[Sawyer]

Watching B Kumar bowl - even Bumrah to an extent - in the evening in bright sunlight and still having the batsmen hopping; what would he have done in the morning if given the chance?!

On the other hand the Pujara claims that the wicket will be impossible to play on in the last innings and SA will be dismissed for 150 today are interesting claims to justify batting first; fortunately they will be proved/disproved in a very short time. I do remember his claim that India can chase 350 in the last innings of an earlier match in this series though - it doesn't matter which one, he would have been spectacularly wrong in both.

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by Oxy

They have vowed not to get anything right this tour. Brace yourselves for 3-0.

Or more. Upcoming tours of England and Australia to be counted too.

I hope it is not as bad as the 8-0 tours of 2012. In terms of pure chutzpah, Umesh Yadav should be ahead in the selection queue. He is a bowler who can change a game in a session. I hope Bumrah/ Ishant trigger a collapse and prove me wrong. SA; 84 all out again, anyone?

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

On the other hand the Pujara claims that the wicket will be impossible to play on in the last innings and SA will be dismissed for 150 today are interesting claims to justify batting first;

I can't understand why someone like Pujara talks to the media about his views, like 180 odd India scored is as good as 300

It's too premature to say such things and if it is contradicted by SA getting a good first inning score (& lead), he will need to find a way to save his face, so why talk ? Let your game do the talking. Moreover, with his pathetic running between the wickets, he needs to focus on his game more than expressing such views.

[PPS]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

Pujara claims that the wicket will be impossible to play on in the last innings and SA will be dismissed for 150 today are interesting claims to justify batting first; I do remember his claim that India can chase 350 in the last innings of an earlier match in this series though - it doesn't matter which one, he would have been spectacularly wrong in both.

Pujara made that 350 statement in the 1st Test & yesterday he's said India's total of 187 is equivalent to getting a 300. Can't believe even Pujara has started making such ridiculous statements!

M Vijay's poor form & his mode of dismissal is a huge concern. Probably he needs to go back to his local coach. Our fielding coach needs to be answerable for the atrocious fielding/catching in this series as well!

With the way this match is progressing & provided there's no rain, there's a good chance the entire Indian team will be watching the IPL auctions live from their hotel rooms during the weekend!

[Lij]

Originally Posted by PPS

Pujara made that 350 statement in the 1st Test & yesterday he's said India's total of 187 is equivalent to getting a 300.
...

In that context his half century should be as good as a century. Frankly on that pitch I would definitely say yes, its much more than what Pujara and Kohli did score, but having lived a cat's life yesterday they should have atleast scored a century.

[Chetan_Rao]

Simple but effective adaptation tactic from Hashim Amla to negate sharp in-swing and covering the line (something that's hounded him in this series), back-foot stepping across outside off stump in sync with bowler's delivery stride.

Rabada doing his nightwatchman job pretty solid.

The joys of test cricket!

[Chetan_Rao]

Bhuvaneshwar Kumar is doing exceptionally well. The next 10-15 overs could be game changing if India seize the initiative.

[Sawyer]

Regardless of the result, this is far more entertaining than the template offered by Indian pitches : win the toss, bat first, make 500-600+ and then try to force a result, preferably on a pitch that has given up the ghost by end of day 3.

Who wants to sit in the stadium for 5 days watching that? No one therefore does. Flat pitches should be the exclusive preserve of T20 games if test match cricket is to survive in India and thereby, the world.

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

Regardless of the result, this is far more entertaining...

Absolutely. Bowlers doing well, batsmen too if they're willing to focus and adapt (Amla has been impressive). Just the kind of cricket I love to watch!

Karnataka bandh FTW, enabling multitasking with work

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

Bhuvaneshwar Kumar is doing exceptionally well. The next 10-15 overs could be game changing if India seize the initiative.

SA already 140+, now < 50 runs away and if they get there, anything more is a bonus.
I'm already dreading the India second innings.

If SA gets even a 50 run lead, it's going to be an uphill task for India from there.

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by NPV

SA already 140+, now < 50 runs away and if they get there, anything more is a bonus...

Ishant, for all his height, hasn't been consistently menacing like I expected on this pitch. Bumrah & Kumar have done well, let down by the other two.
Shami has bowled half as many overs, and not too consistent either. Pandya has barely got a bowl at all.

Philander is playing exactly the kind of knock one would expect from a #7/8 when up against a small(er) score, with Amla holding up one end.

You're right, this could slip away pretty quick.

[naveenvenkatesh]

Shami has been disappointing all through the series. Always seems like operating at 70-80% efficiency. I wonder why?

Perhaps Umesh Yadav could have been handful with his pace and bounce in Shami's place

[Chetan_Rao]

Bumrah gets 5, but the SA tail managed to score a very crucial 30-40 runs.

Another game-changing hour coming up.

[Sawyer]

Credit to Pujara for his 150 score of SA prediction that was not very far from the mark in terms of how hard it is to bat on this pitch. And for once the SA bowlers have looked less threatening than the Indian ones, in both innings.

Now if our batsman finally deliver, we ought to win this one.

[srishiva]

Originally Posted by selfdrive

Or more. Upcoming tours of England and Australia to be counted too.

I hope it is not as bad as the 8-0 tours of 2012. In terms of pure chutzpah, Umesh Yadav should be ahead in the selection queue. He is a bowler who can change a game in a session. I hope Bumrah/ Ishant trigger a collapse and prove me wrong. SA; 84 all out again, anyone?

I think Umesh Yadav is a completely dumb bowler. I was following him in Ranji matches and he was useless. Maybe with favourable conditions, he may have got some wickets.