***Official*** South Africa in India

[masterblaster]

SA will be unhappy considering the start they got, BUT this is not a good wicket and the score is on the board

A lead for either side will effectively be worth at least double so the match could well be decided tomorrow

Agree with that, tomorrow will be crucial. Hopefully the likes of Yuvraj and Jaffer can turn it around and prove to everybody that they are not mediocre batsmen.

 

[DaRick]

Good stuff by Ishant Sharma. Good fast bowlers trouble their opposition on any sort of surface. We only seem to make up excuses to cater for our long list of mediocre fast bowlers. Ishant definitely has something a little extra than the likes of Sreesanth, Munaf Patel and RP Singh.

You'll also find people abroad pumping up Indian seamers for no particular reason, unfortunately (i.e - Geoff Boycott's opinions on RP Singh and Sreesanth).

 

[ret]

Yuvi may turn out to be a good selection .... he picked up Smith .... SA have pace bowlers and he is good against them .... and Dhoni is the captain so he will get all the encouragement .... hoping for the best for Yuvi

 

[Burgey]

Yuvi may turn out to be a good selection .... he picked up Smith .... SA have pace bowlers and he is good against them .... and Dhoni is the captain so he will get all the encouragement .... hoping for the best for Yuvi

Sorry, nearly spat my chai latte out when i read that. I really looked forward to sseing him bat this summer, and I'm still waiting to see him bat for more than 15 minutes (in a test anyway).

 

[Jono]

Burgey, if Yuvraj isn't good against pace, and he's weak against spin, that means he's a poor batsman doesn't it?

Yuvraj is far weaker against spin than pace.

 

[ret]

Sorry, nearly spat my chai latte out when i read that. I really looked forward to sseing him bat this summer, and I'm still waiting to see him bat for more than 15 minutes (in a test anyway).

let's hope that he does since he is in the team and Ind needs to put up 400 .... and as I said since Dhoni is the captain, Yuvi will be getting a lot of encouragement

 

[Burgey]

Yeah. I haven't seen the pitch, but it sounds from what everyone's saying that the crucial innigns for each team will be their first. Does it look like deteriorating that much?

 

[silentstriker]

Taking that into consideration, 300 plus will be a top score by the Saffies

Agreed, that would have been fantastic.

SA will be unhappy considering the start they got, BUT this is not a good wicket and the score is on the board

The wicket is fine - not every wicket has to be a 450 par score pitch. It's ridiculous that people think that way now.

SA have done extremely well to get 265 - it's a really good score - 200 is about par on this pitch, so they have some good extra runs. Their first couple partnerships were crucial and they made them count. SA ahead right now, they have an above par score and the runs are on the board. India need to bat all day tomorrow, and show some application.

 

[andruid]

Sorry, nearly spat my chai latte out when i read that. I really looked forward to sseing him bat this summer, and I'm still waiting to see him bat for more than 15 minutes (in a test anyway).

Tea with milk

Sorry I just had to point that one out.

Well South Africa managed to put up a fairly useable total given the hype about the pitch. Nice to see Chawla get a test match, and hopefully The Indian batting will be able to put upa decent score though I do not see either side managing a game defining firts innings lead.

 

[duffer]

Saffies have their noses in front for mine but the new ball is the key period in this match. If we can negotiate it then we'll have a solid 40-45 overs until it starts to reverse and should get a lead.

Would love to see Harris bowling some attacking lines tomorow.

 

[Goughy]

300+ would have been adavantage SA. Less than 200 and advantage India.

As it is, I think it is very even.

One good innings or 1 collapse away from a team taking control. Will be an interesting 2nd phase of the game.

 

[social]

Agreed, that would have been fantastic.



The wicket is fine - not every wicket has to be a 450 par score pitch. It's ridiculous that people think that way now.

SA have done extremely well to get 265 - it's a really good score - 200 is about par on this pitch, so they have some good extra runs. Their first couple partnerships were crucial and they made them count. SA ahead right now, they have an above par score and the runs are on the board. India need to bat all day tomorrow, and show some application.

The fact that 200 would've been par on a first day pitch where spinners did most of the bowling should tell you that it's not "fine."

Using that as a base, a good score on day 5 would be 100 - that definitely suggests that the pitch is sub-standard

Personally, I dont have a problem with it as variety adds to the enjoyment of the contest but let's not try and pretend it's something better than it is

 

[silentstriker]

The fact that 200 would've been par on a first day pitch where spinners did most of the bowling should tell you that it's not "fine."

Why?

Using that as a base, a good score on day 5 would be 100 - that definitely suggests that the pitch is sub-standard

Why?

Personally, I dont have a problem with it as variety adds to the enjoyment of the contest but let's not try and pretend it's something better than it is

Agreed with the former, disagreed with the latter. It's a pitch that helps the bowlers - oh, the horror?

 

[silentstriker]

And it's going to help the SA bowlers too - probably more than Indian ones. Ishant was getting some uneven bounce and SA bowlers are faster.

 

[TT Boy]

Personally, I think India hold the advantage for whilst there is turn it’s slow and the new ball didn’t swing. Although, the latter quandary could be down to the fact that the Indians have wasted the new ball throughout the series but the only real solace I can see for South Africa would be Sharma’s late spell, where the ball was reversing nicely and keeping extremely low. South Africa was 150 odd for 1 and not getting 300 from there is extremely poor batting for mine.

Sehwag’s the key tomorrow and if South Africa gets him early they should expect more early inroads but if he is there after two hours, than the signs will be ominous.

 

[jeevan]

Personally, I think India hold the advantage for whilst there is turn it’s slow and the new ball didn’t swing. Although, the latter quandary could be down to the fact that the Indians have wasted the new ball throughout the series but the only real solace I can see for South Africa would be Sharma’s late spell, where the ball was reversing nicely and keeping extremely low. South Africa was 150 odd for 1 and not getting 300 from there is extremely poor batting for mine.

Sehwag’s the key tomorrow and if South Africa gets him early they should expect more early inroads but if he is there after two hours, than the signs will be ominous.

It could go the Sehwag way. Or it could go the Dravid way too (Dravid sticks in at one end and cajoles Ganguly,Laxman and possibly Dhoni to grind out a string of partnerships. Best case for India is for one of them to be Sehwag-Dravid).

Great opportunity for Jaffer and Yuvraj to extend their test careers. A ton from either one here will see misgivings about them set aside for a bit, though either is unlikely. (Realistic fond hope would be for 30-run cameos from both - Jaffer sticking with Sehwag for a decent start, and Yuvraj tonking a few later to put India over the top).

 

[Jungle Jumbo]

Can't see any team making more than 150 in an innings after the third day on that track. South Africa with a slight advantage, but the lack of two spinners could count against then.

 

[Termanati]

Steyn with a shower of s**t then 2 beauties in a row... hard to face...

 

[popepouri]

Morne's getting it to reverse already.

 

[Termanati]

Looks like Jaffer Got an unlucky one...