Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar couldn’t believe his eyes. 23 wickets went down on day one of the second Test between India and South Africa at Newlands, Cape Town. It was Wednesday, January 3. Sachin Tendulkar called the bowling mastery on the Test’s first day “unreal”.
South Africa won the coin toss. They decided to bat first in the Cape Town Test. This choice backfired. The Proteas fell hard and fast for 55 runs in 23.2 overs. It was their lowest scoring Test since 1932. India didn’t fare much better. They were bowled out for 153 runs in 34.5 overs. But South Africa pulled it together. They ended the day with 62 runs for three wickets in 17 overs in their second innings.
Sachin Tendulkar responded amusingly to the startling batting failures on the first day of the Cape Town Test by posting on his official X handle. Sachin Tendulkar wrote:
“Cricket in ‘24 begins with 23 wickets falling in a single day. Unreal! Boarded a flight when South Africa was all out, and now that I’m home, the TV shows South Africa has lost 3 wickets. What did I miss?”
Sachin Tendulkar
Mohammed Siraj, an amazing pacer for India, shone with the ball! With a career-best, he showed off Test records of 6/15 in just nine overs. South Africa’s own stars, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, and Nandre Burger matched skill for skill. Each one nabbed three wickets each in India’s first innings.
“I realized what I missed in the last game” – Siraj reflects on Day 1 Cape Town heroics
India lost the Test match against Mohammed Siraj at Centurion by an innings and thirty-two runs. In their opening innings, South Africa scored 408, and he scored 2/91. The bowler acknowledged that he didn’t perform to his full potential in the opening Test and stated that he wished to atone for it.
“I realized what I missed in the last game and wanted to compensate and I executed my plans accordingly. I wanted to hit one area consistently and I did that and got reward for it. Wicket looks quite similar to Centurion.”
Mohammed Siraj
When asked what he did well on the first day at Newlands, the 29-year-old went into further detail:
“We (him and Jasprit Bumrah) bowled in partnerships and bowled many maidens unlike last Test match. Bowling so many maidens did create pressure. [On such wickets], if you hit [the right] areas, wickets will come automatically, if you try many things, you yourself can get confused.”
Mohammed Siraj
In South Africa’s opening innings, Siraj struck for six, but Bumrah and Mukesh Kumar also contributed with two wickets apiece.
