Team India was very much of pumped up before the first ball into the South Africa tour but the air balloon has been grassed after Vernon Philander poked a needle in it, who was the hero behind South Africa’s hard-fought win.

India lost the opening encounter by 72 runs after showing a great character throughout the Test match at Cape Town. Philander took his career-best figures of 42/6 including a massive wicket of skipper Virat Kohli. After the conclusion of this game, Philander revealed that he set Kohli up nicely for a coming back delivery.

“Virat is a quality player, and the key thing is to keep him quiet, and make sure that we set him up with the other one. I always knew I had the one coming back!” he said.

“It was probably two-and-a-half overs of away-swingers and then the one back at him (Kohli). It was definitely a plan to keep him quiet, and also to drag him across to make sure that when you do bowl the other one, he is on the other side of the off-stump.”

When asked whether he sledged Kohli after getting better of him, South African pacer denied and quoted “Nah, I never said anything to him. It was just obviously on the spur of the moment I just tried to spur my boys on, and that’s what we tend to focus on.”

“We knew that Virat was a big wicket to get, and getting him right there and then, I just strived to (enjoy it with) my boys.”

Former number one bowler in Test cricket admitted that defending 208-run was needed a special effort and he did the same. “When you look at the type of score that you have to defend, 208, someone has to make the play. You can’t wait for later in the game because there might not be a ‘later on in the game’,” he added.

“I knew that I had to bowl overs upfront and put us in a good position, and I just wanted to bowl and make a difference.”

South Africa is 1-0 up in the three-match series after completing a 72-run victory over their rivals in Cape Town. The next Test will commence from January 13 in Centurion, Pretoria.