South Africa fight after India set 458-run target

It was a strange kind of day – India failed to force their advantage and South Arica hung in bravely in the face of a difficult situation. Make no mistake, India should win this but the manner and the ease with which South Africa batted means that they will believe they have a chance of batting out three sessions and saving the match. SA have done it before and they will hope they can do it again. India, meanwhile, will want a few quick wickets to start day 5. At stumps, SA were 138-2 after 45 overs, needing a further 320 runs with 8 wickets remaining. Morning session The first session of the fourth day of the first Test between India and South Africa at the Wanderers saw the status quo being maintained. India didn’t throw the kitchen sink at the SA bowlers but they go enough runs to ensure that they maintained their advantage. South Africa got four wickets but it wasn’t enough to bring them back into the match. At lunch on day 4, India had reached 358-6. The overall lead is 394 runs with 4 wickets remaining. SA kept getting a few wickets and that allowed them to stay involved. It didn’t reach a point where the SA team were wondering about when the declaration would come. The first session saw 28.3 overs being bowled and 74 runs were scored or the loss of 4 wickets. [caption id=“attachment_1300627” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] India’s batsman Virat Kohli reacts as he walks back to the pavilion after being dismissed for 96 runs. AP[/caption] The point of interest in the morning session was to see how India would pace their innings… would they go all out or would they also play for time? Dhoni doesn’t want to leave the South Africans too much time in their second innings. But for the odd ball, the pitch is still playing pretty well and the Indian skipper will have that in mind. Cheteshwar Pujara (153) and Kohli (96) extended their dominance with a record 222-run partnership. It equalled India’s best for any wicket in South Africa when Sachin Tendulkar and Mohammad Azhar went berserk at Cape Town in January 1997. This though was a very different partnership and it almost knocked South Africa out of the match. Then, just when it looked like they were getting ready to attack – Pujara lost his wicket. He was looking a little edgy after getting to 150 – the concentration seemed to waver. And then Kallis got the edge through to the keeper. It was his Cheteshwar Pujara 5th 150-plus score in first-class cricket in 2013 – numbers that speak for themselves. Rohit Sharma was gone soon with Kallis doing the damage once again. The ball cut in sharply and stayed low. There was little the batsman could have done. Then Virat Kohli fell – just 4 runs short of becoming only the fourth India to score centuries in each innings of a Test match. But once again – it was a classic innings. One that will only help Kohli develop into an even better player. Heartening for India though will be the help that Duminy, the off-spinner, got off the wicket. It may allow Ashwin to play a role in the fourth innings and reduce the load on the pacemen. For those who are wondering, the highest 4th innings total at the Wanderers is England’s 351/5 in December 1995. The match ended in a draw. Post-lunch session India were bowled out for 421 in their second innings on day four of the first Test and set South Africa a 458-run target at the New Wanderers Stadium here Saturday. Zaheer Khan threw his bat around and ended up with 29 off 31 balls. But the post-lunch session was dominated by South Africa. Vernon Phillander and Jacques Kallis were the pick of South African bowlers, taking three wickets apiece. In reply, South Africa safely made their way to 38-0 after 11 overs at tea. Lots of deliveries went past the bat and there were plenty of appeals but somehow the SA openers – Alviro Petersen and Graeme Smith survived. Four sessions left in the Test and 10 South African wickets to get. Post-tea session South Africa came up with a brilliant response to India’s target. Petersen continued to attack and Smith batted steadily against everyone but Zaheer Khan. They added runs quickly enough to have people talking about the possibility of a draw or maybe even a win. Petersen kept so much of the strike (90 balls faced) in the first 20 overs that he broke the record. But then two crucial piece of misjudgment pegged them back and gave India renewed hope. Smith had already put on 105 runs with Petersen when he hit the ball to mid-on. He was already down the pitch to play Ashwin and after a slight hesitation, decided to go for the quick single. Ajinkya Rahane was alert though and his direct hit gave India a vital breakthrough. The SA skipper made 44 and given his record in the fourth innings (he is one of the few batsmen to score four centuries in the fourth innings of a match), India were glad to see him walk back. Hashim Amla walked in next. He has had a superb 2013 and if there was one man South Africa were hoping will come good, it was the right-hander. But then, for the second time in the match, Amla was dismissed trying to leave the ball. In the first innings, he shouldered arms and was bowled by Ishant. This time, Amla got down on his knees to allow a short ball from Shami to go over his head and got his off stump knocked down. It was a strange dismissal. Faf du Plessis came up the order instead of Jacques Kallis (20-5-68-3). The latter had bowled a lot of overs and SA have done this before. Petersen and Faf played out the overs to close of play without any further loss. India are still favourites but stranger things have happened in this game.