Published on January 4th, 2024
Here Are 5 Takeaways:
- Historic Wicket-fall on Opening Day
- South Africa’s Record Low Score
- Mohammed Siraj’s Bowling Brilliance
- Historic Collapse and Duck Record
- Dean Elgar’s Milestones and Farewell
The second Test between South Africa and India at Newlands, Cape Town, during the 2023-24 series unfolded as a historic cricketing spectacle, marked by several noteworthy statistics on the opening day.
The most prominent of these records was the staggering total of 23 wickets that fell on Wednesday, making it the second-highest wicket count on the opening day of a Test match in the game’s 147-year history.
This remarkable figure only trails behind the record set during the second Ashes Test in 1901/02, where 25 wickets fell between Australia and England in Melbourne.
South Africa’s first innings total of 55 runs, an all-out scenario, stands out as the lowest against India in Tests, surpassing New Zealand’s previous record of seven runs more in Mumbai during 2021.
The efficiency of India’s bowling attack was highlighted by the fact that they required only 23.2 overs to dismiss South Africa – the quickest they have ever bowled out an opponent in Test cricket, beating their previous record of 25.1 overs set in Johannesburg in 2006.
Read More: India Shines Bright: 2023 ODI Glory
Furthermore, South Africa’s 55 all-out is their eighth instance of registering such a low total in Tests, the highest among all teams.
Intriguingly, Cape Town has witnessed seven out of the 36 instances where teams were bowled out for 55 or fewer runs in Test cricket, making it the venue with the most such occurrences, followed by Lord’s.
Mohammed Siraj’s exceptional bowling performance in the second Test is noteworthy, as he claimed 6-15, ranking as the third-best bowling figures for an Indian bowler in Tests in South Africa.
This achievement follows Shardul Thakur’s 7-61 in Johannesburg in 2022 and Harbhajan Singh’s 7-120 in Cape Town in 2011.
Impressively, Siraj conceded only 15 runs, marking the second-fewest runs conceded by an Indian bowler with a six-wicket haul and the fourth-lowest for a five-wicket haul.
The Indian innings also saw a historic collapse, with six wickets falling at the score of 153 – a unique and unprecedented occurrence in Test history.
Read More: Rinku Singh: ICC Ranking, Age, Career Insights, And Stats
Another record was set as India’s last five pairs failed to add any partnership runs, marking the first instance of such a phenomenon in Test cricket history.
The team recorded a total of six ducks, equaling the joint record for the most ducks in a Test innings, previously achieved against England in Manchester in 2014.
As a farewell to Test cricket, Dean Elgar’s performance was bittersweet, scoring 4 and 12 in the match.
Nevertheless, he reached a significant milestone by surpassing 1,000 runs against India, becoming the fourth South African batsman to achieve this feat.
The total of 1,012 runs made him the eighth opener to amass 1,000-plus runs against India in Tests, joining the likes of Alastair Cook, Matthew Hayden, Gordon Greenidge, Graham Gooch, Mudassar Nazar, David Warner, and Geoffrey Boycott.
Elgar’s aggregate of 5,121 runs as an opener places him fourth among South African openers in Tests, behind Graeme Smith, Gary Kirsten, and Herschelle Gibbs.
Updated:
India win ‘shortest’ Test ever inside 5 sessions; tie series 1-1
Jasprit Bumrah’s stellar 6/61 helped India bowl out South Africa for 176. Needing 79 to win, India seeks redemption after losing the first Test. Aiden Markram’s brilliant 106 led South Africa’s fightback on a challenging Newlands surface, where 23 wickets fell on day one. #WTC25…
— Newszii (@NewsziiMedia) January 4, 2024
Feature Image Source: NDTV
