SA v IND 2021-22: A look back at India’s three Test match wins in South Africa

India is yet to win a Test series in South Africa.

By Jatin Sharma - 20 Dec, 2021

India has toured South Africa seven times since 1992 and has a very poor record in the longest format of the game in the rainbow nation. Much of the losses came in the 1990s-2000s when the Indian team struggled overseas on bouncy pitches against quality pace bowlers.

India managed to draw a Test series just once in 2010-11 when MS Dhoni’s side toured, while their first Test win in South Africa came in the 2006-07 series under the captaincy of Rahul Dravid.

The last time India toured South Africa was in 2017-18 and lost the three-Test series 2-1 despite showing great grit and determination under captain Virat Kohli.

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Indian team has had a great record since then outside the Asian subcontinent, having won two back-to-back Test series in Australia, and leading 2-1 in England with one Test to go.

As Virat Kohli’s side gears up for a fresh challenge in the rainbow nation and searches for its maiden Test series win in South Africa, TEAM COC takes a look back at the Indian team’s three victories in Test cricket in the rainbow nation.

 

1. 2006- India wins by 123 runs, Johannesburg

The Indian team had been traveling to South Africa without much success, but all that changed in the first Test of the 2006-07 Test series under Rahul Dravid’s captaincy. India won their first Test match against Proteas thanks to its pacers as they made the Proteas batters hop and weave and duck.

Rahul Dravid won the toss and despite the history saying bat second, with damp spots on the pitch, he chose to bat first, having played three pacers in Zaheer Khan, Sreesanth, and VRV Singh in the XI.

Openers Wasim Jaffer and Virender Sehwag fell for single-digit scores, but a 69-run stand between Sachin Tendulkar (44) and Dravid (32) helped steady the ship. But after their dismissals, India looked in trouble of collapsing for a cheap score, but a returning Sourav Ganguly played a gritty knock of 51, helping India to 249 in 1st innings.

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The Sreesanth swung the ball miles to run through South Africa batting with figures of 5/40, as the Proteas crumbled to 84 all out. Zaheer Khan and Anil Kumble took 2 wickets each and VRV Singh scalped one. India got a lead of 165 runs.

In the second do, VVS Laxman top-scored with 73 runs. With help from Sehwag’s 33, Ganguly's 25, and Zaheer's 37, India put up 236 on the board to give South Africa a target of 402 runs.

While the likes of Jacques Kallis (27), Mark Boucher (23), and Shaun Pollock (40) tried their best, and Ashwell Prince top-scored with 97, South Africa could only manage 278 runs.

Zaheer, Sreesanth, and Kumble took 3 wickets each, as India won the match by 123 runs to register their first-ever Test victory on South African soil.  

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2. 2010- India wins by 87 runs, Durban

India came into the Durban Test of the 2010-11 Test series after losing the first math in Centurion by an innings and 25 runs. The Kingsmead pitch had a huge challenge up for the Indian team thanks to the greenness on the surface.

To compound the issue further MS Dhoni lost the toss and Graeme Smith had no hesitation in asking India to bat.

Dale Steyn ran through the Indian batting lineup with figures of 6/50. But contributions from Virender Sehwag, MS Dhoni, VVS Laxman, and Rahul Dravid were enough for a decent score of 205 runs in the first innings.

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Indian bowlers knew the pitch had something up for them and Zaheer Khan picked three wickets, including his bunny, opposition captain Graeme Smith. However, it was Harbhajan Singh’s 4/10 that enabled India to bowl out South Africa for 131 runs, giving India a slender lead of 74 runs.

VVS Laxman then played a great knock of 96 runs and with Sehwag (32), Zaheer (27), and Dhoni (21), took India to 228 runs in the second do, setting South Africa 303 runs to win the match.

Despite valiant efforts from Graeme Smith, AB de Villiers, and Ashwell Prince, South Africa managed just 215 runs as Zaheer and Sreesanth then took 3 wickets each and Harbhajan scalped 2 wickets, giving India their second Test win in South Africa by 87 runs.  

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3. 2018- India wins by 63 runs, Johannesburg

India had come into this third Test of the series already having lost the first two Test matches and trying to avoid a whitewash. The pitch was a difficult one to play on due to uneven bounce and Virat Kohli chose to bat first after winning the toss.

India lost openers KL Rahul (0) and Murali Vijay (8) early, but then an 84-run stand between captain Virat Kohli (54) and Cheteshwar Pujara (50) saved India from blushes. Bhuvneshwar Kumar made 30 as India posted 187 runs in the first innings.

In reply, Indian bowlers came to the party and though Hashim Amla made 61 and Kagiso Rabada and Vernon Philander made thirties, South Africa managed just 194 runs. Jasprit Bumrah in only his third Test match picked 5/54, while Bhuvneshwar Kumar took 3/44.

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India fared much better in the second innings, despite the pitch getting harder to bat on. Ajinkya Rahane made 48 and Kohli made 41. Even Bhuvneshwar (33) and Shami (27) contributed as India posted 247 runs on the board and gave South Africa a stiff 241-run target to win the Test.

Aiden Markram fell to Mohammad Shami in the second over, but a 119-run stand between Dean Elgar and Hashim Amla (52) kept South Africa in the hunt. But as he fell at the score of 124 runs, Proteas batting collapse spectacularly.

Though Dean Elgar remained unbeaten on 86, carrying his bat through the innings, South Africa folded for 177 runs. Shami finished with 5/28 and Bumrah and Ishant Sharma took two scalps each, as India recorded their third Test win in South Africa by 63 runs.

These three Test wins will give India a lot of hope as they prepare to conquer their final frontier in South Africa and finally win the Test series in the rainbow nation.

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