Zeecric Bureau
Nagpur: Following-on 325 runs adrift of South Africa’s first innings score of 558/6, India ended Day 3 at 66/2 having lost the wickets of Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag early.
While the southpaw was cleaned up by Morne Morkel with the score at 1, first innings tormenter Dale Steyn accounted for Sehwag.
Sehwag made 16 runs.
In the afternoon, Steyn had wreaked havoc amongst hosts as Indians collapsed from 221/4 at tea, to 233 all-out in space of just 46 deliveries post-tea.
Steyn, who ended up with figures of 7/51, picked up 5 of the 6 wickets that fell for just 12 runs after tea to leave India staring at the prospect of a crushing defeat.
It all started when Wayne Parnell struck against the run of play when he got the wicket of centurion Virender Sehwag off a wide delivery. Taking a swipe at a ‘widish’ delivery, Sehwag, having smacked 2 fours in the over already, managed only a slice a catch down Jean Paul Duminy’s throat at ‘deep cover’.
Sehwag made 109 runs, hitting 15 fours. India at that stage were 192/4.
Sehwag initially traded his brutal self for a more sedate one, breaking free only once spinners were introduced into the attack.
He had reached his 18th three figure-mark off 134 balls.
Meanwhile Badrinath, having weathered a couple of body blows from Steyn early on, had chipped in with a solid 56 until his dismissal.
After Sehwag and Badrinath seemed to have led India’s fightback with a 136 run-partnership, Badrinath and Mahendra Singh Dhoni then took India to 221/4 at tea.
Post tea, Dhoni was the first wicket to fall, when spinner Paul Harris fell in just the fourth ball after tea. Steyn then got into the act, scripting the dramatic collapse.
India were on the backfoot from morning itself when South Africa snared three early wickets on the third day’s play morning, exposing the vulnerability in the Indian batting order.
Resuming the day at 25/0 after South Africans had declared at 558/6 yesterday, India suffered their first jolt in the second over of the day when Gautam Gambhir fell without adding anything to his overnight score of 12 runs, to Morne Morkel.
Dale Steyn then cleaned up Murli Vijay with a peach of a delivery, the ball swinging inwards after pitching, to leave India reeling at 40/2.
Vijay made just 4 runs.
Steyn then dealt the biggest blow to India, when he had Sachin Tendulkar caught behind by Mark Boucher. Away moment proved to be Mumbai Maestro’s doom, who had already launched himself into a drive.
Tendulkar contributed just 7 runs to India’s cause.
