South Africa are in a pretty comfortable position in the current Boxing Day Test against India at Centurion’s Super Sport Park. On Day 2 at Stumps, the Proteas had an 11-run advantage with five wickets in hand.
After winning the toss and deciding to bowl first, the hosts have rarely put a foot wrong, relying on the cloudy skies and wetness on the field to do their work. The strategy worked, as the new-ball bowlers went through the Indian top order, leaving them reeling at 24-3 at one point.
They were held back in the second half of the innings by a partnership between Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, as well as KL Rahul, but managed to remove the visitors for under 250. Furthermore, they benefited from a shift in circumstances, which they used to their advantage in the proceedings.
Dean Elgar opened his farewell series with a magnificent ton, aided by debutant David Bedingham. The Indians, on the other hand, have been severely lacking in Mohammed Shami and have only been effective in spurts.
South Africa presently holds the key, and if they can grab the pivotal day of the Test, the Men in Blue would be put under considerable pressure.
On that topic, here are three things South Africa must do correctly to dominate Day 3 of the first SA versus IND 2023 Test.
1. Dean Elgar should continue with his current strategy
Dean Elgar was at his prolific best on Day 2 of the Test against India, and he looked as solid as ever. The tenacious left-handed hitter kept the innings together and has scored more than half of the team’s runs on his own.
By Elgar’s standards, his undefeated 140-run knock off 211 deliveries was rather quick. Elgar has no need to modify his free-flowing attitude now that the hardest period is gone. He has already smashed 23 fours in his innings, and the Proteas will need him to keep the boundaries coming.
He can perhaps follow in the footsteps of KL Rahul now that he has run out of certified hitters and just the tail order to keep him company. The Indian wicketkeeper stayed with the tail to help his team reach 245 in the first innings.
Elgar must do the same to extend the team’s lead as far as possible, and South Africa’s tail strength, combined with India’s failure to bowl out the lower order, appears to be a major advantage.
1. Target a 100-run lead in the first innings
Given their current situation, South Africa may reasonably strive for a substantial advantage. The Proteas will be seeking for a match-winning lead with Elgar looking near-invincible and a good string of lower-order hitters like Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee, and Kagiso Rabada.
As previously said, their current lead is 11 runs, and anything close to 100 runs will be a massive mountain for India to climb. The average third-innings total at the site is 230 runs, which benefits South Africa.
The pitch is also projected to accelerate, which means that South Africa may have batted when it was at its best, and India may have a difficult time despite a likely mild relaxation due to the cloudy weather.
3. Give Nandre Burger the new ball along with Kagiso Rabada
Although it is a risky move, South Africa might explore pairing Nandre Burger with Kagiso Rabada in the second innings instead of Marco Jansen. The newcomer was unpredictable but produced results, including key top-order wickets of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill.
Furthermore, Jansen was not at his best in the first innings, having only KL Rahul’s wicket at the end to show for it.
Nandre Burger and Jansen, both left-arm seamers, rely on swing to hamper the Indians’ right-handed batter lineup. The former was able to get the ball moving but struggled to control it, so he ended up bowling to the pads more frequently. With a touch more speed than Jansen, he will be a more dangerous menace if he makes that precise correction in line.
With even the old Kookaburra ball swinging in these conditions, the Proteas can afford to bring Jansen into the attack a little later.