Cricket icon Sunil Gavaskar was taken aback by South Africa’s choice to bat first in the second Test against India in Cape Town on January 3, following their toss win. The ex-Indian captain suggested that the Proteas bowlers could have capitalized on the Newlands conditions to exert pressure on the struggling Indian batsmen.
Dean Elgar’s choice to bat first in his farewell international match turned out to be a major setback as the home team was dismissed for only 55, marking their lowest Test total since 1932.
Despite a strong comeback, South Africa managed to limit India to 153, with the visitors surprisingly losing six wickets without adding any runs in 11 balls. At the end of Day 1, South Africa stood at 62/3 in their second innings.
Expressing his views on South Africa’s choice to bat first in the Cape Town Test, Gavaskar conveyed to Star Sports:
“Well, I tell you what, I was a bit surprised by what happened. Because a lot of times, captains and coaches make a big deal about what the pitch is gonna be..”
The ex-Indian captain further mentioned that the Proteas failed to seize a significant chance to challenge India’s batsmen, who had struggled in Centurion, on a newly prepared pitch.
“I think you have also got to look at the psychology of the Indian team, having been defeated in three days, having batted so poorly in the second innings and going to be batting first on a fresh pitch would have been just a little bit defensive,” Gavaskar said.
“And I have thought that South Africans with the fast bowlers that they have in their lineup could look to take advantage of the fact that they have not played any cricket in between and therefore put them in,” he added.
India bowled out the hosts at a low score, with Mohammed Siraj taking 6 wickets for 15 runs. Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, and Nandre Burger each secured three wickets, limiting India’s lead to less than 100.
“Something similar happened in Australia two years ago” – Gavaskar views on India’s fightback
In the conversation, Gavaskar also reminisced about the Adelaide Test against Australia, where India was dismissed for 36. However, they staged an impressive comeback, winning the subsequent Test in Melbourne and ultimately securing the series 2-1 in 2020-21.
“Something similar happened in Australia two years ago, Australia dismissed India for 36. The next Test played in Melbourne, where the grass on the pitch was three millimetres more than the one at Adelaide,” he stated.
On the other hand, South Africa will start their second innings behind India by 36 runs, with Aiden Markram batting at 36* and David Bedingham at 7*.
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