Fast bowler Dale Steyn struck four times as India struggled to 168 for six at tea on the first day of the second Test against South Africa at Kingsmead yesterday.
Steyn had figures of four for 36 as he took advantage of overcast conditions and a bouncy pitch after India, for the second successive match, were sent in after rain delayed the start of play.
Needing a victory to keep alive hopes of overall success in the three-match series, the visitors showed more fight than they did when they were bowled out for 136 in the first innings of the first Test at Centurion, where they were beaten by an innings and 25 runs, but they were in deep trouble once again.
Photo: Reuters
Steyn posed a consistent threat, bowling at a lively pace and swinging the ball away from the batsmen. He dismissed both openers, Virender Sehwag (25) and Murali Vijay (19), in a spell of two for 19 in eight overs before lunch, then added the wickets of Rahul Dravid (25) and V.V.S. Laxman (38) during the afternoon.
Left-armer Lonwabo Tsotsobe claimed the key wicket of Sachin Tendulkar, who was caught at second slip for 13 in the first over after lunch.
Tsotsobe struck again shortly before tea, again in the first over of a spell, when Cheteshwar Pujara (19) top-edged an attempted hook to give wicketkeeper Mark Boucher an easy catch.
Tsotsobe also held a sensational catch to dismiss Laxman, the most impressive of India’s batsmen.
Laxman, who had greeted Steyn at the start of his afternoon spell with a sumptuous straight drive for four and an effortless hook for six, pulled a short ball from Steyn. It seemed destined for the boundary at wide mid-on, but Tsotsobe dived to his right and caught the ball one-handed to the obvious astonishment of the batsman.
India made three changes, with Vijay, Pujara and Zaheer Khan coming in for Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina and Jaidev Unadkat.
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