By Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati
Ravindra Jadeja was still optimistic at the press conference after the end of the fourth day’s play. He spoke about how it could be a “win-win” situation for India if they batted out three sessions on the final day of the second Test here in Guwahati. The hosts lost three wickets inside the first 65 minutes on Day 5. Game over.
This Indian batting is so porous that it can’t even take advantage of the opportunities offered. A couple of early reprieves saw Kuldeep Yadav, the nightwatchman, survive a dropped catch, and Sai Sudharsan getting rescued by Marco Jansen overstepping. And yet, India lost wickets at regular intervals to Simon Harmer.
Kuldeep was the first to go, Harmer castling him via a straighter one. The off-spinner fired it a little quicker through the air and it came in with the angle to breach the batsman’s defence. Three balls later, Dhruv Jurel gave Aiden Markram slip-catching practice, once again off Harmer. India’s makeshift No. 4 in this game in Shubman Gill’s absence, No. 5 in this innings, was fooled by the drift and then failed to read the turn, or rather the lack of it. He is never a top-order batsman. Devdutt Padikkal, a specialist No. 4, meanwhile, watched the proceedings from the dressing room.
Rishabh Pant was using his feet. He stepped out to hit a Keshav Maharaj delivery straight down the ground for six, but Harmer was presenting a greater degree of difficulty. Once again, the offie varied his pace and extracted extra bounce off the surface. If Pant’s shot in the first innings was reckless, he fell to a beauty in the second. The delivery could have got any left-hander out.
Only the formalities remain now, notwithstanding that Sai and Jadeja are still out there in the middle, with Washington Sundar to follow. Saving this game is a bridge way too far for India and the Proteas thoroughly deserve their clean sweep. Over the last fortnight, they have beaten the hosts hands down in every aspect of the game, on and off the field.
India are on the cusp of losing their fifth home Test in seven matches. They are about to suffer their second home whitewash in a little over 12 months. Not having Gill is a blow for sure, but the skipper’s absence can’t be an excuse to lose back-to-back home Tests. Also, transition can’t mask the fact that India’s Test fortress has crumbled. As Cheteshwar Pujara said, there’s no transition in home series.
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