Team India had given a target of 208 in the second innings of the Cape Town Test against South Africa and they were bundled out for just 135. However, captain Virat Kohli reckons that one batsman needed to score 75-80 to show the way in challenging conditions.
South African pacer Vernon Philander accompanied by Kagiso Rabada and Morne Morkel ran through the Indian batting line-up has picked wickets at regular intervals.
During the post-match presentation, Virat said, “If we had taken our chances in the first innings, even after them counter-attacking, we could have kept them to 220 which would have been ideal. We’re not a team which thinks of what-ifs though. Losing wickets in bunches is something we have to plug in. We were pretty much in the Test match on all days. We were thinking 250-275 (the target) if they play well. To restrict them to 210 was an outstanding effort. We needed someone to get a 75-80.”
The South African team was a bowler short after heel injury ruled Dale Steyn out of the remainder of the series. However, they didn’t have much say on the game as their bowling attack made life difficult for Indian batsmen in the chase.
Talking about the Proteas’ bowling attack, Kohli said, “Credit to them, they were a bowler short and still bowled their heart out. We need to rectify our mistakes also. Mini collapses in both innings is something we have to think about, how to string in partnerships. This game is all about stringing in partnerships. They did that better than us.”
When asked about the Indian bowling attack, Kohli replied, “Bowlers learned pretty quickly from the first innings, whatever mistakes needed to be corrected. We kept pulling things back against a side which is very strong at home. Still feeling good about how we went about this Test match. The mindset matters when you’re traveling away from home on pitches which challenge you. Need to be positive in defence and when you’re leaving also. You need to grab scoring opportunities.”
After a miserable start in the first innings, Hardik Pandya’s innings brought some hopes for India with an aggressive 93. Kohli was all praise for his all-rounder. He said, “He’s (Hardik Pandya) a strong character. He backs himself and we believe in him. He’s performing for us now, even away from home. That knock was brilliant, showed a lot of character.”
