Proteas lose Markram early after KL Rahul's 101 takes India to 245 (Day 2, Lunch)
Dec 27, 2023
Centurion [South Africa], December 27 : KL Rahul's 101-run knock powered India to 245 in their first inning, meanwhile South Africa lost Aiden Markram early at lunch on the second day of the first Test match in Centurion on Wednesday.
At the end of the lunch, South Africa posted a total of 49/1, with Dean Elgar and Tony de Zorzi unbeaten, having a partnership of 44 runs.
India ended their inning at 245 after Rahul (101 runs from 137 balls) once again proved to be the 'Man in Crisis'.
On the other hand, Mohammed Siraj made the first breakthrough for the visitors after he removed Aiden Markram (5 runs from 17 balls) in the initial overs of the Proteas' inning.
India lost two quick wickets earlier on day two but Rahul managed to stand still in front of the Proteas pacers and completed his century after smashing two consecutive sixes against Kagiso Rabada.
Rabada's five-wicket haul rattled India's batting lineup. However, Rahul made crucial partnerships with the batters to keep the visitors in a decent place in the tricky conditions at SuperSport Park. He added 43 runs with Shardul Thakur, 27 with Jasprit Bumrah, and 47 with Mohammed Siraj.
With Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Shardul Thakur on the attack for India, the visitors are looking forward to getting more wickets in the upcoming sessions.
Recapping the first day of the Test match, rain played spoilsport as the majority of the third session was ruled out on Day 1 of the first Test between India and South Africa at the SuperSport Park.
At the end of Day 1, India scored a total of 208/8 in 59 overs with KL Rahul and Mohammed Siraj unbeaten with respective scores of 70 (105)* and 0 (10)*.
KL Rahul fought valiantly throughout the time that he spent on the field. While the rest of the batters failed to overcome Kagiso Rabada, he fought with vigour to take India's score past the 200-run mark. Siraj also showed patience during the 10 balls that he faced he faced.
The only casualty in the final session was Jasprit Bumrah, who lost his patience and ended up losing his wicket to Marco Jansen after playing 19 balls.
Brief Score: South Africa 49/1 (Tony de Zorzi 12*, Dean Elgar 29*; Mohammed Siraj (1/19) vs India.
