Cocky Indians brought down to earth

Simon Harmer

Senuran Muthusamy

Celebration time for South Africa’s history-making cricketers away from home​

South Africa’s unsung cricketers smash India to heaviest defeat at their own backyard in humiliating display

India’s pompous glory in international cricket was brought down to earth by South Africa when they were bundled out for 140 in the face of a 549 target on their home ground at Guwahati yesterday in the second Test match.

The Indians were given a dose of their own medicine as a relatively unheard of spin bowler Simon Harmer grabbed six wickets to send them tumbling to one of their lowest scores in Test cricket.

As the Indian big guns were silenced, lower order batsman Ravindra Jadeja was the only one to put up some limited resistance for a top score of 54.

The writing was on the wall for India as they were bundled out for 201 in their first innings with only opener Yashasvi Jaiswal making the only half century of the innings, a score of 58 as Harmer plucked his first wicket of the match to finish with a match bag of nine scalps.

Even on what was said to be a ‘dead wicket’ South Africa paceman Marco Jansen bowled his heart out to account for six wickets when India batted in the first innings to be all out for 201.
South Africa won the series 2-0 series and the Proteas triumphed by 408 runs, the heaviest for India by way of runs in the second Test.

The defeat surpasses India’s previous heaviest loss, which was by 342 runs against Australia in Nagpur in 2004.

South Africa had declared their second innings on 260-5 on day four to hand India a record chase of 549.

South Africa secured the match even before India could start its second innings when yet another little known player Senuran Muthusamy cracked a century batting low down the order as his team made 449 in the first innings.

Fast bowler Marco Jansen humiliated the Indians further in the first essay when as a tailend batter he hammered 93 in 91 balls that had six fours and seven sixes in what was witnessed as carnage in a five-day Test match.

Scores:
South Africa 489 (Senuran Muthusamy 109, Marco Jansen 93, Kuldeep Yadav 4 for 115) and 260 for 5 declared (Tristan Stubbs 94)
India 201 (Yashasvi Jaiswal 58, Marco Jansen 6 for 48, Simon Harmer 3 for 64) and 140 (Ravindra Jadeja 54, Simon Harmer 6 for 37)