IND vs SA 2nd Test: South Africa tightens grip to subdue India’s hopes of a win

No team enjoys being denied the power of choice, of having to surrender its destiny in a game to its opposition.

It is an ordeal India hasn’t been put through often in home Tests in recent years. Guwahati had the fortune – or misfortune, if you are an Indian supporter – to witness one of those rare occurrences on Tuesday.

By the time Day 4 of the second Test reached its midway point, India’s fate in the game rested squarely on South Africa’s intentions in its second outing with the bat.

IND vs SA highlights

Would the visiting team opt for the safety of a draw, sealing a first Test series win in India in a quarter of a century, or would it attempt an outright triumph, eyeing vital WTC points?

Ultimately, South Africa found a tricky middle ground, declaring on 260 for five, giving India just over a day to chase 549, the highest target it has ever had to face in a home Test.

Tristan Stubbs was the lead advocate for South Africa’s conservative discourse with a patient 180-ball 94. His strike rate was salvaged only by a 32-run burst off 19 balls after Lunch as South Africa looked to rush its declaration.

Stubbs’ monk-like batting was effectively counterbalanced by Tony de Zorzi and Wiaan Mulder’s hurried knocks. In effect, the Proteas ground out enough time to subdue India’s hopes of a win, giving their bowlers a little over three sessions to work with.

Yashasvi Jaiswal fell to Marco Jansen for the third time this series.
| Photo Credit:
PTI

Finally, India found itself in a position where it could decide its course of action – attempt to make a record chase and prevent a series defeat, or squeak its way to a draw and earn the consolation of four WTC points.

Under a fast-fading sun, India had its agency clipped again, as it lost both its openers in under 10 overs for just 21 runs — the chase option turned from unlikely to improbable.

Yashasvi Jaiswal was the first to depart as he fell to Marco Jansen for the third time this series. The left-handed batter was caught behind while attempting a cut, a shot that is fast becoming his Achilles’ heel.

KL Rahul followed soon, snaffled by a magical ball from Simon Harmer – a looped up delivery that dipped on a forward-lunging batter before sneaking through the bat-pad gap and into the stumps.

B Sai Sudharsan and nightwatchman Kuldeep Yadav saw off multiple nervy moments in the dying moments to get India to 27 for two at Stumps.

Earlier, India began the day with its spinners finding greater turn than they did before in the Test.

With the added deviation, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar combined to uproot the South African top-order, reducing the opposition to 77 for three inside the morning session.

Stubbs and de Zorzi, though, took charge to stem a potential South African collapse. The left-right duo countered the Indian spinners with some proactive batting, raking in boundaries almost exclusively through sweeps and reverse sweeps.

As the Stubbs-de Zorzi partnership bloomed on, the Indian shoulders began to droop on the field. There were misfields, dropped catches and a missed stumping as the South African lead ballooned.

Jadeja’s dismissal of de Zorzi, one run short of his fifty, failed to slacken South Africa’s onward march as Mulder walked in and maintained the momentum.

South Africa belied expectations of a mid-break declaration at Lunch as it held out for Stubbs to make a final onslaught, before it claimed two Indian wickets to reassert its control in this game.

Published on Nov 25, 2025