India and South Africa are locking horns with each other in the second Test of the series in Johannesburg. India made 202 runs in the first innings after KL Rahul won the toss and decided to bat. Rahul is leading the team in the absence of Virat Kohli, who was ruled out of this match due to an upper back spasm.
The stand-in skipper made a half-century in the first innings and Ravichandran Ashwin played a decent knock of 46 runs and helped India go past the 200-runs mark in the first innings. Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane failed to contribute in the series during the first innings as Pujara made three and while Rahane was dismissed for a golden duck in the first innings.
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Before the start of day two, Virat Kohli was seen receiving throwdowns from Rahul Dravid, which gives a signal that he might be fit enough to feature in the final Test of the series that will be commencing on January 11 in Cape Town. If Kohli features in that match, it will be the 99th Test match of his career. A Twitter user posted the video of Kohli and Dravid along with the following caption:
Kohli receiving throwdowns from Dravid pic.twitter.com/uY3h8cd8Fj
— Benaam Baadshah (@BenaamBaadshah4) January 5, 2022
The Indian bowlers managed to bundle out South Africa for 229 runs in the first innings courtesy of Shardul Thakur’s seven-fer. Keegan Petersen made 62 and Temba Bavuma made 51 runs for South Africa, who managed to get a lead of 27 runs over India’s total in the first innings.
India lost the wicket of Rahul on a score of 24 runs and Mayank Agarwal also perished after scoring 23 runs. India’s hope was attached to Rahane and Pujara. At the end of day two, India made 85 runs for the loss of two wickets.
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Pujara and Rahane had a partnership of 111 runs for the third wicket. They both reached their respective fifties before getting dismissed. India made 266 runs in the second innings and gave South Africa a target of 240 runs to win the match. For India, Hanuma Vihari made 40 runs off 84 balls and remained not-out, while Shardul made 28 runs off 24 balls that included five boundaries and one six.
