Will Team India be eighth time lucky as Virat Kohli and his army will go into the Boxing Day (December 26) Test full of hopes and determination. The Indian team has never tested a Test series win in the Rainbow nation as they eye hopes will once again be on the rise. In the entire history, Kohli will be just the second skipper after MS Dhoni to lead the side on two occasions in the African nation. Kohli’s previous experience though wasn’t great as like other captains he also ended up on the losing side.
Second innings collapse in Cape Town proved costly
The encounter lasted only four days, but Kohli will have huge regret as his side failed to score 208 in the fourth innings with almost six days in hand. Vernon Philander was adjudged ‘Man of the Match’ for his matching winning spell of 6/42 in the fourth innings as South Africa ran out winners by 72 runs. Initially, India got off to the best possible start as the hosts struggled at 3/12 on the first session of Day 1 to reduce the hosts to 286 and 130. The match saw Jasprit Bumrah make his Test debut for the Indian team.
New venue, same old story
The contest played in Centurion saw no change in luck for Kohli’s men as they were all over the place in the second innings. Chasing 287 they were Team India was bowled out for 151, despite scoring 307 in the first innings. Philander’s partner in crime Lungi Ngidi was the culprit this time as he was the pick of the bowlers with 6/39. The Indian skipper will have good memories from the match as he scored a memorable 153 in India’s first innings. As a result of the win, South Africa sealed an inaccessible 2-0 lead in the series.
The sweet end for Team India in Johannesburg
The dead rubber match at Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg saw India bring a sweet end to the Test series as Kohli and company came out on top. India scored 187 and 247 respectively in their two innings, while the Proteas were unable to chase a mere score of 241 and were bundled out for 177 in the fourth innings. Mohammed Shami ran riot with a fifer in the second innings while captain Kohli became India’s highest-scoring Test captain in the same match.
India dominate with White Ball
It was a completely different team in the ODI series as Kohli and company won the ODI series 5-1. The Indian skipper scored three hundred in the ODI series, while fellow Delhi-mate Shikhar Dhawan also scored a ton in Johannesburg. India dominance was underlined by the fact that the team had a complete package with both bat and ball. The T20I series also saw India run out winners by 2-1 as the hosts were no match to India.
