Highlights, India vs South Africa, 1st Test, Day 1 at Newlands, Cape Town: IND 28/3 at stumps

India v South Africa, 1st Test, Day-1 summary:

1st session: 107/3 (26 overs) 

2nd session: 123/4 (27 overs) 

3rd session: 84/6 (31.1 overs)

Close of play on day one and India will breathe a sigh of relief. That was some serious, unrelenting pressure from South Africa in only 11 overs and India surrendered three wickets. To be honest they were all poor shots and none of them should have been played. A day that started at 12/3 has ended at 28/3 and South Africa the happier side of the two. India have all to do tomorrow and its only day two of the tour.

After 11 overs,India 28/3 ( Cheteshwar Pujara 5 , Rohit Sharma 0)

Stumps: Watchful Pujara sees out the last six balls, all flying close to his chest high and into the mittens of de Kock. In a way it was good to keep Rohit away from strike as the two will have their task cut out for an important Day 2. India go into the stumps with 258 runs behind of South Africa’s first innings score.

After 10 overs,India 28/3 ( Cheteshwar Pujara 5 , Rohit Sharma 0)

Rabada gets some serious bounce as much as Morkel is getting from the other end. We saw the ball move behind the stumps when Bumrah was bowling, Rabada too gets the movement. Pujara spoke the art of leaving the ball well in these conditions, he seems to practice what he preaches. Will take the strike in the next over, which might be the last over of Day 1.

Kagiso Rabada comes on to bowl. The luxury that South Africa enjoy.

After 9 overs,India 27/3 ( Cheteshwar Pujara 4 , Rohit Sharma 0)

Morkel gives the home side a massive reason to be ecstatic, getting the wicket of the Indian skipper as the day inches towards stumps. Morkel for some reason decided to change his angle going round the wicket to the new man, Rohit Sharma, after digging a short one, he returned to over the wicket to beat Sharma’s outside edge. End of terrific over.

Morne Morkel has got Kohli off his very first ball. Kohli chased the ball which was on the sixth stump and edged it to the keeper. Very loose shot from Indian skipper and India are in big trouble now.

Loud, loud cheer at Newlands and why not… Virat Kohli is gone… Morne Morkel gets the ball to rise sharply off his first ball and the Indian skipper has nicked behind. Deep, deep, deep trouble for India… Can in-form Rohit Sharma save the day?

OUT! With just over 10 minutes remaining in the day, Kohli has managed to nick it to De Kock. Morkel is pumped and why not he has the huge wicket of the Indian captain. Kohli chases a ball that had the steep bounce, the one that Morkel generally extracts.

Kohli c de Kock b Morne Morkel 5(13)

Morne Morkel introduced into the attack.

After 8 overs,India 27/2 ( Cheteshwar Pujara 4 , Virat Kohli (C) 5)

Steyn v Kohli. This should be an interesting battle. A legend already in the shorter format, a hero to be in white clothing with the willow in his hand. With the ball is a man who has enjoyed many moons being at the pinnacle of fast bowling. He looks to roll back the clock to bring the glory days. Pujara gets the boundary off the last ball.

After 7 overs,India 22/2 ( Cheteshwar Pujara 0 , Virat Kohli (C) 4)

Kohli leans into a nice looking drive to play it through cover point for a couple, that should keep him give some confidence. Kohli leaving the balls outside the off very confidently. He is gaining in confidence with every second out there.

After 6 overs,South Africa 13/3 ( AB de Villiers 4 , Faf du Plessis (C) 1)

Dhawan takes a couple off the first ball before throwing his wicket off the next ball. Virat Kohli is in early. Uncertain start for Kohli who jabs at a rising delivery looking to get the feel off it, the ball bobs up and goes on a bounce to the bowler. The Indian captain gets off the mark with a clip to backward square leg.

Speechless…. useless shot from Dhawan. He likes pulling but maybe, just maybe, ducking is a better option at times. Dhawan is gone and India are 2-down. Dropped a catch that cost 50-plus runs as well. Dhawan has had a pretty bad first day in South Africa.

Both openers are back in the pavilion now as Dhawan tried to pull the ball and had an upper edge and it was a simple catch for Steyn. Welcome back, Dale Steyn! Really ominous signs for India.

OUT! Dhawan follows his opening partner. Steyn holds it slightly back of a length, not the length to pull, but Dhawan lives by the sword doesn’t he? The ball hurried onto the left-hander. Steyn completes a simple caught and bowled.

S Dhawan c and b Steyn 16 (13)

Murali Vijay has been leaving the ball well here and Shikhar Dhawan is also playing some good cricket. But come the fifth over and Vijay chased a full ball outside off and gave a simple catch to Elgar who was at gully. Vernon Philander has his man.

Poor shot from Vijay… he wouldn’t want to see that review. Played away from the body and pouched (not too safely) at gully. Didn’t need to play at that at all, going away from him all the time. India lose their first wicket.

After 5 overs,India 16/1 ( Shikhar Dhawan 14 , Cheteshwar Pujara 0)

Philander has done what he does well, picking an early wicket for the Proteas. The nippy bowler completes a wicket maiden with Cheteshwar Pujara out in the middle.

OUT! Vijay committed into a false stroke. Highly unlike Vijay, who chases the ball and ends up edging it to Dean Elgar at gully. Philander provides the hosts with the first wicket.

M Vijay c D Elgar b V  Philander 1 (17)

After 4 overs,India 16/0 ( Murali Vijay 1 , Shikhar Dhawan 14)

Dhawan continues to remain busy, as he takes a single off the first ball. Vijay gets off-strike, after defending the second ball holding his bat close to the pad, courtesy a leg bye. Dhawan ends the over with a boundary.

FOUR! Dhawan sees some length on offer and goes after it, even though it was away from his body it remained close to the ground and ran through the vacant area between slips and gully.

Waste of a review from South Africa. Quinton de Kock pushed for it even when Faf du Plessis didn’t want to go for it. We have seen this before with the Indian team too. DRS is not an exact science.

After 3 overs,India 10/0 ( Murali Vijay 1 , Shikhar Dhawan 9)

Dhawan punches it on off side to get to the non-striker’s end. Loud shout against Murali Vijay as he offers no shot with the ball thudding into his thigh. Umpire Michael Gough denies it. Faf Du Plessis decides to review it after some of his men insisted on the idea. Ball-tracking confirms that the rising ball would have missed the stumps.

After 2 overs,India 9/0 ( Murali Vijay 1 , Shikhar Dhawan 8)

The crowd at Newlands revels in the joyous mood with one of the most fiercest bowlers of modern times and more importantly, their beloved Dale Steyn runs into bowl. Murali Vijay is able maintain his composure as he defends and leaves well to play Steyn’s first over for a maiden.

Steyn-gun is here! Been a while to see the speedstar in action.

After 1 overs,India 9/0 ( Murali Vijay 1 , Shikhar Dhawan 8)

Action-filled start! Murali Vijay gets off the mark, tucking it down to fine leg for a single. Post which Dhawan guides one to third man boundary and. Philander gets one back to nip back into to cut him in halves. But Dhawan is not bogged down by that as lays into a superb cover drive to make it a nine-run over.

FOUR! Crunched! Dhawan times the cover drive sweetly as the ball races through the covers.

Alternately, India will be happy to have restricted South Africa below 300. 286 is a good total, not very good, not okay either, just good given they were 12/3 at one stage. South Africa have scored at least 40 more than they should have. Bhuvi was excellent. Dhawan should be disappointed that he denied him a fifth wicket.

FOUR! Dhawan guides it through the gap between slips and gully to the third man boundary

This is only the 10th time that India have bowled out the opposition on the first day of an away tour.

14 overs to contend for the Indian batsmen today. They desperately need to avoid a similar start to South Africa. Be patient and watchful. The new ball will do a lot.

Murali Vijay jogs out shadow practicing some shots. Shikhar Dhawan tightens the velcro of his gloves as he walks towards the center of the wicket. Vernon Philander is ready with the ball. He will begin with three slips and a gully.

Ravichandran Ashwin has once again helped India to wrap up the tail as he gets Morkel. It was plumb. South Africa will take 286 happily on any day after losing three wickets very early in the innings.

ALL OUT! Matter of time! Ashwin gets his second wicket, Morkel is trapped plumb in front. South Africa finish with 286 runs on the board. Will it be enough? Well the short period of play remaining in the day’s play will tell us if it is good score or not.

Don’t go far away as Steyn and Co will be raring to go against the formidable Indian batting line-up. Will be an intriguing passage of play. It’s going to be a short break.

After 73 overs,South Africa 286/9 ( Dale Steyn 16 , Morne Morkel 2)

Steyn is happy to take the single off the first ball off Bumrah. Morkel manages to keep the pull down and takes a single down to long leg.

After 72 overs,South Africa 284/9 ( Dale Steyn 15 , Morne Morkel 1)

Steyn keeps the strike for four deliveries after taking a single off the fifth ball. Morkel is invited to play the big shot with Ashwin giving the ball some air, the number gets the big stride in and defends it under his eyes. Kohli and Ashwin share a laugh.

After 71 overs,South Africa 283/9 ( Dale Steyn 14 , Morne Morkel 1)

Steyn looks to clear the field with a big swing of the bat, but Bumrah uses his death-bowling expertise to keep it straight and full,Styen gets an inside edge onto his pades. Bumrah follows it up with bouncer that was slanting into Steyn, who is in double mind to play or leave, hanging his bat out but looks to get out of the line of the ball. Looked pretty ugly there. Steyn affords a smile as if to say, “I will get my chance soon, son. And I have waited for a long time.” Dhawan might not be liking this.

Indian wicket-keepers with five catches in a Test innings in South Africa:

Nayan Mongia, Durban, 1996

MS Dhoni, Cape Town, 2011

Wriddhiman Saha, Cape Town, 2018*

And finally Ravichandran Ashwin has taken a wicket in South Africa in Tests. India needed it badly. Rabada tried to cut the ball and edged it to Saha who has had an excellent match so far as a keeper.

After 70 overs,South Africa 282/9 ( Dale Steyn 13 , Morne Morkel 1)

Ashwin’s love to bowl to left-handers is no secret, as he gets rid of Rabada for his first wicket in South Africa. Morkel comes out and takes the aerial route to hit it to long off for a single.

OUT! Ashwin does the trick for India. It was getting frustrating for the visitors, but a nothing delivery produces the wicket. A special wicket for Ashwin as he gets off the mark with his first wicket in South Africa. Rabada jogs out of the ground, already thinking about his bowling. He departs for a well-made 26.

Spin. Ravichandran Ashwin brought into his attack. A slip and a short leg in place.

After 69 overs,South Africa 280/8 ( Kagiso Rabada 26 , Dale Steyn 12)

Rabada misses an scoring opportunity with Bumrah bowling it wide of leg stump. He attempts the pull but was nowhere near it. Bumrah continues to bowl into Rabada’s body with the fifth ball rolling off his thighs on the leg side. Steyn calls for a single and Rabada obliges.

Bumrah comes back into the attack.He will start round the stumps as well.

After 68 overs,South Africa 279/8 ( Kagiso Rabada 26 , Dale Steyn 12)

Kumar sprays on Rabada’s hips, who works it away to backward square leg, Dhawan flicks it in at the boundary to keep it down to two. Brilliant take by India’s gloveman, Saha, down the leg side the ball was sliding away after deviating from Rabada’s thigh pad. Rabada almost threw it away with a miscued pull going up in the air but fell just away from the mid on fielder.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar to bowl into Rabada as he goes round the wicket.

After 67 overs,South Africa 272/8 ( Kagiso Rabada 22 , Dale Steyn 9)

Shami beats Rabada on the outside edge three times in a row. KG smiles back at Shami, who doesn’t believe his luck. Rabada manages to get some bat behind the fourth ball bunting it down to mid on for no run. Another play and miss off the fifth ball. Rabada drives the last ball slightly uppishly but its wide off mid off fielder, Ashwin throws it back but not before Rabada gets his single.

Ravichandran Ashwin ended a decent stand between Maharaj and Rabada with a direct hit. Rabada has been content so far and rightly so. These are bonus runs for South Africa. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is looking for a five-for but can he get it?

After 66 overs,South Africa 271/8 ( Kagiso Rabada 21 , Dale Steyn 9)

Steyn happily defends the first four deliveries including a crunchy drive to the fielder. He digs in the fifth ball, which is left alone by Steyn, who gets low to let the ball sail over his head. Optimistic shout for leg-before of the final ball was certainly going over the sticks.

Bhuvi back into the attack… This has to be worrying for India. Every time they have wanted to take a wicket, they have thrown the ball at him. It reflects on how poorly Shami and Bumrah have been in comparison. It also indicates that India have erred in benching both Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar is brought back into the attack. Will he get his 5th wicket in this spell?

After 65 overs,South Africa 271/8 ( Kagiso Rabada 21 , Dale Steyn 9)

Shami goes around the stumps to Rabada and hits him on the thigh, after Steyn took the single off the first ball. Rabada is late to play the punch through the offside. Rabada tucks it around the corner to get to the non-striker’s end. Steyn adjusts well to the change of pace delivery from Shami. Shouts, ‘No! No!’ for the second run and you would say it was a wise call. The partnership has worked 13 so far.

After 64 overs,South Africa 268/8 ( Kagiso Rabada 20 , Dale Steyn 7)

Steyn gets off the mark with a streaky edge that flies wide of the cordon, R Ashwin in the deep dives to his left and completes a stunning stop to keep it down to two. Captain acknowledges the effort as well. Steyn gets the boundary off the next ball. Pandya tries the short ball to Rabada, who was on the swivel to play the hook, instead gets the inside edge for no run. Rabada gets a couple off the final ball.

Seems like Steyn is going to face some chin music, with Shami welcoming him with short stuff. Pitches the last ball full that draws Steyn forward, who pushes at it with hard hands, but fortunately for him it falls short of the first slip. End of successful over for India.

FOUR! Steyn walks across and plays a cracking shot straight past Hardik Pandya to get his first boundary.

After 63 overs,South Africa 258/8 ( Kagiso Rabada 17 , Dale Steyn 0)

Seems like Steyn is going to face some chin music, with Shami welcoming him with short stuff. Pitches the last ball full that draws Steyn forward, who pushes at it with hard hands, but fortunately for him it falls short of the first slip. End of successful over for India

Dale Steyn walks out to the middle.

OUT! Not the first time there has been a mix-up between the two since they have come out to bat after Tea. It was bunted to mid on again. R Ashwin from mid on unleashes a powerful throw to catch Maharaj short of his ground. Lazy work from Maharaj to get back inside.

K Maharaj run out R Ashwin 35

After 62 overs,South Africa 258/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 35 , Kagiso Rabada 17)

Maharaj rotates the strike with  single of the second ball. Few plays and misses for Rabada off Pandya’s bowling, who keeps it outside the off-stump.

Dhawan’s drop has cost 35 runs off Maharaj’s bat at the time of writing this. Not to mention he has put on 19 runs with Philander and 37 with Rabada so far. Costly doesn’t begin to define it.

After 61 overs,South Africa 257/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 34 , Kagiso Rabada 17)

Shami goes round the wicket to Rabada for the first five balls. He keeps it back of length for first three balls, tests Rabada with a bouncer and then unleashes a pacy yorker. Rabada does extremely well to keep it out. Shami’s double bluff met with a equally resilient and a calm KG. Shami returns to over the wicket to beat Rabada’s outside edge. Maiden.

Mohammad Shami comes into the attack.

The run-rate is still hovering over 4/over and South Africa have got 250 on board. This should trouble Indian think tank. Scoring has been way too easy and there is a school of thought that India have already conceded 30-40 more runs than they should have at this stage. If South Africa cross 300, this could get interesting given how the pitch is.

After 60 overs,South Africa 257/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 34 , Kagiso Rabada 17)

Pandya almost induced a leading edge from Rabada, with the batsman closing the face early, but the ball goes through mid wicket inside of the intended square leg region, allowing him to run two. Maharaj finishes the over with a brace as well.

Hardik Pandya is brought into the attack.

After 59 overs,South Africa 252/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 32 , Kagiso Rabada 14)

Rabada launched Kumar over long on to bring some excitement into a rather drab start to the final session. Proteas cross 250-mark with a couple off an inside edge off Maharaj.

SIX! WHAT A HIT! Meaty blow by KG. That’s gone a long way behind over long on!

After 58 overs,South Africa 243/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 30 , Kagiso Rabada 7)

Bumrah starts off with a bouncer to complete a hat-trick from Kumar’s previous over. Are India trying to bounce these two out? Slight bit of hesitation between Maharaj and Rabada on the second ball with the mid on fielder missing the stumps, not sure whether it would caused any harm if he would have hit. Couple of singles exchanged before Bumrah bowls couple short deliveries, one that almost took Maharaj out. He displayed some skills in getting out of the way, arcing his back and dropping those wrists.

After 57 overs,South Africa 241/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 29 , Kagiso Rabada 6)

Kumar begins with a couple deliveries that were slanted across. Feeds one straight which is hit back to the bowler. Made a good sound on impact, Kumar does well to block it. Completes the over with two bumpers. Maiden.

After 56 overs,South Africa 241/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 29 , Kagiso Rabada 6)

Bumrah starts over the wicket to Rabada. The duo exchange singles off the second and the third ball to keep the scorers busy. Bumrah switches his angle round the wicket to Rabada for the final two deliveries. Rabada bunts to mid on and what should have been an easy single had a mini yes-no before completely the run safely.

After 55 overs,South Africa 238/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 28 , Kagiso Rabada 4)

Kumar bangs the second ball short, which is left alone by South Africa’s number 9. Kumar bowls one too straight as Rabada gets off strike with a single through mid wicket. Maharaj gets on top of short of length ball bowled wide and cuts it through point. With a deep backward point in position, they have to settle for a couple.

After 54 overs,South Africa 235/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 26 , Kagiso Rabada 3)

Bumrah angles one across that takes the leading edge but lands in no man’s land on the offside. Rabada turns the strike over with a single on the onside. Maharaj plays delightful shot through covers with Dhawan giving it a chase to keep it in play, the batsmen run three.

Bumrah to begin Rabada on strike.

Out come the players for the final session of play on Day 1. Let’s find out how long does India take to wrap the last three batsmen. Will SA’s tail wag long enough to take them past 300?

Another split session between India and South Africa. The hosts were able to score quickly and their run-rate is still over 4/over. The visitors were able to nick four wickets. But India should be worried that only one of their three frontline pacers has looked on the money here. Shami and Bumrah have largely been off colour. Bhuvi should have had his five-wicket haul, but Shikhar Dhawan managed to drop a customary catch in slips.

This session should be considered as India’s session. India should wrap up South African innings as quickly as possible after tea.

India’s session. The onus was on AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis to continue the good work. But they fell in quick succession. Quinton de Kock and Vernon Philander played counter-attacking innings but couldn’t last long. India would be happy going back to the pavilion but would also be aware that they have to bat extremely well against the South African pacers.

After 53 overs,South Africa 230/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 23 , Kagiso Rabada 1)

Could be the last over before tea. Maharaj has showed solid defence and played most of the balls here. Rabada has also provided him support from the other end. Shami’s 12th over goes for two runs.

After 52 overs,South Africa 228/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 22 , Kagiso Rabada 0)

Pandya back for another burst. Maharaj drives the first delivery through cover for a brace and dabs the fourth for a boundary. The final ball goes for a leg bye. Seven runs off the over.

FOUR! Beautifully guided. Pandya bangs it short, into the batsman, Maharaj waits on his back foot and guides it past third slip.

After 51 overs,South Africa 221/7 ( Keshav Maharaj 16 , Kagiso Rabada 0)

A brave leave from Philander. The ball went over middle and off stump. Guess he trusts the bounce of the pitch blindly. But the very next ball, Shami castles Philander. A wicket maiden from Shami.

Mohammed Shami finally had the breakthrough. You miss and I hit stuff. An example of reverse swing from Kookaburra ball from Shami. However, Philander played an important knock in the context of the game for his team.

OUT! Reverse on offer for Shami. He angles it on a length, outside off, Philander goes on the front foot to defend but misses. The ball sneaks through the gap between bat and pad ant hits the top of middle. 

Philander b Shami 23(35)

After 50 overs,South Africa 221/6 ( Vernon Philander 23 , Keshav Maharaj 16)

Ashwin usually takes some time to get into rhythm and the same is happening right now. He is bowling at different speeds and changing lengths constantly. Maharaj smokes his fifth ball over long off.

SIX! Mararaj prods forward and tonks it over the bowler’s head for a maximum.

After 49 overs,South Africa 214/6 ( Vernon Philander 22 , Keshav Maharaj 10)

Shami wasn’t too effective in his first two spells. Can he change it around in his third? Induces an edge off Maharaj but the ball falls safely. The next ball though Maharaj crunched it through cover. Eight off the over.

FOUR! Sloppy work at cover. Maharaj stands tall and punches it through cover. Vijay there puts in a half-hearted effort and ball races away to the fence.

FOUR! Maharaj goes for a drive on the up and edges it. Third slip dives to his right but fails to stop it.

Mohammed Shami is back into the attack.

After 48 overs,South Africa 206/6 ( Vernon Philander 22 , Keshav Maharaj 2)

Ashwin continues. Starts with four dots and ends with two singles.

After 47 overs,South Africa 204/6 ( Vernon Philander 21 , Keshav Maharaj 1)

DROPPED! Bhuvneshwar would’ve wait longer for a fifer. Maharaj drives one away from his body and edges it towards the slip cordon. It was Kohli’s catch really, who was fielding at second slip, but Dhawan at third slip moved to his left to pouch it but ultimately put it down. They run a single. Another single off the fifth ball.

After 46 overs,South Africa 202/6 ( Vernon Philander 20 , Keshav Maharaj 0)

Ashwin to Philander. The batsman gets beaten on the first ball and then Ashwin keeps Philander on the toes throughout the over. No runs off it.

After 45 overs,South Africa 202/6 ( Vernon Philander 20 , Keshav Maharaj 0)

The over starts with a boundary and a brace and ends witha  wicket. Bhuvi picks up his fourth wicket.

Indeed, a very tame end.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled outside off from round the wicket and got the edge of Quinton de Kock. It’s the combo of Kumar and Saha did the job again for India. India must not allow South Africa to post another 50 runs here.

Third spell for Bhuvi and he is on the money again… gets Quinton de Kock. Caught behind. Saha has been very good. Regulation catch. Faint edge. Quick scoring partnership comes to an end. South Africa have had aggressive partnerships but not stable ones.

OUT! Quinton de Kock’s lovely little innings comes to an end. Bhuvi bowls it from around the wicket and keeps it outside off, QDK was half-forward and nicked it to Saha, asks Philander about a review but opts against it. 

de Kock c Saha b Bhuvneshwar 43(40)

FOUR! Bhuvi from around the wicket bowls it full and De Kock flicks it comfortably to the midwicket fence for a boundary.

After 44 overs,South Africa 196/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 37 , Vernon Philander 20)

Ashwin is already bowling well here. De Kock inside edges the first ball towards square leg. Philander does the same to backward square leg on the third ball. De Kock goes for a drive on the fourth ball but inside edges it and the ball goes onto hit Saha on the pads. De Kock settles for a single on the final ball.

50 partnership off just 39 balls from Quinton de Kock and Vernon Philander… if you cannot bat for time, might as well hit out on this pitch. When AB had attacked, India lost their bearings, and these two are using the same ploy again at the moment. India need to be careful to not lose momentum like they did in the second half of the first session.

After 43 overs,South Africa 193/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 35 , Vernon Philander 19)

A decent over given the way De Kock and Philander are playing. Two singles and a brace off it. They both also completed the 50-run stand in the 43rd over. It has come off only 39 balls!

After 42 overs,South Africa 189/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 32 , Vernon Philander 18)

An audacious shot from De Kock first up for a boundary. The southpaw cuts the fourth ball square of the wicket on the off side for a brace. Six off the over.

FOUR! Ashwin loops it outside off and QDK decides to cut it very late. The ball beats the slip fielder and races away to the third man fence.

After 41 overs,South Africa 183/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 26 , Vernon Philander 18)

It’s raining boundaries at the moment. Two in this over and a single. Nine off it. India must make a bowling change right now.

Hardik Pandya has done a brilliant job here as an all-rounder. Quinton de Kock is playing shots at his well and getting the boundaries which can hurt India at the end. India must break this stand as quickly as possible and for that to happen, they have to bowl to the field firstly.

FOUR! Philander tries to cut this short delivery but it takes the outside edge and flies over the slip cordon.

FOUR! Absolutely clueless was Philander on this ball. Bhuvi unleashed a perfect delivery: swinging away and on the off stump, Vernon tries to flick but edges it wide of gully.

After 40 overs,South Africa 174/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 25 , Vernon Philander 10)

Two boundaries and a brace in Pandya’s over. India are leaking boundaries at the moment. Maybe Shami should be brought back into the attack or even Ashwin.

FOUR! Overpitched once again. Philander moves forward and drives this off the meat of the bat through covers.

FOUR! Philander is off the mark in style. Drives Pandya past the diving Ashwin at mid off.

Drinks have been taken.

Drinks have been taken.

After 39 overs,South Africa 164/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 25 , Vernon Philander 0)

Bhuvneshwar is back. De Kock drives the first ball to mid off. QDK almost chops on on the second ball. The over ends with two boundaries: on the fourth and sixth ball.

FOUR! QDK strides forward and crunches it through covers. He has scored five boundaries already.

FOUR! De Kock guides down the fourth ball towards third man and Ashwin at that position fails to cut it off.

After 38 overs,South Africa 156/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 17 , Vernon Philander 0)

Philander on strike against Pandya after De Kock takes a single on the third ball. A muted LBW appeal on the fourth delivery but it was going down the leg side. Pandya beats Vernon on the outside edge on the sixth ball.

Briliant from Pandya. He was given a job to hold one end and strangle scoring. South Africa are scoring quick and Faf was tempted to score more but ended up with an edge. Saha isn’t dropping anything today.

After 37 overs,South Africa 155/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 16 , Vernon Philander 0)

Thirteen runs off the over. Despite the wickets, Quinton de Kock is playing his natural game. Good to see. Keeps the contest alive.

FOUR! Hat-trcik of boundaries. Full and outside off, De Kock square drives it to the cover fence.

FOUR! Behind square. Bumrah bowls it short and QDK cuts it through backward point.

FOUR! Wow. De Kock stands still and sends the ball down the ground offering full face of the bat.

After 36 overs,South Africa 142/5 ( Quinton de Kock (W) 3 , Vernon Philander 0)

Eventful over! It started with two boundaries. On the third ball, Faf got rapped on the pads. India appealed but the umpire said not out. Kohli reviewed but Faf survived on the umpire’s call. A ball later Hardik has his man. South Africa five down.

What did you do Du Plessis there? He tried to cut the wide delivery and Pandya got the much needed breakthrough for India. We are now into the lower middle-order of the hosts. Virat Kohli is pumped up once again.

OUT! Well, well, well huge wicket. Look at Kohli. Look at the celebrations. Look at the send-offs. A loose shot from Du Plessis, he throws his bat at an innocuous delivery and edges it to Saha. 

Faf du Plessis c Saha b Hardik Pandya 62(104)

FOUR! Another boundary. Again full and Du Plesis flicks it through midwkcet.

FOUR! Beautifully placed. Full and straight, Faf gets forward and punches it to the right of mid on for a boundary.

Faf du Plessis is playing a captain’s knock here. This innings from him so far has been exactly like showing the respect towards Indian bowlers whenever they bowl well and punishing them for boundaries whenever they bowl bad deliveries.

After 35 overs,South Africa 134/4 ( Faf du Plessis (C) 54 , Quinton de Kock (W) 3)

Bumrah, from round the wicket, hits the deck hard, QDK looked to defend from the crease but the ball went past his outside edge. De Kock whipped the next ball through midwicket for three. A  boundary and a single off the next two balls. Eight off the over.

Jasprit Bumrah’s first wicket in each format in international cricket:

Test: AB de Villiers
ODIs: Steve Smith
T20Is: David Warner

FIFTY! Faf du Plessis slams his 16th half century. A lovely cut through cover-point to get there.

AB de Villiers became Bumrah’s first Test wicket. He was batting on a different wicket certainly and keeping that in mind, it’s a huge wicket. It was a fuller length delivery which forced AB to play the drive and he edged it back on the stumps. Sigh of relief for Indians!

After 34 overs,South Africa 126/4 ( Faf du Plessis (C) 49 , Quinton de Kock (W) 0)

Pandya is doing the holding job here splendidly. Bowls his first maiden. Faf has played out a over on 49.

After 33 overs,South Africa 126/4 ( Faf du Plessis (C) 49 , )

Bumrah provides the breakthrough. AB de Villiers dismissed for 65. Three runs and wicket off the over.

OUT! Big inside edge and Bumrah gets his debut Test wicket. And what a batsman to dismiss as your maiden scalp: AB de Villiers. The batsman tries to drive and inside edges it onto his stumps. They check the no ball but Bumrah’s fine. 

 AB de Villiers b Bumrah 65(84)

Hardik Pandya looking to bowl within himself. Ashwin cannot come on right now so he has to do the holding job from one end. India need to stop leaking runs. Also, that no ball from Bumrah will hurt them. He has looked an ODI bowler so far.

After 32 overs,South Africa 123/3 ( AB de Villiers 63 , Faf du Plessis (C) 48)

Pandya continues. He has been decent so far in the second session. Two singles in the over.

Jasprit Bumrah and the art of bowling wicket taking no-ball balls. However, it was notout and India also did not lose a review.

It will continue to haunt…

After 31 overs,South Africa 121/3 ( AB de Villiers 62 , Faf du Plessis (C) 47)

Bumrah angles it on a length and the ball holds its line after pitching and beats Faf on the outside edge. Faf leaves the second ball alone. Bumrah strays down the leg side on the fourth ball and Faf tries to tickle it; fails and Saha collects it. India go up and Kohli seems to have heard two noises. Replays show that Bumrah has overstepped. His front foot woes continue. But luckily for him Faf hadn’t nicked it. India don’t lose a review though. The follow-up delivery is 143 kph. Some real effort behind that.

After 30 overs,South Africa 120/3 ( AB de Villiers 62 , Faf du Plessis (C) 47)

Hardik is changing his lengths constantly here. Full, Length, Yorker, Short of a length. The fifth ball is on a length and the ball whizzes past Faf’s outside edge. Final ball is on a length again and outside off, Du Plessis cuts it to deep backward point. Run taken.

After 29 overs,South Africa 119/3 ( AB de Villiers 62 , Faf du Plessis (C) 46)

The partnership between both ABD and Faf is now worth more than 100 runs. These two have assumed the responsibility of senior statesman beautifully given that South Africa are a batsman short. Two runs in Bumrah’s over.

Lowest scores from which South African pairs posting a century stand for the 4th wicket in a Test innings:

12/3 – AB de Villiers/Faf du Plesis at Cape Town in 2018*

17/3 – Bob Catterall/Fred Susskind at Lord’s in 1924

19/3 – Dudley Nourse/Billy Wade at Johannesburg in 1949

After 28 overs,South Africa 117/3 ( AB de Villiers 61 , Faf du Plessis (C) 45)

A third slip and Faf du Plessis would’ve been a goner. Faf covers the line of the stumps well on the second ball and defends. Third ball: again movement off the surface and Faf du Plessis gets beaten. The over ends with another boundary. Eight off it.

FOUR! A low full toss from Pandya and Du Plessis punches it down the ground for his ninth boundary.

FOUR! Genuine edge… but falls safe. Hardik tempts Faf to play a drive and he does, only to edge it between gully and the second slip.

After 27 overs,South Africa 109/3 ( AB de Villiers 61 , Faf du Plessis (C) 37)

Bumrah it is who bowls the first over of the second session, with Kohli opting for a defensive field after lunch. ABD leaves the first two deliveries alone, only to tentatively poke at the ball off the third. The ball jags away dangerously from the batsman off the fourth. Good over by the debutant, collecting his first maiden in Test cricket as a result.

After 27 overs,South Africa 109/3 ( AB de Villiers 61 , Faf du Plessis (C) 37)

Two slips and a gully in place. Bumrah begins with a full delivery and ABD works it around for a brace. Top, top delivery. On the fourth ball, Bumrah bowled a back of a length delivery and the ball moved away after pitching, beating de Villiers comprehensively. Terrific ball. Only two off the over.

Welcome back. The players are back. Jasprit Bumrah to bowl the first over ot the second session.

The players are back after lunch on Day 1 of the first #SAvIND Test. AB de Villiers on strike. Bumrah bowling the first over of the 2nd session. Let’s see which direction the battle takes in this session.

AB and Faf battled well to display Protea fire after Bhuvneshwar Kumar ran through South Africa’s top three. The hosts scored at a brisk pace (4.12 runs per over), which one would expect with De Villiers out there in the middle. He notched his 41st Test half-century as SA finished with 107 runs in the 26 overs of play in the morning session. We got to see the first look of Jassprit Bumrah in Test cricket. Didn’t have the best of the starts giving 31 runs in his seven overs, but there is plenty of time in the Test for him to comeback.

Expecting a lot of action in the second session of play, personally, waiting to see how Ravichandran Ashwin operates in these conditions against AB and Faf. Should be interesting. Do join us for the afternoon session.

The first hour belonged to Bhuvneshwar Kumar while it was all about AB de Villiers in the second. Faf du Plessis also left well in the first session and is still there at the centre. South Africa have the edge but India will be thinking about two or three quick wickets after lunch.

South Africa have pulled back things after India’s sensational start. Overall, would say this has been a balanced morning session. No team has won this outright but SA will be more happy of the two sides. India need to stop the flow of runs otherwise AB threatens to make it a long day for them.

After 26 overs,South Africa 107/3 ( AB de Villiers 59 , Faf du Plessis (C) 37)

Kumar gave away nine runs off the last over of the first session. South Africa must be happy having two of their best batsmen returning unbeaten. End of a gripping session of play, with India making most of the early assistance from the pitch, while the fightback by AB and Faf was admirable as well.

FOUR!  Nice. Very nice by Faf. Opened the face of the bat to play it wide of point for another boundary.

FOUR! AB picked the length early there! Kumar dropped it short, allowing AB to use the depth of the crease and pull it to midwicket boundary. SA go past 100.

After 25 overs,South Africa 98/3 ( AB de Villiers 54 , Faf du Plessis (C) 33)

De Villiers was moving to play it through the onside but got the outside half of the bat, almost a leading edge, but managed to keep it down. He gets the single to mid wicket off the fifth ball. Good start for Pandya.

Last ten overs… South Africa have scored at 5-plus per over. And in response India have brought on Hardik Pandya on… it doesn’t quite add up.

Hardik Pandya flocking his golden highlights is ready to deliver his first Test over in South Africa.

The ongoing stand between AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis of fifty-plus runs is the first one in nearly four years. The last such stand came against India at Johannesburg in 2013. Meanwhile, AB de Villiers has notched up his 62nd fifty-plus score in Tests.

After 24 overs,South Africa 97/3 ( AB de Villiers 53 , Faf du Plessis (C) 33)

Kumar finds his rhythm straightaway in his first over of the second spell. De Villiers picking the only run with a pull to fine leg.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar is back for a burst before players disperse for Day 1, Lunch.

Masterful half century from AB de Villiers… there have been moments where he was troubled my movement off the pitch but apart from that he has been sublime. 50 off only 55 balls with 10 fours… not a lot of batsmen in world cricket can do it on this pitch.

After 23 overs,South Africa 96/3 ( AB de Villiers 52 , Faf du Plessis (C) 33)

Shami has been hot and cold so far in his nine overs that he has bowled. South Africa add nine more runs to their total with AB crossing his 50. Both the batsmen look well settled now as they inch closer to 100.

FIFTY! Thumping shot through covers to get to his 41st Test half-century. Consecutive Test fifty for AB after the long sabbatical. He is rejuvenated and now looks hungrier than ever.

After 22 overs,South Africa 87/3 ( AB de Villiers 47 , Faf du Plessis (C) 29)

Bumrah continues with his slanters into the batsmen. The third ball seemed to have skid a touch with De Villiers getting an inside edge. He changes end with a leg bye as Faf gets into the groove with a couple of boundaries to end the over.

FOUR! Too short this time by Bumrah. Faf rocks back and slams it through cover point.

FOUR! Too full by Bumrah, Faf gets on front foot to drive it through the vacant off side.

After 21 overs,South Africa 78/3 ( AB de Villiers 47 , Faf du Plessis (C) 21)

Pristine shot through covers by AB to begin the 21st over, gets forward and gently presses it through the covers for three. Faf gets a boundary through mid wicket as well with the play moving into the last 30 minutes of the morning session.

Both batsmen are using their strides really well here. It’s time for India to give Bhuvneshwar Kumar another go before lunch. Shami is consistently not bowling well and that is really not helping India here. They have struggled to contain the Proteas after the early strikes.

FOUR! Shami keeps it a little straight and Faf flicks it through midwicket for a boundary. This shot should boost his confidence.

After 20 overs,South Africa 71/3 ( AB de Villiers 44 , Faf du Plessis (C) 17)

De Villiers gets off strike with one run behind square leg off the first ball of the 20th over. Bumrah gets the edge, but the ball doesn’t quite carry to Shikhar Dhawan at third slip. Bumrah attempts his favoured yorker that  was sliding down the leg side, catching Faf off guard, with the Protea skipper falling over.

Good stonewalling effort from Du Plessis so far. The chatter here in Cape Town is that he made a brave decision to bat first. And the scorecard clearly reflected that after Bhuvi’s first spell. He has had to fight hard ever since and importantly enough he is still there at the crease.

After 19 overs,South Africa 70/3 ( AB de Villiers 43 , Faf du Plessis (C) 17)

De Villiers looking very comfortable in the middle now, gathering singles at will. Can’t say the same about Faf, who has looked a bit rusty, but has done well to give the former skipper company. Only one run off Shami’s over.

After 18 overs,South Africa 69/3 ( AB de Villiers 42 , Faf du Plessis (C) 17)

Bumrah runs in again after the false start to his fifth over. After three good balls, he bowls one full which is driven by De Villiers down the ground as he moves into the 40s. AB follows it up with a quick single off the next ball.

FOUR! Overpitched by Bumrah and De Villiers thrusts it down the ground. It did touch Bumrah’s arm on the way but had enough on it to go the straight boundary.

The extra bounce from Shami troubled du Plessis as he edged the ball to Kohli but it was bounded in-front of Indian captain as the replay clearly showed. It was the probably the best over that Shami bowled today. He needs to be consistent though to put more pressure on Faf and AB.

After 17 overs,South Africa 64/3 ( AB de Villiers 37 , Faf du Plessis (C) 17)

Lot of deliberation over a catch by Virat at second slip with Faf’s outside edge off Shami almost carrying to Kohli. The Indian captain didn’t claim the catch and the replays confirmed that the ball had just bounced just before the fielder. Shami caps the over with a beauty to beat Faf. Maiden.

After 16 overs,South Africa 64/3 ( AB de Villiers 37 , Faf du Plessis (C) 17)

Bumrah comes back after bowling couple of overpitched deliveries. Delivers three dots after leaking nine runs off the first three balls.

FOUR! Overpitched outside off, The outfield is quick and the ball races away to the fence.

50 comes up for South Africa… bit of a recovery partnership between AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis… they have looked good even when Bumrah has troubled them with movement off the pitch. The hosts need a lot more runs from these two as they are playing a batsman short here.

FOUR! Full by Bumrah, that is driven down the ground by Faf.

After 15 overs,South Africa 55/3 ( AB de Villiers 37 , Faf du Plessis (C) 8)

Couple of boundaries in Shami’s return to the crease for the second spell. De Villiers looking to transfer the pressure back on to the Indians

FOUR! Nothing wrong with this shot! Touch short and De Villiers is onto it in a flash! Hammers it through mid wicket. De Villiers is looking to dominate the bowling.

FOUR! Oh! That’s just unfortunate for Shami. De Villiers gets the inside edge past the stumps and the ball runs down to the fence.

Shami is brought back into the attack.

After 14 overs,South Africa 47/3 ( AB de Villiers 29 , Faf du Plessis (C) 8)

Bumrah continues post drinks, after three dot balls, De Villiers arcs back and pushes it through covers for one. Faf gets a lucky boundary.

FOUR! Bumrah digs it in short and Faf gloving it over and slightly wide of keeper for a boundary.

The first hour of the series belongs to India. However, AB and Faf du Plessis are trying to build a partnership here. It will be intriguing to see whether India will use Hardik Pandya before lunch or not.

After 13 overs,South Africa 42/3 ( AB de Villiers 28 , Faf du Plessis (C) 4)

Kohli gives Kumar another over with the bowler running in to deliver his seventh over of the opening spell. Kumar gets one to jump off having bowled it back of the length almost had Faf fending it away. Kumar continues to cause troubles with his immaculate line and length beating Faf on the outside edge off the fifth ball. Amazing first hour of play for the visiting side courtesy Bhuvneshwar Kumar, he needs to get hydrated so does the others. Drinks are being called on.

Bumrah looking good in his opening Test spell… The pitch is doing quite a lot so he is using the incoming delivery well. No surprises herein as he does well whenever Bhuvi does well. Both can use similar conditions to good effect. South Africa have to be very watchful here. AB is struggling against Bumrah but if he survives this… could showcase a masterclass here.

After 12 overs,South Africa 42/3 ( AB de Villiers 28 , Faf du Plessis (C) 4)

Bumrah is getting some prodigious movement going for him, though a lot is happening after it has left the batsmen. On the fourth ball it went through De Villiers and even managed to beat a diving Saha, the keeper does well to get a hand on it with Kumar doing the clean up at fine leg boundary. South Africa’s total moves with the help of two byes. AB bunts the final ball down onto his pads, getting the bat down just in time.

India need to be careful here. They just can not allow AB to score freely and settle down. They have to do something sooner or later. May be a change in bowling from Kumar’s end.

After 11 overs,South Africa 39/3 ( AB de Villiers 28 , Faf du Plessis (C) 3)

Faf clips it to mid on for a single of the third ball with De Villiers finding the third man fence off the fifth ball. Kumar completes his 6th over giving away five runs.

FOUR! AB does well to keep the ball which was climbing down and he manages to guide it in the gap between third slip and gully and to the third man boundary.