra: Very bright signs for RSA cricket in the form of Marco Jansen and Keegan Petersen. They could be the two pillars of South Africa cricket in future, which is going through a very lean patch after most of their seasoned campaigners hung their boots.

Shubham: That's the advantage of having a Mayank or Keegan in your team, where a Rahul or Elgar is holding one end up and the other batsmen is scoring runs freely to let the pressure off their partner. India benefited from this in 1st test and SA is being benefited from it here.

anshul: Watching Keegan Petersen is delight to watch. Hope that drop catch doesn't haunt India's chances to win this match and probably the series.

Smit: I think Shardul should be given chance to bowl. 30 overs bowled and yet not a single over. He is a partnership breaker and if you’re playing him , you should have confidence that he will deliver.

Anshul Bajaj: Keegan Petersen making India pay for that dropped catch!

sridhar: There's a distinct difference in making the batsman play and beating him. The Indian bowlers need to make the SA batters play more balls than they are doing right now.

Tejas: India need early wickets today. They cannot let Elgar and Petersen settle.

Mukul Gopaliya: There is something with Keagan Peterson, that is some class against the top quality bowlers even if he defending as well

Farhan M: "In the 15th over Siraj was troubling Elgar just like how he was troubling Moeen Ali in the Lord's Test against England. Moving the ball away from the leftie and threatening the outside edge."

K Yashwanth: "That was some over from Siraj!"

Umang Singh: "Dropping Petersen can prove to be costly for India. It was Pujara's catch. Pant should have let the 1st slip take it."

Ashley: "Keegan Peterson is really a treat to watch"

Javed Parvez: "Shami has been the unsung hero of Indian cricket."

Harsha Bhogle: Irrespective of how many he gets, there is something very pleasant about the way Keegan Petersen bats.

Darshit Pandya: "This match isn't all over yet. The same ground last time round, India managed to win after posting a mere 187. So the bowlers have to win this game and sure India has that strength of pacers in the form of Shami, Bumrah and Co. Mind you, a charged up Siraj can win the game single-handedly!"

Yagyansh: "I like this SA team, they have some seriously talented players coming in which shows their good domestic structure. A much better administration and a good guide for this young team has to be there so that we don't see another Sri Lanka."

Ganesh Katigar: "One of the key and notable factor of the current Indian Test Team's success in overseas Test series is their lower order standing up strong and contributing in ways more than what they been have asked of!!"

Mukarram Badri: "It seems India is playing without a middle order. Runs are scored by openers and then the lower order. So rare in Indian cricket."

Yash: "Feel like Ashwin is playing good cricket here. Trying to rotate strike and push balls to the boundary."

Paras: To be fair to Rishabh Pant, he always finds himself without any company and then has no option but to look for shots and that's why ends up scoring 30-40s. KL Rahul should have looked to build a partnership with him. Played so well and in the end such a rash shot.

Abhishek: India's brilliant bowling in the last few years have probably hid the fact that Indian batters have been pretty ordinary in overseas conditions in the last couple of years.

Sudheer Sharma: Another loose shot from KL, he will do all the hard work and after achieving feats, he will simply loose his concentration and play a nothing shot.

Abinash Das: Despite this failure, Hanuma Vihari deserves to be backed and given a longer rope by the team management as he brings in that much-needed classical approach and stability in modern-day Test cricket.

Abhijit: KL Rahul has really worked on his defence and leaving the balls outside off stump. Something which the current coach was a master in.

Mayank: It is frustrating. Pujara and Rahane have become sitting ducks. They have also gotten a much longer rope than someone like Karun Nair who was dropped even after scoring an unbeaten triple century. With so much talent warming the bench, don't see India persisting with these two after this test.

Riansh Gupta: Really nice to see Rahul growing as a test player. No doubt he is the current most versatile Indian cricketer.

Ani: Such a drastic change in Rahul's game. His hard work is paying off and now even with Injuries to Kohli and Rohit, looks like luck is also in his favour. 2022 might be the year for KL Rahul.

Mayank: I think India is allowing South Africa to bowl at their strengths at the moment. They need to be more proactive in their approach, at least look for quick singles here and there.

Sumit Agrawal: @Samyak Jain: Even Shreyas is kind of fighting for his spot in the team currently. Moreover, as Vihari has already been playong in SA with the A team, it gives him the edge over Iyer with all the experience he would have gained.

Guru: @Samyak Jain - I don't think so, Shreyas is new to Test and it will take time for players to adjust to the conditions and pitches but Vihari has recently played for India A here and has also been a part of the previous tour, so he is much suited for replacing Virat..

Samyak Jain: I think Shreyas was more suited as a like-for-like replacement for Virat than Vihari purely because of the approach in the middle. Now, we have three batsmen who are fighting for their spot in the team and they take their time to get going, giving South Africa that element of opportunity to dictate proceedings..

Sudheer Sharma: Until u play more on Back foot it is quite difficult to play in SA. To counter steep bounce one should be more back foot defensive. Mayank Agarwal is playing more on front foot, that's why even if he is defending well, the odd balls are taking the edge. Can't wait to see Vihari batting in these conditions..

Sachin Bansal: @Sagar- Not only just captaincy, Rahul was not sure about his place in test team a few months back. It's a complete turn-around for him.

Sagar: Sad to hear about Kohli but even KL would not have dreamt last month about leading the side behind Kohli, Sharma and Rahane in the pecking order.

Mann: @Ajay - Rahane has been playing pathetically since that 100 at the MCG. His average has been nearly 15 since then. He was bound to be removed from the vice-captain post.

Harsha Bhogle: Two teams with relatively unsettled batting orders and powerful bowling options. Big test for India to play without Kohli. Remember though, it won't be the kind of surface it was in 2018 because the Wanderers is sitting on 3 demerit points.

Arjun: It's very painful to see Jinks not captaining the side even after kohli missing out due to injury . Exactly a year before he was the captain of the side which made a terrific comeback after 36/10 and was the man of the match for his heroic hundred in 2nd test at australia.

Harsha Bhogle: If you are KL Rahul, you must think life is a roller-coaster...

Commentary not available for this match