Ishant has the new ball for India. Three slips in place..

Harsha Bhogle says on air that this is the first time Bavuma will be opening in any form of cricket, he's played at three for his franchise back home. Elgar will take first strike though.

Welcome back.. A new opening combination for South Africa. Temba Bavuma, playing in his first Test of the series walks out with Dean Elgar. The Indians are in a huddle. The umpires walk out as well and we are ready to go..

Abbott leads his team back to the pavilion amidst chants of AB, AB from the Delhi crowd. But India have got a more than decent score on the board. At one stage - on tea on Day 1, they looked in big trouble at 139/6, an early finish to their first innings was on the cards, but Ajinkya Rahane held the innings firm. He first went past his previous best score of 15 in home conditions, then raised his fifty and finally became the first man to score a hundred in this 4-Test series. He was well supported by Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin - with the latter contributing a handy 56. The Delhi pitch doesn't have too many demons to trouble the visitors, but can the South African batsmen bury the demons in their own head first? Will the likes of Amla, du Plessis and AB demonstrate the reason as to why they are so highly rated? South Africa's reply in a while..

117.5 - Kyle Abbott to Ishant, out Lbw!! India have been bowled out for 334, Abbott finishes with five wickets. This was full and tailed back into Ishant, he was caught on the shuffle, ends up playing across the line and misses, gets struck low on the back leg, bang in front of middle, simple call for umpire Dharmasena. A duck for Ishant and India have been finally bowled out. Ishant lbw b Kyle Abbott 0(2)

Kyle Abbott to Ishant, THAT'S OUT!! Lbw!!

117.4 - Kyle Abbott to Ishant, no run, short of a good length and a hint of shape back into Ishant, he covers the line and lets it go

Ishant Sharma, right handed bat, comes to the crease

117.3 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, out Caught by de Villiers!! Ashwin could have taken the run, but he attempted to shield Yadav and ends up losing his wicket. This was short and well outside off, Ashwin was looking to play the pull once again, he had to fetch it from well outside off, doesn't control the shot, gets more of a top-edge, the ball goes high and over mid-wicket. AB runs back, keeps his eyes on the ball and completes the catch - safely clutching onto his chest. Ashwin falls after playing a good hand. Ashwin c de Villiers b Kyle Abbott 56(140) [4s-6 6s-1]

Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

117.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, width on offer from Abbott, slapped away square on the off-side, refuses the single once again

117.1 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, short and just outside off, Ashwin swivels across and plays a weak pull towards mid-wicket

116.6 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, Tahir attempts the googly, turns out to be a low full toss, pushed back towards the bowler

116.5 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, pushed through flatter and well outside off, Yadav goes hard on the cut and mistimes it towards backward point

116.4 - Tahir to U Yadav, FOUR, that was powerfully struck! This was tossed up outside off, right in the arc for the slog sweep, Yadav goes down on his knees and slogs it wide of long-on for a boundary

116.3 - Tahir to Ashwin, 1 run, Tahir drifts one on middle, pushed down towards long-on for an easy single

116.2 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, this one is given more air, driven crisply but straight to the fielder at cover

116.1 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Ashwin leans forward and defends it towards cover

115.6 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, 1 run, on a good length and just outside off, Ashwin takes a step down the track and pushes it to the left of mid-on, he called for a quick single, had to run around Abbott and ends up knocking him on the back but still manages to make his end safely. Abbott was grimacing with his hands on his knees, not sure whether it was because of Ashwin or just the frustration

115.5 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, short of a length and angling back into Ashwin, he closes the face of the bat and defends it towards mid-on

115.4 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Ashwin prods across and defends it towards the off-side

115.3 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, loose from Ashwin, went with hard hands on the drive, it was pitched up and held its line outside off, beaten on the outside edge

115.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, full and wide from Abbott, Ashwin plays with an open face and slices the drive to deep point, refuses the single

115.1 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Ashwin drives it on the up and straight to the fielder at extra cover

114.6 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, the leg-break from Tahir, but it pitched well outside leg, Yadav gets a good stride forward and pushes it towards mid-on

114.5 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Yadav lunges forward and smothers the spin

A slip, leg slip and FSL in place for Tahir

114.4 - Tahir to Ashwin, 1 run, there comes the full toss from Tahir, quietly punched away towards long-on for a single

114.3 - Tahir to U Yadav, 1 run, Tahir tosses one on off, Yadav gets well forward and drives it down towards long-on for a single

114.2 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, this one is given more air, Yadav gets well forward and drives it towards mid-off

114.1 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, tossed up and on middle, Yadav gets half-forward and defends it

113.6 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, on a length and on the stumps, Ashwin prods across, plays with a straight bat and defends it towards mid-on, exposes Yadav to the strike for the next over

113.5 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, fraction fuller and just outside off, Ashwin presses forward and defends it towards mid-off

113.4 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, back of a length and well outside off, Ashwin stands tall and punches it to the right of extra cover. Bavuma tumbles, gets a hand onto it and saves some runs for his team

113.3 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, short of a length and just outside off, Ashwin plays with an angled bat and pushes it towards mid-off

113.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, on a good length and a hint of shape back into Ashwin, he prods across and defends it with a straight bat, hit him high on the bat

113.1 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Ashwin prods forward and defends it

Abbott will resume for South Africa. One slip in place

Welcome back.. India added 95 runs for the loss of Ajinkya Rahane in the first session. How many more runs can Ashwin & Co add? The players are out in the middle. We are ready for the restart.

Late into the session, the centurion fell trying to force pace against a Tahir googly but only after he had entertained thousands of cheering Mudgal-delighting school children. Ashwin proved to be the perfect Rahane-foil, alternating between thoughtful singles and caressing boundaries on his way to another reassuring Test half-century. His cause was helped by Amla's continued shell-saga at first slip, the three dropped chances in total perhaps summarizing his Indian struggles which also reflected in the diffidently set fields. Kotla's kinder pitch reared up Morkel's bumpers and Yadav-Ashwin duo ducked and drove in a hope to keep misery-bogies hurtling. There's occasional turn and bounce, and the Ashwin threat should loom large. Probably that will happen in the afternoon session beginning 12:10 local.

Lunch, Day 2: Run-renaissance was the session's order and batting continued its surge courtesy a 98-run partnership between Rahane and Ashwin. A one-wicket session, a rare entity in the series, pushed India's total to healthy shores from a precarious 139-6. Ajinkya Rahane classed his way to his 5th Test ton, bringing up his first ever century in India with a memorable straight drive. And then the flair-oozing floodgates opened up to a volley of Piedt-grounding power shots which included a patented inside-out lofted drive off Elgar. Rahane's home record puffed up consequently and Shastri-directed India will hope that the revival wheels on.

112.6 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, as expected he bowls the googly to finish the session off. Yadav was standing deep inside the crease and manages to keep it out without much fuss

Last ball before lunch. Tahir is taking his time to get ready for it.

112.5 - Tahir to Ashwin, 1 run, eases this flatter delivery down to long-on and gets off strike

112.4 - Tahir to Ashwin, 2 runs, 'Catch it' was the call from the keeper, but it went very fine. Drifting on the pads yet again, Ashwin gets some bat on the tickle (may have come off the inside half) and it dribbles away towards the fine leg fence, Duminy runs to his right in the deep, puts in the dive near the rope and cuts it off. Did well to save two runs for his team. The third umpire took a look and he was happy with the fielder's effort

112.3 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, clips this fuller length delivery towards mid-wicket

112.2 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, floated up on the stumps, Ashwin defends it off the front foot

112.1 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, targetting the pads with a flatter one, Ashwin gently turns it into the leg-side

Last over before lunch

111.6 - D Piedt to U Yadav, no run, quicker from Piedt this time around, Yadav stays inside the crease and bunts it back to the bowler

111.5 - D Piedt to U Yadav, no run, flatter outside off from over the wicket, Yadav looks to punch it off the back foot, he is lucky that he didn't edge it to the keeper. Wasn't too far away though

111.4 - D Piedt to U Yadav, no run, slower through the air and spinning in on middle and leg, Yadav fails to lay bat on it as he looks to defend and wears it on the pad, the spin though was taking it down leg and that's why the appeal was not a big one

111.3 - D Piedt to U Yadav, no run, floated up around off, Yadav prods forward and blocks it to the left of the bowler

111.2 - D Piedt to U Yadav, no run, slower through the air and on off, Yadav defends it off the front foot

111.1 - D Piedt to U Yadav, no run, clips this fullish delivery to mid-wicket

Dane Piedt [37.0-5-117-4] is back into the attack

110.6 - Tahir to Ashwin, SIX, fifty for Ashwin! This was pushed through on the stumps, Ashwin lofts it through the line after coming down the track, didn't connect too well but it had enough on it to clear the fence at long-on. Mid-on was also inside the ring and hence, it was a calculated risk from Ashwin. Raises his bat to acknowledge the applause from the crowd and his teammates. Affords a smile as well. It has been a tough time for Ashwin, considering the flood situation in Chennai. Yet, he has stood tall for India

110.5 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, loopy delivery on off stump line, Ashwin squeezes out the drive to the left of mid-wicket, where Faf does extremely well to run across to his left and stops it with a dive. Saves a few runs for his team

110.4 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, Ashwin stays back to this flatter delivery just outside off, goes hard on the drive but mistimes it back to the bowler

110.3 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, floated up on the stumps, Ashwin defends it back to the bowler

110.2 - Tahir to U Yadav, 1 run, Yadav goes hard on the drive off this flighted delivery, gets a thick outside edge that kept spinning away from Abbott at backward point, he did well to stop it in the end after crouching low to his left but it was not enough to prevent the single

110.1 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, quicker on the stumps, Yadav pushes it back to the bowler

109.6 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, run-out chance missed! Ashwin taps this length delivery towards backward point and takes a few strides forward. Yadav was charging to get to the striker's end but has to rush back as Duminy was quick to pounce on the ball, he would still have been short of his crease had Duminy disturbed the stumps at the non-striker's end with his throw, but luckily for India Duminy missed

109.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, FOUR, what a shot! Ashwin is just six short of his fifty now. Another one that's short around off, Ashwin hangs back, sways away before ramping it up and over the keeper at the last moment, the ball bounced only once before hitting the fence

109.4 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, angling in on off and middle, Ashwin plays a punchy straight drive back past the non-striker, timed it well but couldn't beat the man at mid-on

109.3 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, banged in short and in line with off, Ashwin thought about going for the pull but dropped his wrists at the last moment, the keeper collects

109.2 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, just short of a good length and on top of off and middle, Ashwin stays back and punches it down to long-on, once again he denies the run

109.1 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, short of length delivery outside off, Ashwin opens the face of the bat as he goes for the punch, manages to send it through the vacant backward point region but doesn't take the single on offer

108.6 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, presses forward and blocks this floaty delivery back down the pitch

108.5 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, drifting on leg stump line, Yadav was looking to work it through the on-side but ends up pushing it back to the bowler off the face of the bat

108.4 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, gives this one more air just outside off, Yadav drills it straight back to the bowler

108.3 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, floated up on the stumps, Yadav defends it back to the bowler off the front foot

108.2 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, quicker and on the pads, Yadav nudges it towards short fine leg, was looking for the single but Ashwin sends him back. Rightly so as the fielder was quick to swoop in

108.1 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, googly from Tahir around off, Yadav drives it back to the bowler

107.6 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, once again Ashwin brings out the half-hearted pull to this short delivery from Morkel, and once again he mistimes it, gets it to the left of short mid-wicket, who moves across and stops it

107.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, back of a length delivery just outside off, Ashwin stays on the back foot and punches it straight to backward point

107.4 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, bowls this on a length and the line is well outside off, Ashwin is content with a leave

107.3 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, just short of a good length and just outside off, Ashwin defends it from the crease

107.2 - M Morkel to Ashwin, FOUR, angling in on the pads. You can't bowl it there to Ashwin. He uses his wrists well, flicks it past a diving mid-wicket, two fielders were converging near the boundary rope but it splits them to perfection

Just a slip in place

107.1 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, good short ball from Morkel. Starts off with one just outside off that jags back in towards the batsman, Ashwin was first lining up to go after it, does well to sway away from the line of fire at the last moment

Morne Morkel [22.0-5-50-0] is back into the attack

106.6 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, googly to end the over. Yadav was deep in the crease and manages to keep it out

106.5 - Tahir to Ashwin, 1 run, darted full on middle stump line, Ashwin kneels down and paddles it to fine leg, just a single this time around

106.4 - Tahir to Ashwin, 2 runs, floated up just outside off, Ashwin drives it to the left of mid-off, the fielder moves across and puts in the dive, the batsmen though have ample time to come back for the second. Good running on this occasion

106.3 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, hangs back and defends this quicker delivery back down the wicket

106.2 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, beauty from Tahir. Gives this one more air, gets it to turn away sharply from around off. Ashwin was prodding forward to defend and the ball spins away, beats him on the outside edge

106.1 - Tahir to Ashwin, FOUR, sloppy fielding once again. Looks like Abbott's knee got stuck in the ground. This was bowled flatter outside off, Ashwin dabs it late to the left of backward point, Abbott tries to cut it off after moving across, but ends up jarring his knee with the ground, misses the ball and it runs away to the fence

105.6 - Elgar to U Yadav, no run, slightly quicker from Elgar, Yadav blocks it once again

105.5 - Elgar to U Yadav, no run, drfting in on middle and leg, Yadav looks to defend off the front foot, gets an inside edge onto the pad and the ball dribbles away into the on-side

105.4 - Elgar to U Yadav, FOUR, comedy of errors! Full toss on the stumps, Yadav drives it back towards the non-striker, the bowler tries to get across and stop it, misses and the ball deflects off Ashwin and rolls away straight behind the bowler, the fielder from long-on moves to his left and tries to cut it off with the help of his left hand, doesn't get his body behind it and ends up making a mess of it. It trickles away to the fence, much to the disappointment of the South Africans. Should have done better with the fielding effort

105.3 - Elgar to U Yadav, no run, floated up around off, Yadav drives it into the on-side off the inside half of the bat

105.2 - Elgar to U Yadav, no run, leans forward and blocks this tossed up delivery outside off

105.1 - Elgar to Ashwin, 1 run, flatter outside off, Ashwin stays back and punches it to sweeper, gets off strike with another single

104.6 - Tahir to U Yadav, no run, in the blockhole from Tahir, Yadav manages to squeeze it out back onto the pitch

Umesh Yadav, right handed bat, comes to the crease

104.5 - Tahir to Rahane, out Caught by de Villiers!! Rahane's brilliant knock comes to an end. Grimaces in disappointment after hitting it straight to AB. Good gesture from the South Africans as well, Morkel pats Rahane on the back and AB also congratulates the diminutive Indian for his efforts. Elgar too shook hands with Rahane as he was walking back. Coming to the ball, it was just tossed up outside off, Rahane was looking to go inside-out over cover, couldn't quite get the elevation he wanted and ends up offering a simple catch to AB at cover. The Indian dressing room is also up on their feet to applaud the effort. It surely was a fantastic knock, the first hundred of the series. Rahane c de Villiers b Tahir 127(215) [4s-11 6s-4]

Tahir to Rahane, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

104.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, floated up on off, Rahane drives it into the off-side, didn't quite get to the pitch of the ball on this ocassion

104.3 - Tahir to Ashwin, 1 run, kneels across and paddles this tossed up delivery on the full, gets it down to fine leg for a single

104.2 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, googly outside off, Ashwin was trying to run it down to third man with a late cut, the ball bounces a little extra and goes past his blade

104.1 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, quicker and just outside off, it was fuller in length. Rahane hangs back and drives it to sweeper for a single

103.6 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, floaty delivery on the stumps, Ashwin presses forward to block

A bit of a discussion between the two batters going on. Probably about the running between the wickets. They have put on almost 100 runs together but the running has been a little iffy. Rahane punches gloves with Ashwin and asks him to stay calm

103.5 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, stays back and works this flatter delivery through backward square leg, the batsmen think about the second run but Rahane sends Ashwin back

103.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, that missed everything. Spinning away outside off, Rahane was lured to go for the big booming drive, the ball turns away, misses the blade and it was not the keeper but the slip fielder who collects it

103.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, floated up on the stumps, Rahane was first looking to go hard at it, ends up clipping it straight to mid-wicket in the end

103.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery on middle stump line, Rahane leans forward and blocks it to the right of the bowler

103.1 - Elgar to Rahane, 2 runs, tossed up on leg stump line, Rahane clips it through square leg, good running ensures that the batsmen come back for the second. Plus the throw from the deep was way off target

102.6 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, slightly quicker this time around, Ashwin drives it back to the bowler

102.5 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, gets his bat in front of the pad and dead-bats this flighted delivery on the stumps

102.4 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, drags his length back and bowls it outside off, Rahane rocks back and cuts it square of the wicket, Bavuma at sweeper cover runs to his left, does well to keep the batsmen down to a single. Was quick to reach the ball

102.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, slightly slower and around off, Rahane meekly drives it back towards the bowler

102.2 - Tahir to Ashwin, 1 run, Ashwin once again comes on the front foot and drives this fullish delivery to the left of mid-off, who stops the ball after diving across to his left. The batsmen cross over for a single

102.1 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, loopy delivery that's tossed up well wide outside off, Ashwin leans into the drive but picks out cover to perfection

101.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, slower through the air and turns away slightly just outside off, Rahane is up to the task as he defends it after lunging forward

101.5 - Elgar to Ashwin, 1 run, takes a step forward and drives this fullish delivery past the diving bowler, the batsmen take a quick single before mid-on moves to his left and cuts it off

101.4 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, on middle stump line this time around, Rahane turns it through backward square leg and gets to the other end

101.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, leans forward and blocks this flighted delivery on the stumps

101.2 - Elgar to Rahane, FOUR, lovely shot from Rahane. Steps out and lofts this fullish delivery inside-out over extra cover, got the timing right, it races away to the fence in a jiffy

101.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, floated up around off, Rahane comes forward to push, gets an inside edge onto the pad

100.6 - Tahir to Ashwin, no run, Tahir can't believe that he hasn't got his man here. There was a loud shout for lbw but the umpire is not interested. This didn't spin much as it skids on in line with off stump, Ashwin was looking to defend it off the front foot and misses it completely, wears it on the pad. In fact, replays show that the impact might have just been outside the line of off and that's why the umpire said 'not out'

100.5 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, goes deep in the crease now, knocks this flatter delivery to long-on for a run

100.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and turning away from the stumps, Rahane pads it away to Amla

100.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, slower through the air and spins away around off, Rahane was too early into the sweep, misses it completely and wears it on the thigh pad, the spin though was taking it past the off stump and that's why there was no real appeal

100.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, loopy full delivery just outside off, Rahane comes forward and clips it straight to mid-wicket

100.1 - Tahir to Ashwin, 1 run, pushed through quicker on the pads, may have been the googly first up, Ashwin works it through backward square leg and gets off strike

Imran Tahir [7.0-1-36-0] is back into the attack

99.6 - Elgar to Ashwin, 1 run, a loud shout of "nooooooo" from Elgar as he bowls a loopy delivery which is converted into a full toss by Ashwin who advances and flicks through mid-wicket

99.5 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, that is a cracker. Floated up outside off, Ashwin was rocking back to cut and then saw it rip past his stroke. Bounced awkwardly and certainly surprised him. Over the top edge. That came out of nowhere as it landed in the footmarks

99.4 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, uses his feet and nudges it to mid-wicket

Rahane has a word with Ashwin after that false stroke

99.3 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, tossed up on leg, Ashwin closes the face of the bat too early and the leading edge falls well in front of mid-wicket. The man was way back

99.2 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, flat on middle and leg, defended softly

99.1 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, nudged to mid-wicket

98.6 - D Piedt to Ashwin, 1 run, flicked from the stumps through mid-wicket for a single

98.5 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, this one is on the stumps, hits Ashwin high on the bat on the forward defence and drops down on the pitch. Died down immediately

98.4 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, on off, pushed to silly mid-on off the front foot

98.3 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, flighted outside off, tapped to the left of Piedt

98.2 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, flicked to mid-wicket, bit of an yes-no situation between Ashwin and Rahane, but all is well in the end

98.1 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, tossed up on off, pushed back to Piedt

Ashwin has to be applauded too for he has stuck it out despite his mind being occupied elsewhere. I'm talking about the events in Chennai. Hope his family are safe. But he is concentrating hard and putting all that behind him. South Africa need to wrap this innings up quickly and it will be Piedt to continue

Time for drinks and it has been India's hour so far. The new ball was taken first up and Ashwin and Rahane safely negotiated that threat. There wasn't a chance produced in that hour as the ball didn't do much for Morkel and Abbott. Strike that last sentence off. Actually Abbott induced an edge of Ashwin which was grassed by Amla. Thanks to my colleague Sidhant for correcting me there. Slowly but surely Rahane got to his hundred and celebrated that landmark in uncharacteristically un-Rahane like fashion. The first hundred of the series and it has come in the last game of the series. Arguably the best innings of the series too.

97.6 - Elgar to Ashwin, 1 run, fired in on off, Ashwin squeezes it through square leg for a single

97.5 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, tossed up outside off, driven off the front foot to cover

97.4 - Elgar to Ashwin, byes, FOUR, down leg and beats Ashwin's attempted paddle, clipped the pad of Ashwin actually and nutmegged Vilas. Went close to hitting the helmet placed behind the keeper. Would've been five penalty runs had it done so. Dharmasena got that wrong. Should've been legbyes

97.3 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, tossed up outside off, pressed back to Elgar

97.2 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, flat and down leg, nudged to backward square leg

97.1 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, very full on the stumps, clipped to long-on

96.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, flat outside off, Rahane rocks back and forces it to long-on for a single

96.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flat and quick outside off, defended to cover

96.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, fired in quicker on the pads, flicked to square leg

96.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, SIX, this is fabulous batting from Rahane. Much cleaner connection this time. Skips out and then makes room to loft over long-off. Belted that and went comfortably over the ropes. He is looking to score some runs off Piedt and he is taking him on

96.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, now over the wicket, tossed up outside off, Rahane gets forward to block to short mid-wicket

96.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, SIX, calculated blow. It's a six. Third one of the innings for Rahane. Uses his feet and slams it wide of long-on. Carried all the way, but just about

95.6 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, down leg, Rahane unfurls the sweep to fine leg, gets a single

95.5 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, this one stayed low, the skidder on off stump, Rahane crouches and gets the bat down in time to keep it out

95.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, tossed up on off, Rahane gets forward to block

95.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flat and Rahane rocks back to punch to cover

95.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, uses his feet and gets too close to the pitch of it, slams it straight to the fielder at mid-on

95.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, was there an edge on that? Elgar doesn't seem happy. Vilas fluffs the take. Replays show that it may have missed the outside edge. Cracking delivery though, flighted outside off, turns after missing the forward defence of Rahane, Vilas is hit on the wrist and can't gather the rebound

Dean Elgar [5.0-0-15-0] is back into the attack

94.6 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, flat on the stumps, Ashwin goes back to block

94.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, very full on the stumps, driven to long-on

Rahane's reactions after he got to his hundred show that he was under pressure and this knock meant a lot. Looked heavenwards for a while and then let all that emotion soak in. Certainly can't remember the last time Rahane has flung his bat and punched the air. He is a very placid guy but today the moment brought out the other side in him

94.4 - D Piedt to Ashwin, 1 run, flighted on off, Ashwin gets forward and drives to long-on

94.3 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, Ashwin uses his feet and then pats it to the left of Piedt

94.2 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, tossed up on off, Ashwin gets forward to block

94.1 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, tossed up from round the wicket, drift for Piedt first up, Ashwin defends with an open face to point

Dane Piedt [34.0-5-101-4] is back into the attack

93.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, length outside off, keeps low and rolls to Vilas after Rahane shoulders arms

93.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, good length outside off, pressed to cover off the front foot

93.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, FOUR, there it is! Rahane has done it. The first hundred of the series. And arguably the best innings of the series. Rahane hasn't put a foot wrong since he set out to bat yesterday. Yes he gave a chance and was dropped at slip. But a brilliant innings nonetheless. What a shot to get your hundred too. Rasping straight drive as Kyle Abbott overpitched, driven with a full face of the bat and it went at the rate of knots. Wide of the stumps and raced away. Rahane shows rare emotion as he punches the air with his bat and then raises it to acknowledge all the applause. His missus is a happy chappie. She claps with a broad beaming smile on her face. This knock has to be one of Rahane's best coming on the back of a highest score of just 15 in India. What a way to set the record straight. One thing is for sure, when the others fail, Rahane is there to stand tall and set things right. One has seen that often and this innings is just another example. 5th Test hundred and he has exorcised the ghosts of his debut Test here at the same ground

93.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, fullish outside off, left alone

93.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, 1 run, short outside off, Ashwin rolls his wrists and pulls to deep backward square leg, for a single

93.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, good length outside off, Rahane opens the face of the bat and guides it to deep point. Just a hit away now from a hundred

92.6 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, pitched up outside off, Ashwin leans into another flowing drive, but straight to the fielder at mid-off

92.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, fullish on off, may have stopped on Ashwin a tad as his on-drive goes to mid-on a little uppishly

92.4 - M Morkel to Ashwin, FOUR, beautiful back foot punch. On a short of length and outside off, Ashwin stays back and then stands tall to punch through cover. Creamed that

92.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, short on the stumps, Rahane plays a powerful pull despite being in an awkward position, Piedt at deep backward square leg, does well and slides to field. Ashwin is slow and they settle for a single. Rahane wanted two but Ashwin didn't run the first run hard

Rahane's wife is in the stands and she looks nervous

92.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, full outside off, driven back to M Morkel

92.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, good length outside off, Rahane dabs to point and looks for a quick single, but it has gone straight to the fielder

91.6 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, good length outside off, Ashwin stands tall and punches to mid-off

91.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, fullish outside off, Rahane drags it wide of mid-on. Wanted to loft that but didn't get the length to get under that

91.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, fullish outside off, Rahane gets forward and presses it to mid-off

91.3 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, 1 run, length delivery on off and middle, Ashwin punches wide of Simon Harmer - who is on for AB - and takes a quick single to mid-on

91.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, fullish and angled in on off, Ashwin drives with a closed bat face to mid-on

91.1 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, has that carried to Amla? He isn't sure. Dharmasena and Oxenford are going upstairs. The soft signal is not out. Amla has grassed that. Clearly the ball touched the grass. So that will go as a drop. The crowd have seen that on the big screen and cheer. Genuine outside edge as Ashwin poked at a length delivery outside off and it went low to first slip. The ball hits the fingers on the left-hand and is turfed. Then he scoops it up. Amla has to be applauded as he immediately signalled that he wasn't sure and wanted it to be sent upstairs. So that's three he has put down in this innings

90.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, good length outside off, Rahane defends on the walk

90.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, 1 run, beautiful off-drive from Ashwin. Came forward and laced it, Faf at mid-off on the dive got a hand and half-stopped it, can't prevent the single though

90.4 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, fullish on off, Ashwin's bat turns on impact and the ball runs off a closed face to mid-on

90.3 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, length outside off, Ashwin once again mistimes a shot. This time off the back foot as he looked to punch

90.2 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, short outside off, Ashwin yanks his head out of the line and sways away

90.1 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, back of a length outside off, seamed away, Ashwin pulls the bat inside the line and lets it go

89.6 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, 1 run, full outside off, Ashwin plays a streaky drive that goes in the air through vacant gully and he takes the single to third man

89.5 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, fullish and angled in on off, Ashwin blocks to cover

89.4 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, short outside off, tennis-ball bounce for Kyle Abbott, Ashwin horribly mistimes the pull to mid-wicket

89.3 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, this length delivery stops on Ashwin who stands tall and looks to drive, spliced to cover

89.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, third time today that Ashwin has pulled and mistimed the shot. Not quite short to be playing the stroke, Ashwin finds mid-wicket

89.1 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, good length outside off, Ashwin punches forcefully off the back foot but finds cover

88.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, angled in on off, Rahane blocks off the front foot to cover

88.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, 1 run, back of a length outside off, Ashwin fiddles at it, gets a genuine outside edge that runs through the vacant gully and they take a single to third man

88.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, full outside off, Rahane flays it on the up, was in the air but well short of Elgar at third man

88.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, pitched up outside off, Rahane's bat turns on the drive, that foils his timing, finds Bavuma at cover

88.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, on a length and outside off, Rahane lets it go

88.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fullish outside off, Rahane gets forward and then shoulders arms

87.6 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, angled in on off, Ashwin's bat is coming down very straight, this time an on-drive but can't beat mid-on

87.5 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, fullish outside off, Ashwin gets forward and plays a flowing drive, but straight to the fielder at mid-off

87.4 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, now plays a solid block from the crease to mid-off

87.3 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, FOUR, that's where Ashwin is so strong. Drifting into off and middle, Ashwin whips powerfully through square leg. Uncorking of the wrists at the right time did the trick there. Raced away

87.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, good length outside off, Ashwin is back and across before defending to point

87.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, good length outside off, Rahane gets forward and opens the face of the bat to defend in the vacant point region

86.6 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, another short one outside off, Ashwin isn't getting any power or timing behind the pull shots. This time finds mid-on

86.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, now the ball slightly stops on Ashwin, who checks his front foot drive, the ball travels in the air and falls short of Morkel. Hit the bat quite high up

86.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, wide, that was way too high. Called wide and rightly so. Short outside off, Vilas leapt full length and stopped it with his left-hand

86.4 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, short on the stumps, Ashwin swivels on the pull and doesn't time it, finds backward square leg. Came on quicker than he anticipated

86.3 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, fullish outside off, Ashwin pushes off the front foot towards cover

Short leg in for Ashwin

86.2 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, dug in short outside off, Ashwin sways away and lets it go

86.1 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, back of a length and rising down leg, Ashwin flicks and misses

85.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, Rahane misses out on some runs as his straight drive hits the stumps at the other end. Came forward and drove it on the rise well

85.5 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, 1 run, fullish on off, Ashwin flicks through mid-wicket for a single

85.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, fullish outside off, Rahane gets forward and opens the face of the bat to dab to deep point

85.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, there was a sound but what was it? Dharmasena doesn't give it out. Straight off the pad and to Dane Vilas diving away to his left. No bat there and a fine decision from Dharmasena. Kyle Abbott and Vilas went up, but there was no real conviction behind their appeal

85.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, good length and a hint of angle back in, Rahane gets outside off and defends it back to Kyle Abbott

85.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, pitched up outside off, Rahane gets forward and drives to mid-off

Kyle Abbott [17.0-6-23-3] is back into the attack

84.6 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, awkwardly played by Ashwin. It was dug in on a back of a length outside off, Ashwin was doing nothing by hanging his bat out at that. Nearly nicked off. Was a tad squared up too

84.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, back of a length on the hips, Rahane nudges it to fine leg. First runs of the day

84.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, belated appeal from Morkel. But sliding down. Rahane is rapped on the pads on the shuffle. Struck above the kneeroll and comfortably missing

84.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, on a length and outside off, Rahane is forward and defending solidly to cover

84.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fullish outside off, Rahane gets half-forward and defends to cover

84.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, no shot offered by Rahane as the ball jags back in from a length. It strikes him on the thigh pad and rolls to third man after he shouldered arms. Didn't account for so much movement

It is a sunny morning in Delhi. Unlike yesterday when it was hazy and smoggy. The players are out in the middle. AB is talking to Amla who nods in agreement. Healthy crowd in who are making a lot of noise. The new ball is available. Interesting to see when Amla takes it. Rahane will be on strike. He is eyeing the first hundred of the series. Morkel will begin. And the new ball has been taken. Two slips in place for Morkel

"The sun is out which means that the ball will not move in the air as much as it did yesterday. There are some bowlers' footmarks which can make life difficult for the left-handers. Also, a few spots near the good length and the short of good length areas are becoming loose. A few balls may scoot along and some others will climb at the batsmen. But Rahane showed that you can hang in there," infers Sunil Gavaskar in the pitch report

Yesterday, it was the straight ball (from a spinner) once again doing some damage but only that this time India were at the receiving end. Dane Piedt used his angles pretty well and got the ball to drift in the air before sliding it on to leave more than a couple of batsmen bewildered. However, Ajinkya Rahane stood tall (not vertically of course) amidst the ruins going on to register his maiden half-century at home. He's still out there - only 11 short of a ton - and will hope to prolong his counter-punch.

Day 2: Morning all. It's Day 2 and the match is intricately balanced. Well, make no mistake, the pitch is a pretty decent one to bat on. Any other day my judgement would have been brighter in favour of South Africa after reducing India to what they have. But they have been very poor with the bat. Batted like a junkyard in this series. I'm not even sure what that means, but you get the drift, don't ya?

Umpires were on the hot seat all through the day with Vijay's wicket-denying Abbott no-ball being the focus. South Africa were on the wrong end of two decisions - a Jadeja LBW and an Ashwin's bat-pad. Dane Piedt bowled a marathon spell on his way to a 4-wicket haul that should eventually be bettered. Tahir, having bowled a paltry 7 overs in the day, corroborated Amla's hesitance with ripping legbreaks that were awfully sandwiched between long hops and full tosses. Abbott's precision ate away Pujara and Saha while Jadeja fell to an aggressive shimmy only to be caught at short mid-wicket to an Elgar special. India survived the day, thanks to a late Rahane-Jadeja surge twinned with some tired bowling towards the end. Join us at 09:00 local tomorrow to see if someone can finally breach the cursed three-figure mark this series. Goodbye!

Stumps, Day 1: Pitches are often a function of your skills and Indian batsmen, for the fifth time in the series, disappointed on a surface that definitely was the anticipated spin-reliever. Uneven bounce threatened throughout the day, except when Kohli put a short display of batsmanship studded with intent and intensity. A freak Bavuma-hoodoo'd dismissal cut that short but Rahane stunned amidst the 139-6 batting ruins, dispatching anything mediocre on his way to improve an abysmal home record. He powered India to the highest total of the series and was helped by an Amla-drop at slip to notch up the highest individual score this series. The South African captain shelled two in the day, the other being Rohit's - couple of balls before that befuddling wild slog.

And looks like we are done for the day. The umpires decide the light isn't good enough for play to continue (even with spinners bowling). Oxenford takes the readings. These readings will now be the benchmark. Any time the light falls below it, play won't be possible

83.6 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, pats it in front of point and looks for a run, Rahane wisely sends him back in time as the fielder was swooping in

83.5 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, flatter down leg, Ashwin turns it to FSL

83.4 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, it's gone very flat right now. Not much intensity on the field. Looks like they want to get done and come back fresh tomorrow. Tossed up outside off, defensively pushed to cover

83.3 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, now is drawn forward by the loop. Bunts it to cover

83.2 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, sliding away from a length outside off, Ashwin moves back and across and taps it into the off-side

83.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, his fingers must be throbbing. Into his 34th over now. Drops it short on the pads, Rahane whips it down to fine leg from deep in his crease

82.6 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, a lazy stroke. Just looking to drive a ball which is sliding in, was nowhere near the pitch. Gets a thick inside edge which rolls back towards the bowler

82.5 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, well flighted on the stumps, impermeable is Ashwin on the front foot

82.4 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, snaking on the pads due to the drift, Rahane gently flicks it through the square leg region

82.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, nicely drifting in on off, doesn't get much purchase and meets the sweet spot of Rahane's defence

82.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, loopy delivery just outside off, slices it gently towards cover

82.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, a massive lunge forward, meets the pitch of the ball and smothers it

Maybe it's the light. It just might well be. Which isn't allowing the South Africans to take the new ball

81.6 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, straight lines, turned to short-leg

81.5 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, goes right back to a flatter delivery and blocks

81.4 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, puts his skates on, Piedt pulls the length back and pushes it quicker at the same time, Ashwin realizes he is defeated by the length, tries to smother it away but only manages an inside edge onto pad which pops up but dies down quickly on the pitch

81.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, hops back seeing that the length was slightly short, sliding away outside off, chops it to deep cover

81.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drifting even wide of off, defended towards cover

81.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drifting across off from round the wicket, Rahane prods forward and blocks

80.6 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, slightly short and ample width outside off, at Elgar's pace it's like a cheese sandwich. Gobble it up. But Ashwin doesn't. Slaps it straight to backward point

80.5 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, tossed up on a length on off, defended towards short mid-wicket

80.4 - Elgar to Ashwin, FOUR, drifting down the leg-side, Ashwin plays a Tendulkaresque paddled-swat. Jabs it very fine and nutmegs the keeper before trickling away

80.3 - Elgar to Ashwin, no run, teased up outside off, Ashwin checks the drive to ensure it's all along the turf towards extra-cover

80.2 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, another similar loopy delivery drifting into off from round the wicket, Rahane gets a thick inside edge misjudging a straight ball once again and collects a single through backward square

80.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, plays for the turn on his forward defence, the ball skids on taking the inside-half of the bat into the leg-side

Dean Elgar [3.0-0-9-0] is back into the attack

The second new ball is due now. I expect them to take it. Oh no, it's Elgar coming on. Not the first time that I am wrong

79.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, that's more like wielding a broom. Didn't bother to sit on his back knee, just bended it a tad and swept it behind square. The line, which was down leg, facilitated the stroke

79.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drifting across off, Rahane opens his bat face and guides his defensive stroke into the off-side

79.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drawn forward by a loopy delivery and defends it after getting right on top of the bounce

79.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, Piedt's response is to pull his length back, how mainstream. Rahane is waiting on the back foot and clips it to square leg

79.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, SIX, that's flat. Runs down the pitch, makes sure not to get too close to the ball to get underneath, and swings it with the turn over mid-wicket. Just about clears the ropes

79.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flatter on middle and leg, turned to FSL

78.6 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, back of a length delivery holding its line outside off, Ashwin plays away from the body on the back foot to defend it into the off-side

78.5 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, pitched up outside off drawing Ashwin forward. He tenderly pushes it to short cover

78.4 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, gently clipped with the inward movement to short mid-wicket

78.3 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, hooping back in from outside off, Ashwin covers his stumps by walking across and hoists his bat above the shoulders

78.2 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, bending back in on off, Ashwin's bat turns in his hands on the straight drive and he ends up directing it to mid-on

78.1 - M Morkel to Ashwin, no run, length ball outside off, Ashwin lets it go

77.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, ricks back and whips this flatter delivery to short mid-wicket

77.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, Amla, Amla. Oh I can't believe my eyes. He's put down another. That straight roller from Piedt once more causing all the fuss. Rahane played inside the line of it on the front foot and it slides on to find the edge. That's a regulation slip catch low around shin height. The ball pops out of Amla's palms, he has another chance at the rebound. Fluffs that too. On replays, it's clear that he got his palms too low down and it hit him near the wrists actually

77.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flatter on the stumps, Rahane defends from the crease

77.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, FOUR, oh Bavuma doesn't want to be anywhere near that position. His plight is so bad that it's comical. Piedt drops it short, Rahane sits on his back knee and pulls it fiercely just wide of Bavuma's right shin

77.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, shovels the sweep and catches Bavuma in the firing line. He takes a blow on his left-hand. Rahane just pats him on the chest. That might have hurt too. No, just playing. Now Bavuma is getting some medical attention

77.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drops it slightly short on middle and leg, Rahane goes right back at the stumps and nudges it through where a leg-slip would be. Rahane is intent on the run, Ashwin not so

Jeez, he's bowled more than one-third of their overs and now some more

76.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, that's a flat-footed slap to deep point, his feet didn't go anywhere near the ball, just caned it with his hands. It was short enough and wide enough though

76.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, tailing back just a hint with a pitched up delivery, Rahane goes with hard hands on the drive, and mistimes it to mid-on

76.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, goes back and slightly across to defend a ball outside off into the off-side

76.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, dipping in from a length outside off, Rahane covers for it and offers the deadest of bats from the crease. Deadest, hmm..

76.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, back of a length delivery outside off, pushed meekly to cover flat-footed on the crease

76.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, length ball wide enough of off for Rahane to let it go

Morne Morkel [15.0-4-39-0] is back into the attack

75.6 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, and again. Loves using those feet to the spinners. Smothers the spin

75.5 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, shimmies down and meets the pitch of the ball before blunting it out

75.4 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, tossed up on the stumps, defended

75.3 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, what's going on? Deflects off the glove, onto the pad and pops up for a catch to the keeper. And South Africa hardly appeal. Piedt did look convinced but none of the others were. Tossed up on middle, turns enough and kicks off the surface to catch the glove. But Dharmasena stays unfluttered. Ashwin gets away

75.2 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, sliding on towards off from a length, Ashwin defends from the crease

75.1 - D Piedt to Ashwin, no run, flatter and on the stumps from round the wicket, Ashwin hangs back and softly punches it into the leg-side

Dane Piedt [29.0-4-88-4] is back into the attack

74.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, near half-volley on off, eases into the on-drive straight of mid-on, the fielder hustles to his left and makes a diving stop

74.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, oh hello! That's a bit too expansive. Length ball just outside off, Rahane gets forward and tries to lace a drive on the up. Hits him fairly high on the bat and dribbles away to mid-off

74.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, plants his foot down and closes the bat face to defend a back of a length delivery towards short mid-wicket. Actually, the bat turned in his hands due to the loose grip

74.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, pitched up outside off, driven gently to extra-cover with a BIG stride forward

74.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, back of a length delivery in the channel just outside off, Rahane nearly walks into the defensive stroke down the pitch. That's how keen he is to press forward

74.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 2 runs, punched crisply off the back foot, found the vacant cover region and jogs back for a couple. The outfield isn't what you would call lightning quick

73.6 - Tahir to Ashwin, 2 runs, oh how well has he played that. Stylish. Another wrong 'un from Tahir, dropped it short and wide though. Ashwin waits on the back foot, allows the ball to come to him and dabs it late behind backward point. It's hounded down quick enough

A short-leg called in for Ashwin

73.5 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, fires in a full toss on the pads, whipped to deep backward square

73.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, flatter and quicker just outside off, might have been the googly, Rahane presses forward and defends

73.3 - Tahir to Rahane, FOUR, now a full bunger. Rahane whacks it over mid-on. Some easy runs these for the taking

73.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, patted away in front of cover, Rahane takes a few strides down the pitch. Maybe forgot who was at the other end. Ashwin sends him back

73.1 - Tahir to Rahane, FOUR, that's what I was talking about regarding Tahir. Too many poor balls. This time a long-hop on the stumps, Rahane rocks back, bends low (due to the low bounce) and pulls it hard through mid-wicket beating a diving Faf

72.6 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, back of a length delivery angled in on off, Ashwin stays rooted on the crease and pushes it to cover

72.5 - Kyle Abbott to Ashwin, no run, welcome to the crease Sir, bangs it in short, the ball loops over the half-crouched form of Ashwin. Just to let the batsman know that he's in for a scrap

Ravichandran Ashwin, right handed bat, comes to the crease

72.4 - Kyle Abbott to Ravindra Jadeja, out Caught by Elgar!! Walks down the track, flicks it well and .. gone! Elgar dives low to his right and plucks it just off the turf with his fingers underneath. That was hit perfectly well by Jadeja after converting it into a half-volley. If you have to criticize him, you might say that he didn't quite roll the wrists enough to keep it down. And maybe that's a fair point. I would put it down as slightly unfortunate. Don't discount how good a catch that was though at mid-wicket. Had to go really low. Ravindra Jadeja c Elgar b Kyle Abbott 24(59) [4s-3]

Kyle Abbott to Ravindra Jadeja, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

72.3 - Kyle Abbott to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, thought about fishing around the sixth-seventh stump line, then bailed out late

72.2 - Kyle Abbott to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, now did that straighten off the pitch, Jadeja certainly gave that impression of being square up. Nah, straight ball. On a fuller length on off, Jadeja awkwardly guides it into the off-side opening the bat-face

72.1 - Kyle Abbott to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, skidding back in on off from a back of a length, Jadeja just about gets his bat down in time (at an angle) and drags it into the on-side

Kyle Abbott [15.0-5-21-2] is back into the attack

Abbott back on..Will start from round the wicket to Jadeja

71.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, a flat and fast googly, turning in from a shortish length outside off, Rahane watches it carefully on the back foot and pushes it back down the pitch

71.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, darted on the hips, Rahane is too late with his tuck and wears it on the thigh pad

71.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, there's Imran Tahir at his most vicious. Sadly this version of him doesn't crop up too often. But as my colleagues remind me, he's bowled well this series. I have a different opinion. Loop and dip on off, lands outside Rahane's defensive reach and spins past the edge of his forward prod. Some excitement there but no bat

71.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, much more flight and loop on off, Rahane presses forward and pats it away with the turn into the off-side

71.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, might have been the googly, too full to discern, Rahane drives it tamely off the bottom of the bat to extra-cover

71.1 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, the flipper on off, Rahane played for the flatter trajectory than the length and went right back, skids on and meets the middle of this straight bat. Could have got himself in trouble

Drinks are on the field now. Excellent hour for India. 17.1 overs were bowled and the hosts added 59 runs without losing a wicket. Jadeja has looked positive while Rahane has dropped anchor. The latter also got to his maiden Test fifty at home. No one has had a hundred in this series, can Rahane get one?

70.6 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, 2 runs, poor ball from Piedt, drops this one way too short and well outside off, Jadeja backs away and cuts it square past point, wants the second run and gets back with ease

70.5 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and on off, Jadeja gets a good stride forward and blocks

70.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, Piedt drifts one back into Rahane, eased down towards long-on for a single

70.3 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, Piedt drops one short and well outside off, Jadeja makes room and cuts it square on the off-side for a single

70.2 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and on off, Jadeja prods forward and blocks

70.1 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, appeal for LBW and a catch at first slip, but umpire Oxenford says NO to both. This was tossed up and came back with the angle, Jadeja was looking to whip it towards the on-side and missed, the ball clipped the front pad, then hit the back pad, and then lobbed to Amla at slip, was sliding down the leg-stump, no bat involved

69.6 - Tahir to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, Tahir gave this one more air, Jadeja plays with the spin and works it towards long-on for a single

69.5 - Tahir to Ravindra Jadeja, FOUR, that's a poor ball from Tahir, dropped it way too short and well outside off, Jadeja rocks back and cuts it in front of square on the off-side, the man in the deep is very square, the ball beats him to the fence

69.4 - Tahir to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flighted and spinning back into Jadeja, he covers for the turn and defends it with soft hands

69.3 - Tahir to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and just outside off, Jadeja gets to the pitch of the ball and blocks

69.2 - Tahir to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flighted and just outside off, Jadeja leans forward and defends it

Tahir switches to round the wicket

69.1 - Tahir to Ravindra Jadeja, 2 runs, Tahir starts with a wrong 'un, but it's way too short, Jadeja makes room and punches it past cover for a couple of runs

Imran Tahir [4.0-0-18-0] is back into the attack

68.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, shout for a catch at FSL, but it went well wide of Bavuma, Rahane was prodding forward in defence, doesn't quite get to the pitch of the ball, it took the inside edge and lobbed in front of Bavuma, no chance of a catch though

68.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, FOUR, lovely shot, this was the shot that got him dismissed in Nagpur, but that was off Tahir, here, he gets to the pitch of the ball and drills it past extra cover for a boundary

68.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted and on off, Rahane presses forward and defends it back towards the bowler

68.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one is given more air and just outside off, Rahane leans forward and blocks

Piedt is bowling from over the wicket

68.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and just outside off, Rahane gets half forward and blocks

68.1 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, Piedt drops one short and well outside off, Jadeja makes room and cuts it towards deep cover for a single

67.6 - Duminy to Rahane, 2 runs, excellent effort from Morkel at sweeper cover, saved a couple of runs for his team. This was a rank long hop from Duminy, dropped short and way outside off, Rahane reached out and cracked it in front of square on the off-side, it seemed destined for the boundary, but Morkel gets across, uses his reach to good effect and saves the boundary

67.5 - Duminy to Rahane, no run, appeal for a caught behind, but Kumar Dharmasena says no, this one pitched outside off and went with the angle, Rahane was playing for the spin, pushed forward and was beaten. There was a sound there, that was bat hitting his pad and nothing else

67.4 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, Jadeja takes this well tossed up ball on the full, whips it wide of mid-on where there's a tumbling stop, just a single

67.3 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, this one is given more air, Jadeja gets well forward and clips it towards mid-wicket

67.2 - Duminy to Rahane, 1 run, flatter and on Rahane's pads, clipped away towards square leg for a single

67.1 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, tossed up and just outside off, driven down towards long-off for a single

The floodlights are slowly being switched on. It's winter in Delhi and the light fades fast

66.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, 2 runs, excellent use of the depth of the crease, saw the length early, goes back and cuts it in front of square on the off-side for a couple of runs

66.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up slower and a hint of spin back into Rahane, he gets a big stride forward as he blocks

66.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted and on the off-stump line, Rahane gets a good stride forward as he blocks

66.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, Piedt drifts one across Rahane, he presses forward and defends it with straight bat

66.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and on Rahane's pads, tucked towards the on-side

66.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted and just outside off, defended back towards the bowler

65.6 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, this one is given more air, Jadeja lunges forward and smothers the spin

65.5 - Duminy to Rahane, 1 run, Duminy drops one short and wide outside off, cracked away square on the off-side, there's a man in the deep, just a single

65.4 - Duminy to Rahane, no run, tossed up and well outside off, Rahane prods forward and blocks

65.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, pushed through by Duminy, turns back into the right-hander, stays low as well, Rahane gets some bat and turns it towards the on-side

65.2 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, tossed up and on Jadeja's pads, nudged towards square leg for a single. Rahane wanted a second run and is sent back

65.1 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flatter and on the stumps, stayed a tad low as well, Jadeja rocks back and pulls it straight to mid-wicket

64.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up and on middle stump, Rahane gets well forward on the defensive push

64.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, FOUR, poor ball from Piedt, he seems to be tiring a bit, drops this one halfway down the track and well outside leg, Rahane gets halfway down on the crouch and pulls it behind square on the on-side, beats the man in the deep to the fence, raises his fifty as well, his first in India

64.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one is given more air, Rahane presses forward and blocks

64.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, SIX, cracking shot, this was tossed up outside off by Piedt, similar to Rohit's dismissal, Rahane gets down on his knees, plays with the turn and slog sweeps it - high and over mid-wicket for a maximum

64.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted and holding its line outside off, Rahane goes back and defends it with a straight bat

64.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up wider outside off, Rahane gets a good stride forward and defends it

63.6 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flatter and on the stumps, Jadeja rocks back and flicks it straight to mid-wicket

63.5 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, that must have hit one of the footholes, but it was well outside off, turn and bounce for Duminy as Jadeja let it go by

63.4 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, FOUR, lovely shot, nicely played by RJ, this was tossed up invitingly by Duminy, he gets forward, presents the full face of the bat and drives it to the right of mid-on for a boundary

63.3 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and on the leg-stump line, Jadeja gets well forward on the defensive block

63.2 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, Duminy gave this one more air, driven back towards the bowler. Duminy fumbles but recovers well enough to prevent a run

63.1 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Jadeja prods forward and defends it towards the on-side

62.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one is tossed up on off, Rahane lunges forward and defends it

62.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one was tossed up outside off, Rahane was slightly early into the drive, gets it off the inner half of the bat, but drops well in front of short mid-wicket

62.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane gets his bat in front of the pads and blocks

62.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one drifts away with the angle, Rahane pushes it to the left of cover, wants a single and is sent back

62.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one is given more air, Rahane gets well forward and blocks

62.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up and on the stumps, Rahane goes back and defends it with a straight bat

61.6 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flighted and just outside off, Jadeja prods forward and pushes it towards the off-side

61.5 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and on the stumps, Jadeja turns it towards the on-side

61.4 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, tossed up and just outside off, driven to the left of cover where the fielder makes a neat stop

61.3 - Duminy to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flighted delivery and a hint of extra bounce for Duminy, Jadeja watches it all along and defends it towards the off-side

61.2 - Duminy to Rahane, 1 run, flatter and on Rahane's pads, clipped away behind square on the on-side for a single

61.1 - Duminy to Rahane, byes, FOUR, that's a horrid start from Duminy, he's not at his best with the ball in this series, drags one short and way down the leg-side, spins away further and was a tad low as well, Rahane can't reach out for the pull, Dane Vilas can't get to it either, runs away to the ropes

One slip for JPD, he's bowling from round the wicket

Jean-Paul Duminy, right-arm off break, comes into the attack

60.6 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, Piedt drops one short and wide outside off, Jadeja makes room for the cut, but can't get it past backward point, the fielder tumbles to his left and makes the save

60.5 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flighted and on off, Jadeja gets a big stride forward as he defends

60.4 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, this was given more air, Jadeja blocks it towards Rahane, Piedt gets across and stops it with his boot

60.3 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, flighted delivery and on off, Jadeja lunges forward and smothers the spin

60.2 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and on off, Jadeja gets forward and blocks

60.1 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, FOUR, nicely played by Jadeja, this was tossed up on off, RJ gets a good stride forward, gets close to the pitch of the ball, drives against the spin and beats the diving Morkel at mid-on, to his right

59.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, tad fuller and on off, Rahane presses forward and defends it

59.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, Morkel shortens his length and angles this one back towards the batsman, Rahane covers the line and watches it go through to the keeper

59.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and holding its line outside off, left alone

59.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, FOUR, lovely shot, overpitched and on the stumps, Rahane gets a stride forward, meets the ball on top of the bounce, presents the full face of the bat and beats mid-on to his left, with the on-drive

59.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, tad fuller and angling back into Rahane, he prods across, closes the face of the bat and nudges it to the left of Bavuma at short mid-wicket

59.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fuller length delivery and angling back into the right-hander, Rahane shuffles across and flicks it towards mid-on

58.6 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, pushed through with a flatter trajectory, Jadeja lunged forward on the defensive push, gets an inside edge past FSL

58.5 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, tossed up just outside off, Jadeja gets a big stride forward, plays with an open face and defends it towards the off-side

58.4 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and just outside off, Jadeja presses forward and blocks

58.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, tossed up and on Rahane's pads, he went down on the sweep, doesn't control it, the ball was in the air for a while, but it went down quickly, just a single to backward square leg

58.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and on the stumps, Rahane gets close to the pitch of the ball and nudges it towards the on-side

58.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, appeal for LBW, but it looked like it pitched outside leg. Rahane was prodding forward in defence and was beaten on the angle, just pitched outside leg, else Rahane was a dead duck, got struck on the back leg, in front of middle and off

57.6 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, pitched up and just outside off, Jadeja gets well forward and drives it towards mid-off

Back over the wicket

57.5 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, short of a length and a hint of nip back into Jadeja, he covers the line, lifts his bat and lets it go

57.4 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, short of a length and angling down the leg-side, Jadeja gets inside the line, gets his bat and glove out of the way and lets it go

57.3 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, short of a length and angling back into the left-hander, Jadeja prods across and defends it towards the on-side

57.2 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, on a length and in that channel outside off, left alone

57.1 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, almost chopped on and Morkel is flat on the pitch on his followthrough! This was a short of a length delivery that reared onto Jadeja, he didn't get on top of the bounce as he hopped, the ball went very close to the off-stump, didn't hit it though. Steep bounce for the lanky Morkel, he would have enjoyed it

56.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane prods forward and pushes it towards mid-off

56.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, 2 runs, nicely tossed up by Piedt, pitches on leg and spins back into Rahane, disturbs the surface as it did so, Rahane was lunging forward in defence, gets an inside edge past the keeper, comes back for the second run

56.4 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, this one is tossed up outside off, driven to the right of Morkel at mid-on for a quick single

56.3 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, poor ball from Piedt, gets away with it though, short and wide outside off, cut straight to the fielder at backward point

56.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, too full and way down the leg-side, Rahane gets down on his knees, rolls his wrists across and sweeps it behind square on the on-side for a single

56.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted and on off, Rahane goes back and defends it towards the off-side

55.6 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, short of a length and angling back into the left-hander, Jadeja presses across and tucks it towards mid-wicket

Morkel switches to round the wicket

55.5 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, on a good length and slanting across the left-hander, Jadeja watches it all the way and lets it go

55.4 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Jadeja gets a good stride forward and drives it to the right of mid-on

55.3 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, short and just outside the leg-stump, Jadeja gets his bat and gloves out of the way as he let it go

55.2 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, fuller length delivery and shaping away from outside off, Jadeja covers the line, lifts his bat and lets it go

Two slips and a short mid-wicket in place

55.1 - M Morkel to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, short of a length and just outside off, Jadeja hops across and defends it with soft hands

Morne Morkel [12.0-2-35-0] is back into the attack

54.6 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, 1 run, fraction short and just outside off, Jadeja goes back and works it wide of cover-point for a single

54.5 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, this one is given more air, Jadeja gets a good stride forward and blocks

54.4 - D Piedt to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, slower and just outside off, Jadeja prods well forward and defends it

A slip and a FSL in place for RJ

54.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, Piedt drifts one on off, Rahane pushes forward and nudges it behind square on the off-side for a single

54.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and on Rahane's pads, he lunges forward defensively

54.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and just outside off, Rahane prods forward and defends it

53.6 - Kyle Abbott to Ravindra Jadeja, no run, on a good length and around off, Jadeja gets well forward and blocks it towards short extra cover

South Africa are trutting out to the centre.. Ravindra Jadeja is the new man, he joins Ajinkya Rahane. Two slips in place..

Ravindra Jadeja, left handed bat, comes to the crease

Tea, Day 1: India's hope-train derailed early in the five-wicket session, courtesy Piedt's early strike that sent a comfortable-looking Dhawan packing. Pujara's English ghosts staged a comeback soon after as Abbott succeeded in sneaking one through the bat-pad gap. And then the bat roared albeit only for a while. Kohli's delightful cover-drives replaced turn-and-bounce to take centrestage. Rahane's more patient approach aided by a relatively better pitch saw him get past 15, his previous highest score in India. Out of the blue, Bavuma's short-leg magic saw one deflect off him and Vilas dived forward to see Kohli off. Rohit Sharma, offered a life at first slip by Amla, slogged one soon to Amla's delight. Stroke of tea saw Saha chopping one on to wind up a miserably deflating session for India. Join us at 14:30 local for the evening session.

53.5 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, out Bowled!! India plunge further into darkness. Look at the mess he's made of his furniture. Fraction full on the fourth stump line, rather than playing straight, Saha tries to thread the off-side field with an extra-cover drive. His ambition is thwarted as he chops it back on to middle and leg stump off the inside edge. The umpires wave the players off the field and that wicket will usher in TEA. W Saha b Kyle Abbott 1(15)

Kyle Abbott to W Saha, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

53.4 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, pitched right up on off, Saha flows into the drive but picks out mid-off

53.3 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, a real late decision to play at a back of a length delivery outside off. That was more of a miss-and-play than a play-and-miss

53.2 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, there's further evidence of the variable bounce. Really been up-and-down. Kicks up from a length startling Saha who had committed to the off-drive, splices it to mid-off. Went all along the carpet

53.1 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, sends in a query on a length outside off, Saha too is playing for Tea. Lets it go

52.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, softly punched back down the pitch where Piedt makes a half-stop

52.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, Piedt is keeping at it. Just looking for that one mistake from the diminutive Mumbaikar. Not yet. Decisively forward and defended

52.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, shortish and flat, defended off the back foot

52.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, kicks off the pitch from behind a length, Rahane camps back, and does well to drop it behind FSL with soft hands

52.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, again, slow and full on the stumps, tapped into the soil

52.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tosses it up on middle, Rahane isn't going to do any mischief with 10 minutes to go till Tea, comes forward and blocks

51.6 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, straightens off the pitch from a length outside off, Saha initially thought about having a peck at it but lifted his bat at the last instance

51.5 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, slips in a short one to keep Saha honest. Saha is quick to scooch underneath

51.4 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, angled in on a fuller length, Saha drives it with an angled bat straight back down the pitch and hits the stumps at the other end

51.3 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, fuller length ball outside off, comes forward and drives towards mid-off

51.2 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, stays a touch low from a length outside off, Saha had to get his bat low down to defend

51.1 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, oh things are happening in this period of play. Abbott is stirring the pot. But this definitely didn't come back enough to hit off stump. Back of a length delivery wide of off, Saha shuffles across while opting to leave it alone and is hit on the pad. Huge shout from Abbott who has been a revelation today. But Dharmasena shouts "noooooo"

50.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drifting on with the arm outside off, Rahane knocks it to short-cover

50.5 - D Piedt to W Saha, 1 run, flatter-trajectory, shortish as well on the hips, Saha rocks back and nurdles it down to fine leg

50.4 - D Piedt to W Saha, no run, gosh, that's a beaut! Another straight ball causing all the drama. Slides on after pitching on a length on middle and leg, Saha is completely opened up after getting half-forward to defend, ends up playing inside the line and the ball nearly kisses off-stump through to the keeper

50.3 - D Piedt to W Saha, no run, more air given but too straight once more, Saha gets right behind the line and taps it into the pitch

50.2 - D Piedt to W Saha, no run, floated up on middle and leg, turned to FSL

Wriddhiman Saha, right handed bat, comes to the crease

50.1 - D Piedt to Rohit, out Caught by Tahir!! I want to hurl my keyboard at the TV. Calm down, calm down! Rohit just evokes these emotions. You've just been put down the over before. And you do this. Well flighted delivery on middle, Rohit tries to heave it across the line, ends up getting a thick leading edge which lobs down the throat of long-on. As simple as they come. Piedt nearly had a mini heart-attack as the umpire checked for a no-ball. Just had a millimeter of the heel behind the line. So that's OK. Rohit's future isn't. Rohit c Tahir b D Piedt 1(6)

D Piedt to Rohit, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

49.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, again his head falling a bit looking to work a full and straight ball into the on-side, whips it to mid-on

49.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rohit, 1 run, there's the edge and Amla has made a meal of it. It was only a matter of time before the edge was found. Length ball outside off, Rohit gropes at it needlessly, edges it to the left of first slip. Amla moves across, gets both hands but cannot cling on before tumbling over

49.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rohit, no run, further up outside off and Rohit pushes it assuredly towards mid-off

49.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rohit, no run, pulls the length back and inserted a doubt in Rohit's mind. His front foot went forward, but the weight not quite, the bat is late to come down as well and jams it at his feet in the end

49.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rohit, no run, pitched right up looking for any reverse swing if at all, bends back slightly just outside off, Rohit pushes it back down the pitch where Abbott bends low to get a hand

49.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rohit, no run, dipping in on a fuller length on off, Rohit offers a stylish front foot defence with bat and pad close

Two slips in place for Rohit as Abbott hustles in

48.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, straight lines from round the wicket, Rahane completes an over of persistent blocking with another one

48.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, there is not much turn at all, quite contrary to what I was expecting. Just a hint, not enough to go through Rahane

48.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drifts on with the arm across off, Rahane is unperturbed

48.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flatter on the stumps, camps back and punches it softly to mid-off

48.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, moves his line straighter still, Rahane looks very comfortable in defence

48.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, big stride forward to a floated up delivery on off, defends

47.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, that's just needless. The batsmen are going nowhere and you still want to shy at the stumps. Ends up conceding an overthrow off the ricochet. Rahane though is making a conscious effort to get as far forward as he can. Meets the pitch of a fuller length delivery outside off and pushes it wide of mid-off before the fielder does something inane

47.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, a hint of tail maybe? Dips on a length towards off, Rahane moves inches forward and defends

47.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, half-volley on off, driven straight, too straight. Knocks over the stumps at the other end and prevents the chance of any run to be taken

47.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, presses forward to a length ball, defends it from high on the bat towards mid-wicket

47.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, he almost raised his bat over his shoulders even before the ball was bowled, that's how early he made the decision to leave. Back of a length outside off, nothing doing

47.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, oooh, his head slightly fell over on the flick, just regained composure and gently nudged it in front of short mid-wicket

Kyle Abbott [11.0-3-19-1] is back into the attack

Rohit Sharma, right handed bat, comes to the crease

46.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, out Caught by Dane Vilas!! Kohli wears a sorry look. A look of a man plainly robbed. Absolutely smashed the sweep, Bavuma was hopping to take evasive action at short-leg, hits his thigh and pops up. Vilas flies forward, gets both hands on the dive and clasps on to it. Kohli c Dane Vilas b D Piedt 44(62) [4s-7]

D Piedt to Kohli, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

Now, now, now. Don't tell me Kohli is getting out this way. Hit the FSL fielder, lobbed up and the keeper dived forward to take the catch. The umpires want confirmation. Oh, he's surely gone. Just the thing he required while going through a wretched phase with the bat (not)

46.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, sliding in after pitching around off, Rahane lets it come on and simply steers it behind square. Deep cover does well to keep them to a single

46.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, works it to the right of the bowler who dives across in his followthrough to make the save

46.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, stays round the wicket for Rahane as well. Drifting across off before straightening slightly, Rahane covers for the turn and presents the maker's name

46.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, moves to round the wicket and drops it slightly short and flat, Kohli stands tall on the back foot and punches it down to long-on

46.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, FOUR, a loud "two" from Kohli as he hit that. He'll get much more. Overpitched outside off, Kohli squeezes the drive through extra-cover beating the man in the deep who was too square

45.6 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, walks right across his stumps and clips this flatter delivery from middle through mid-wicket. Miss that and god save you

45.5 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, a loopy full toss, Rahane can do nothing with it other than limply hit it towards mid-on. Might have been caught by surprise

45.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, any other fielder and that would have been a single. But Kohli isn't going anywhere seeing AB hurtle after the ball. Punched to the left of short cover, Rahane was keen. Kohli not so

45.3 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, too full to trouble Kohli, he jabs the drive to long-off

45.2 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, some in-drift in towards middle, Kohli clips it with the angle to short mid-wicket

45.1 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, skidding on from a length into middle and leg, Rahane moves inside the line and nurdles it in front of backward square leg

44.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, tossed up and goes straight on after pitching catching the outside half of Rahane's defence before rolling away through the point region

44.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, drawn forward by the flight, lands on a length outside off and turns slightly, Kohli covers for it and steers it wide of slip. This time the single is on

44.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, pushed through again on off, Kohli is almost at his stumps and shields it at his feet

44.3 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, rock-solid. Impregnable back foot defence to a flatter delivery

44.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, looped up just outside off, Kohli guides it wide of slip, just opened the bat-face on impact. Checks on the single with his partner who sends him back

44.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, darted down leg, Kohli lets it go

43.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, missed out. Short ball, doesn't get up much and was sliding down leg, Rahane initially looked to pull but had to really squat to adjust for the bounce. Can't connect and is hit on the pad before tumbling down

43.5 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, this is some cheesy stuff from Elgar, playing on the batsman's patience. Lobbing it in the air, so far so good as Rahane stays defensive

43.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, plays outside the line to a ball skidding on and is hit on the pad, but is hit him outside leg and was going further down

43.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, looped up on the stumps from round the wicket, comfortably negotiated on the front foot

43.2 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, hangs it up in the air on off, 74ks, Kohli pats it away wide of cover and takes a well judged single

43.1 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, nicely drifting in on leg, Kohli gently flicks it to short mid-wicket

42.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, nicely flighted on off, Kohli uses his bottom hand well to wrist it down to long-on

42.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, floats it fuller on off, turned to short mid-wicket

42.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, almost an action replay of the previous ball, Kohli is camped back and nudges it with the turn but not past the fielder at backward square

42.3 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, turning in from outside off on a length, Kohli shuffles across and tucks it to backward square leg

42.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, FOUR, yes, that's Kohli in the groove. Loopy ball very full outside off, Kohli plants his foot across and laces it through extra-cover

42.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, solid on the back foot, sees the ball all the way to the middle

41.6 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, he's bowling so slow. Almost takes an aeon to reach the batsman, another short ball, Kohli waits on the pull and drags it to deep mid-wicket

41.5 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, drops it slightly short, holds up on the batsman who was on the back foot to defend, turns as well to catch a thickish edge, drops short of a diving Amla at slip

41.4 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, drifts on with the arm, Kohli blocks it after a good stride forward

41.3 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, sliding onto middle, Rahane goes right back towards the stumps and nudges it behind square

41.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, now he's spun one past Rahane's poke. Shortish again, slightly quicker through the air, Rahane hangs back and looks to adjust for the turn, fails. That kicked off the deck as well

41.1 - Elgar to Rahane, 2 runs, and starts off with a half-tracker, gets stuck in the pitch and stays low as well, Rahane goes deep in the crease and whips it wide of a diving mid-on. Abbott at deep mid-wicket tidies up

Dean Elgar, left-arm orthodox, comes into the attack

Time for some pie-chucking from Elgar..

Drinks are on the field now. Two wickets for South Africa early on, but India have pressed on since then. Kohli looks in good touch and Rahane has found his rhythm. Can India post a competitive total? A lot rides on this pair..

40.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, slightly short and just outside off, Kohli goes back and works it to the left of square leg

40.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, slower and just outside off, Kohli goes back and defends it with a straight bat

A short mid-wicket is in for Kohli

40.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, slower and turning into Rahane's pads, he rides with the bounce and nudges it behind square on the on-side for a single

40.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Rahane prods across and defends it towards the off-side

One slip and a FSL in place

40.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, FOUR, nicely played by Rahane, Piedt dropped one short and well outside off, Rahane makes room and cuts it square past point, no need to run for those

40.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flatter and on the stumps, Rahane goes back and pushes it back at the bowler

Dane Piedt [13.0-1-37-2] is back into the attack

39.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a length and holding its line outside off, left alone

39.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Kohli presents the full face of the bat and defends it back at the bowler

39.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, on a good length and just outside off, Kohli gets well forward and defends it towards cover

39.3 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, much better from Morkel, shortens his length and gets it to hold its line outside off, Kohli was on the back foot, at the last moment, dangles his bat away from his body and nearly nicks it through to Dane Vilas

39.2 - M Morkel to Kohli, FOUR, cracking shot, short and well outside off, didn't bounce as much as Morkel expected, Kohli swivels across, rolls his wrists over and plays a short-arm pull - in front of mid-wicket, for a boundary

39.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, fuller length delivery and just outside off, defended back towards the bowler

38.6 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, Tahir gives this one plenty of air, driven down towards long-off for a single

38.5 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, extra bounce for Tahir, this was the leg-break, spun across from middle, Kohli was looking to work it towards the on-side, is taken by surprise at the bounce, jabs it down the ground

38.4 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, nicely tossed up by Tahir, slower and drifting across the right-hander, nudged wide of cover for a single

38.3 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, slower and well outside off, punched down towards long-off for a single

38.2 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, another full toss from Tahir, Rahane gets forward and eases it towards mid-on for a single

38.1 - Tahir to Rahane, FOUR, that's a gift from Tahir, friendly full toss on leg-stump, whipped away in front of square on the on-side, beats the man getting across from deep square leg for a boundary. This is also Rahane's highest Test score in India, in his 5th Test

37.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, banged in short and just outside off, Kohli was hurried onto the pull, gets a bottom edge as the ball dribbles towards mid-on

37.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, on a good length and holding its line outside off, Kohli slightly stumbled as he looked to flick, ends up playing a lot straighter and towards mid-on

37.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, fraction fuller and just outside off, Kohli gets well forward and defends it solidly

37.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, short of a good length and holding its line outside off, Rahane stabs with soft hands, gets a thick outside edge, the ball rolls away past the slip cordon, just a single to third man

37.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, Morkel shortens his length outside off and gets it to hold its line, left alone

37.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and well outside off, Rahane gets across his stumps, lifts his bat and lets it go

36.6 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, Tahir drops one slightly short and outside off, punched off the back foot to deep cover, just a single

36.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, Tahir gives this one plenty of air, pushed towards short cover

36.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Rahane prods forward and defends it towards the off-side

36.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane gets a good stride forward and defends it

36.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, Tahir gives this one more air, driven firmly but straight to extra cover

36.1 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up and just outside off, driven down towards long-off for a single

Imran Tahir [2.0-0-8-0] is back into the attack

Tahir replaces Piedt. One slip and a short cover in place

35.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, back of a length and on Kohli's hips, he goes back and tucks it behind square on the on-side for a single

35.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, now the bouncer, Kohli watches it all along and ducks underneath it, left his bat hanging like a periscope though

35.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a length and well outside off, Kohli doesn't need to poke at those, left alone

35.3 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Kohli gets a good stride forward, presents the full face of the bat and punches it towards mid-off

35.2 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short and rearing onto Kohli from a length, he hops across, plays with soft hands and defends it towards the on-side

Two slips and a short mid-wicket for Kohli

35.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, back of a length and on Rahane's pads, tucked away towards long leg - who's a lot finer now, just a single for Rahane

34.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, flighted and in that corridor outside off, Kohli lunges forward and plays it down with soft hands

34.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Kohli gets well forward in defence

34.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, FOUR, lovely shot, fraction short and on the stumps, Kohli stays deep inside the crease, uses Piedt's angle and whips it in the gap between square leg and mid-wicket, races away to the fence for a boundary

34.3 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, flighted delivery and just outside off, Kohli goes deep into the crease and works it towards the on-side

34.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Kohli gtes across and tucks it towards square leg

34.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, tad shorter and on Rahane's pads, nudged away past FSL for a single behind square

33.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, on a good length and holding its line outside off, Kohli gets well forward and lets it go

33.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, FOUR, that was streaky, but Kohli will collect a boundary. This was banged in short and just outside off, Kohli didn't quite get on top of the bounce, pushes away from his body and gets a thick outside edge, wide of second slip and the ball races away to the fence

33.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a length and holding its line outside off, Kohli is happy to let it go by

33.3 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, the bouncer from Morkel, but the line is well outside leg, Kohli drops his gloves and lets it go

33.2 - M Morkel to Kohli, FOUR, nicely played by Kohli, short and angling into his hips, he shuffles across, uses Morkel's pace and tucks it very fine. The man in the deep is very square, the ball races away to the fence

33.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, on a length and on Kohli's pads, flicked straight to square leg

Morne Morkel [8.0-2-20-0] is back into the attack

32.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up wider outside off, Rahane gets a good stride forward as he smothers the spin

32.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, FOUR, Rahane finds the gap past cover now, dropped short and well outside off, Rahane goes back and punches it with a straight bat, gets the gap as well - to the left of cover, and races away to the fence in a hurry

32.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, Piedt drops one short and well outside off, Rahane makes room and cuts it straight to the fielder at cover

32.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, 2 runs, fraction short and on Rahane's pads, he goes back and tucks it past the keeper for a couple of runs

32.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane prods forward defensively

32.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up wider outside off, looking to make Rahane drive, he obliges and hits it straight to backward point

31.6 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, tad fuller and in that fourth stump line, Kohli gets well forward, plays with a slightly open face and defends it towards mid-off

31.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, FOUR, too short and too wide from Abbott, Kohli stays back, plays with an open face and gets the gap behind square on the off-side, beats backward point and races away to the fence

31.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Kohli gets a good stride forward and defends it towards the off-side

31.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, on a good length and in that corridor outside off, Kohli doesn't need to play at those, left alone

31.2 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, Abbott shortens his length outside off and gets it to hold its line, Kohli gets well forward, covers the line and lets it go

31.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, fuller length delivery and holding its line outside off, Kohli gets a big stride forward, lifts his bat and lets it go

30.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, 2 runs, tad short and might have stayed a touch low as well, Rahane makes room and cuts it square through the off-side. Morkel gives chase but can't prevent the batsmen from getting back for the second run

30.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, marginally short and on the stumps, Rahane goes back and blocks it with a straight bat

30.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up and on Rahane's pads, he plays with the turn and defends it towards FSL

30.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one is flighted on off, Rahane gets his bat in front of the pads and blocks

30.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and just outside off, Rahane watches it all along and defends it with soft hands

30.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up and just outside off, Kohli gets well forward and eases it towards long-on for a single

A slip, FSL and a silly mid-on in place

Ajinkya Rahane, right handed bat, comes to the crease

29.6 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, out Bowled!! Cleaned up! A straight ball has consumed Pujara once again. This was full and held its line on off, Pujara was pressing forward in defence, doesn't get behind the line, ends up playing slightly outside it. The ball finds the inside edge, clips his pad and goes back to smash into the off-stump. Just a small gap between bat and pad, but that was enough for Abbott, just rewards for some outstanding bowling. India find themselves in trouble once again. Pujara b Kyle Abbott 14(37) [4s-1 6s-1]

Kyle Abbott to Pujara, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

29.5 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Pujara stays solidly behind the line and defends it

29.4 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Pujara presents the full face of the bat and defends it

29.3 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Pujara plays with an open face and guides it towards backward point

29.2 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, very full and on the stumps, Pujara presses forward and drives it towards mid-on

29.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 3 runs, on a good length and a hint of nip back into the right-hander, Kohli gets across and tucks it past square leg. Bavuma gives chase and stops it in front of the ropes. Kohli runs hard and comes back for the third run

28.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, flighted delivery and on the stumps, Kohli goes back, closes the face of the bat and turns it behind square on the on-side for a single

Virat Kohli, right handed bat, comes to the crease

28.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, out Lbw!! Piedt has got rid of both openers. Nicely bowled by Piedt, this was the slider, bowled quicker and flatter, it came back with the angle. Dhawan was playing for the turn, doesn't get his bat down in time, gets struck low on the pads. It was pad first and the impact was just in front of off-stump, umpire Oxenford takes his time and sends Dhawan back to the hut. Replays suggest that the ball would have hit the off-stump, good call in the end. Dhawan lbw b D Piedt 33(85) [4s-4]

D Piedt to Dhawan, THAT'S OUT!! Lbw!!

28.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, nicely bowled by Piedt, turn and bounce outside off, drew Dhawan forward and spun across the face of the bat

28.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, slower through the air, just outside off and drifting across the left-hander, Dhawan was coming down the track, doesn't get to the pitch and gets a thick outside edge towards backward point

28.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, half-an-appeal for LBW, but it was bat first, well flighted and on middle stump, Dhawan wasn't fully forward as he looked to defend

28.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, Dhawan shimmies down the track to a well flighted delivery and defends it

27.6 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, back of a length and well outside off, Pujara plays with an open face and guides it towards backward point

27.5 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, tad fuller and angling back into the right-hander, Pujara presses across, closes the face of the bat band turns it towards mid-wicket

27.4 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, back of a length and in that channel outside off, good bounce for Abbott, Pujara hops across slightly, plays with soft hands and drops it in front of point

27.3 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, 1 run, banged in short and on the stumps, Dhawan swivels across, rolls his wrists and pulls it down towards long leg for a single

27.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, Abbott shortens his length outside off, Dhawan prods across and defends it towards the off-side

27.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, fuller length delivery outside off and angling across the left-hander, Dhawan gets a good stride forward, lifts his bat and lets it go

Two slips in place for Abbott

Kyle Abbott [8.0-3-11-0] is back into the attack

26.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, fraction too short from Piedt, allows Dhawan to go back and work it to the left of mid-on for a single

26.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, nicely bowled by Piedt, tossed up slower on off, draws Dhawan half-forward and drifts away from Dhawan, he pokes and is beaten on the outside edge

26.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, Piedt gives this one more air, Dhawan comes down the track and drives it back at the bowler

26.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, pushed through on off, Dhawan goes back and defends it with a straight bat

26.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, slower and just outside off, Dhawan gets a big stride forward and defends it

26.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, flatter from round the wicket, Dhawan goes back and punches it back towards the bowler

Morne Morkel is stretching around as the umpires walk out to the middle. Amla leads his men out and are followed by the two Indian batsmen. A slip and a FSL in place as Piedt resumes after lunch..

Welcome back. For the first time in the series, we saw a team grind their way throughout a session. Just one wicket lost for India, not many runs scored but the platform has been set..

Vijay finally perished to an attempted cover-drive off Piedt, a bowler who gradually grew in confidence as much he probably would have on Trackman's RPM-meter. Dhawan was quite anti-Dhawan early this morning, having left scores of deliveries outside his off stump before safely flirting with everything in his reach. Pujara walked in at No. 3 and provided the familiar Dravid-like solidity to allay fears of a collapse. The pitch, though less vicious than Nagpur, is still tricky and the onus will be on India to bat well. That not only for a 3-0 but to also ensure that the pitch-talks don't steal away the thunder. Join us at 12:10 local for the afternoon session.

Lunch, Day 1: Mudgal-supervised Kotla finally hosted the Freedom Series' finale after weeks of suspense that beat an Agatha Christie novel. A fairer but a crack-laden pitch greeted the teams and Kohli won the fourth toss in a row, becoming only the second Indian captain to win all tosses in a 4+ match series. Inconsistent bounce dished out something for the starved quickies and incisive Proteas rendered the openers quiet. Morkel's bumpers dared to climb and the Delhi winters assisted rare nip off the pitch. Murali Vijay, arguably India's best at the moment, was uncharacteristically clueless outside his off stump, being particularly troubled by Abbott. The opener did offer a chance when he edged one to second slip, but Abbott had overstepped by a kitten's whisker according to in-the-hot-seat Nandan.

25.6 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, he's not really imparting much on the ball, just skidding it through, well apart from that ripper early on. Pujara camps back and blocks. That will be Lunch

25.5 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, a ripper, pushed through on a length on off, out of Pujara's defensive reach, turns square to beat the forward prod

25.4 - Tahir to Pujara, SIX, there's the full toss, almost can't go without it. And hang on, Pujara has lammed it for a biggie over mid-wicket. Should induce a few chuckles from his teammates

25.3 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, slightly full on middle, driven to mid-on

25.2 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, a googly turning in from outside off, Pujara defends it off the inside half of the bat

25.1 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, more air from Tahir than any of his previous deliveries, Pujara moves forward and offers a straight bat to block

24.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, FOUR, ah, deft. Waits on the ball and dabs it ever so late. Pushed through the air outside off, skids on, Dhawan was waiting on the back foot, and taps it on it's head to send it skimming fine of backward point

24.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, another flat delivery which skids on after pitching, Dhawan waits for it on the back foot and keeps it out

24.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, a slider gunning for off, Dhawan hangs back and brings the bat down straight

24.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, Dhawan is looking to force it through the off-side, flat and sliding on from Piedt, checks his drive wide of the bowler where Piedt is brilliant, makes a half stop but the ball doesn't go too far from him

24.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, shimmies down, meets the pitch of the ball and pushes it towards short cover

24.1 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, very uncharacteristic from SA, saw one earlier as well, a misfield I mean. Pujara uses his feet and works it to short mid-wicket where Faf can't hang on to it

23.6 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, gave the impression that the ball stayed slightly low as he jerked his back at the last instant and chopped it to cover. All too flat and quick from Tahir

23.5 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, flicked away with a turn of the wrists to mid-wicket

23.4 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, some more air from a new angle - round the wicket, Dhawan works it with the turn beside the pitch

23.3 - Tahir to Pujara, 1 run, drops it slightly short, Pujara rocks back and sort of brings his bat down on it to jam the cut wide of backward point. Elgar dives across and gets a hand to cut the pace

23.2 - Tahir to Dhawan, 1 run, quicker still, and full on off, Dhawan works it down to long-on

23.1 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, flatter and fuller drifting across off, Dhawan pushes it to the left of the bowler who is agile in his followthrough

Imran Tahir, right-arm leg break, comes into the attack

Tahir to twirl a few before Lunch..

22.6 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, nice and slow on the stumps, forward and defended

22.5 - D Piedt to Pujara, FOUR, that big strength of Piedt to get the ball sliding on, Pujara is drawn forward by the flight, and accounts for some turn in defence, gets a thick edge which dies down immediately and trickles away to the right of slip

22.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, Pujara gets lulled by the flatter trajectory and makes room to cut, it wasn't short enough. The ball skids on and beats the top edge

22.3 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, Faf sprints to his left from mid-wicket and throws himself across to stop a punch from Pujara. Caused a moment's hesitation but that moment died quickly

22.2 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, flatter delivery turning in on middle, gently punched to the right of silly mid-on

22.1 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, neither forward or back, circumspectly blocks a straight roller on off

21.6 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, did well in the end to pull his gloves out of the picture. Banged in halfway and was just outside off, waves it goodbye

21.5 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, now homing in at the stumps, Dhawan stays rooted to the crease and guards it comfortably

21.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, might have left it alone, umm.. In the channel outside off on a back of a length, Dhawan blocks away from his body into the off-side

21.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no ball, there's that no-ball with Morkel. Often comes to haunt him. Pitched up angling in towards off, Dhawan is well forward and answers with an obdurate block

21.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, 2 runs, loses the line and ends up on the pads, Dhawan flicks it through square leg, jostles back for a second before deep backward square tidies up

21.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, a short of length which was nastily rumbling towards Dhawan, he has to really arch his back a fair degree, as if it's made of rubber, to swerve his head out of the way

21.1 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, sends in a probe from a back of a length outside off, Dhawan doesn't reciprocate, lets it go

20.6 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, presses forward and keeps out a well tossed up delivery

20.5 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, again opting to hang back in the crease, the trueness in the bounce is allowing him that freedom and blocks it with an ever-straight bat

20.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, goes deep in the crease and gently punches it back down the pitch

There's an in-out field for Pujara as well. Not sure it's required especially considering the reputation of the man

20.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, drifting into the pads, Dhawan moves to the other end with a gentle nurdle behind square

20.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, slides on from behind a length towards leg, Dhawan makes room and whips it to mid-on

20.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, Piedt has been very flat to Dhawan, allows him time on the back foot to block it away

19.6 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, another short of length delivery just outside off, Pujara hops and fends it in front of point

19.5 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, length ball on the stumps, Pujara moves only inches forward perhaps still mindful of the last two balls, pushes it tamely to mid-on

19.4 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, now does the smart thing of hunching under it. Some appreciable bounce for Morkel

19.3 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, AB runs forward from second slip and dives as if it's a sand pit. Lobs up after hitting Pujara on the gloves and falls well short. Spat at the batsman from a short of length, got too big on him as he was trying to fend it off and there was no way Pujara could have controlled it after making the decision to play at it

19.2 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, much wider and allows a cozy leave

19.1 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, probing away with a length ball just outside off, Pujara meets it with a forward stride and defends it right under his eyes towards mid-off

18.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, skips down the pitch and pushes it to the right of the bowler who dives and stops

18.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, Dhawan is hanging back and will be in trouble if he misses these. The slider skidding on towards middle, he does well to get his pads out of the way and bring the bat down straight

18.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, some turn but the line starts from off stump, Pujara goes back and plays it with the spin behind square

18.3 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, again hangs back, the balls skids on from a length on off and meets the defensive blade of Pujara

18.2 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, now goes deep in the crease to a flatter trajectory and works it beside the pitch

18.1 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, slightly quicker through the air on off, Pujara is well forward to block

17.6 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, short of length delivery around off, Dhawan stands on his toes to ride the bounce and drops it with soft hands

17.5 - M Morkel to Dhawan, FOUR, the fielder at point dived on top of the ball, clumsy effort. Pitched right up outside off, Dhawan is too tempted by the length to let it go, gets a fair stride towards the ball and drives square of the wicket. The ball sneaks through

Switches over to round the wicket..

17.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, pushed across on a back of a length, Dhawan isn't interested

17.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, 2 runs, drifts onto those pads, Dhawan maintains his posture and clips it away neatly through the mid-wicket region. Didn't roll his wrists exaggeratedly, just a turn of them to hit the gap

17.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, further up and slanted away, Dhawan leaves it unmolested

17.1 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, back of a length delivery which leaves the leftie in the channel outside off, Dhawan kind of belatedly played at it but by then the ball had gone through to the keeper

Morne Morkel [5.0-1-11-0] is back into the attack

Abbott gets a breather, Morkel back on. Two slips and a gully in place for the over the wicket angle

16.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, puts his skates on, meets the pitch and bunts it down to long-off

16.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, an appeal but I can't fathom what for. Sliding in from a length outside off, Dhawan pushes well forward and defends with bat and pad close. The South Africans might have got an impression that it clipped the pad first. Not at all the case

16.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, shimmies down and nudges to long-on to get off the mark

16.3 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, nice loop and dip, Pujara forces himself to press forward as if his feet were stuck, defends stoutly

Cheteshwar Pujara, right handed bat, comes to the crease

16.2 - D Piedt to Vijay, out Caught by Amla!! And you can't say this wasn't coming. Vijay was STRUGGLING. That too is an understatement. Floated up outside off, they say it's the attacking line for an offie, Vijay is lured forward and across aiming a cover-drive, not quite to the pitch of the ball which skids on to take an outside edge. Amla laps it up at first slip. Vijay c Amla b D Piedt 12(59)

D Piedt to Vijay, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

16.1 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, well tossed up on off stump, not a lot of turn on the first morning, slides on straight from a length, Vijay prods forward and blocks

15.6 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, back of a length delivery on leg stump, Dhawan is late on the flick and wears it on the thigh pad

15.5 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, 1 run, looks like Vijay is batting with an icosahedron. Only edges here. Nipped back again from a length outside off, Vijay is prodding forward, gets an inside edge which dribbles away down to fine leg

15.4 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, length ball wide of off, tamely pushes at it away from the body with his weight going nowhere, gets it off the bottom of the bat towards cover

15.3 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, Vijay is cringing in pain. Length ball jagged back at him from the fourth stump line, he had planted a big stride forward and across - probably his biggest of the day, and is left stranded as the ball cuts back. Misses the inside edge and decks him on the tummy. He is left gasping for wind. Might have grazed the right elbow as well

15.2 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, angled in on a length, skids off the track, Vijay hadn't quite covered off stump and hoists his bat above his shoulders. The ball just misses the top of off-stump not by much

Some distractions behind the bowler's arm. There seems to be a gap in between the sight-screens. It's being sorted out. Done. Here we go

15.1 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, a lifter just outside off, Vijay leans back and drops his wrists to sway out of the line

Abbott is into his 8th over. Unheard of from a visiting pacer. But the cold and hazy conditions means that the body is still fresh enough

14.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, was looking to go inside out with the drive lured by the flight but it slightly dipped on him which dragged the length back, the bat face closes on impact and it labours back towards the bowler

14.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no ball, another slider from round the wicket, Dhawan hangs back and gets the bat down straight to block. Piedt had overstepped this time. A crime really

14.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, slightly short and a bit of turn from off, gently punched back to the bowler

14.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, the arm-ball, skids on rapidly after pitching behind a length outside off, Dhawan was on the back foot which gives him enough time to read it and jams it back down the pitch

14.3 - D Piedt to Vijay, 1 run, shimmies down, gets close enough to the pitch of this flighted delivery and works it down to long-on

14.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, very quick to rock onto the back foot seeing the length and cuts it hard but there is protection in the deep

14.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, nicely floated up and drifting in on off from round the wicket, dips on Dhawan as he gets forward to defend, turns and bounces to take the left shoulder of the bat and dies wide of first slip

13.6 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, very full on off stump, clipped to mid-on

13.5 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, full and on off stump, Vijay gets forward to block with bat and pad together

13.4 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, fullish outside off, carries comfortably to the keeper after Vijay lets it go

13.3 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, good length outside off, keeps low but Vijay has covered his off stump and then shoulders arms

13.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, 1 run, down leg, clipped to fine leg

13.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, FOUR, what timing! Just a defence and a front foot block, through cover and the ball sped away. It was bowled full by Kyle Abbott and Dhawan came forward to defend. The rest is all timing

12.6 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, defended to short leg

12.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, tosses it up a bit more, Dhawan gets forward and drives forcefully past Piedt to long-off

12.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, well outside off, spins away, Dhawan lets it go

12.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, outside off, firmly driven but straight to the fielder at extra cover

12.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, FOUR, full toss and whipped to the right of mid-wicket, where Tahir makes a mess of it, dived to his right and tried to stop it with one hand, allows to go through and gifts four runs. Pressure released on Dhawan

12.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, tossed up outside off, from round the wicket, some turn away, left alone

11.6 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, fullish on off stump, flicked to the left of mid-wicket

11.5 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, good length and angled in, Vijay gently turns it to mid-wicket

11.4 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, on off stump, Vijay stays back and blocks towards mid-off

11.3 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, back of a length outside off, left alone

11.3 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no ball, caught and it is a no-ball. Kyle Abbott has not got anything behind the line. The heel landed on the line and Nandan the third umpire reckoned there was nothing behind it. It was full and outside off, Vijay pushed out and got an edge, it was low and dying on AB at 2nd slip who grabbed it and threw the ball away. Nandan took his time and after seeing many replays decided to signal it as a no-ball. South Africa and Kyle Abbott are gutted. A wicket lost there. Very close call and could've gone either way

Vijay has been caught. He is waiting for a clean grab. Dharmasena has gone upstairs. Kyle Abbott's heel is on the line. Should be ok. The third umpire is having a look. The crowd cheer assuming that the bowler has overstepped. Let's see what the tv umpire decides. Seems to be nothing behind the line. The line belongs to the umpire. The zoomer is in and still it is inconclusive. Nandan is the third umpire. And it is a no-ball. Vijay heaves a sigh of relief. He stays. Clean catch from AB but that all will come to nought now

11.2 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, good length outside off, Vijay defends with an open face to gully

This quote from Virender Sehwag sums up the man: "I'm also a human being. On some stage I have to show emotion and today is the day to show it." What a response and what a man!

11.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, 1 run, full on the pads, clipped to deep backward square leg, for a single

Not much spin for Piedt that over. He wasn't putting too much work on the ball though. Trying to settle in to a nice line and length

10.6 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, turned to backward square leg, Dhawan is sent back in time

10.5 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, this stays low outside off, Vijay defends off the back foot

10.4 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, floated up on off, Vijay gets forward to block

10.3 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, flat and on off, Vijay punches to the right of Piedt

10.2 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, again tossed up on middle, Vijay gently nudges to mid-wicket

Slip and a short leg in

10.1 - D Piedt to Vijay, no run, tossed up on middle and leg, turned to mid-wicket

Dane Piedt, right-arm off break, comes into the attack

9.6 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, loopy short ball on the stumps, Dhawan arches back and lets it go

9.5 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, well wide of off, easy leave

9.4 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, pitched up outside off, left alone

9.3 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length on the stumps, Dhawan nudges it to short mid-wicket

9.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, 2 runs, short down leg, Dhawan is late on the pull, gloves it wide of Vilas and gets a couple

9.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, pitches outside leg and beats Dhawan's flick, the stifled appeal for lbw dies down pretty quickly

Virender Sehwag tells us on air that he has kept a Ferrari car on standby as a gift for his sons if they go onto break his highest Test score of 319. The carrot for his sons - all forms of cricket are allowed for them to go on and break that record of his. Won't be easy - let me say that

8.6 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, exceptional bowling from Morkel and Vijay is all at sea. This is pitched up outside off, Vijay is still sitting on the back foot expecting the short one, and his feet don't move at all. Limply pushes out and is lucky not to have edged it

8.5 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, steepler from Morkel and Vijay does well to get out of the way. Short and on the stumps, Vijay jerks his head out of the way and lets it go. Vilas takes it above his head

8.4 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, Morkel has squared up Vijay with a delivery that pitches on middle and leg, Vijay looked awkward but defends and the ball rolls to the right of him

8.3 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, short on the stumps, Vijay is back and across before defending

8.2 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, loopy short ball outside off, left alone

8.1 - M Morkel to Dhawan, 1 run, back of a length on the hips, nudged to deep backward square leg

7.6 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, fine bowling from Kyle Abbott, attacks the stumps, it kept a bit low but Vijay defends to mid-off

7.5 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, good length outside off, Vijay plays a meek push to cover

7.4 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, and this stays low. Signs of variable bounce already. It was outside off, Vijay keeps it out

7.3 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, loose from Vijay. So uncharacteristic from him. Rising delivery outside off, Vijay went for an extravagant punch off the back foot but missed. Vilas takes it above his head

7.2 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, short outside off, Vijay plays inside the line and pulls the bat out of harm's way. Good bounce extracted by Kyle Abbott that time

7.1 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, good length on off stump, Vijay defends solidly

6.6 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, pitched up outside off, left alone

6.5 - M Morkel to Vijay, 1 run, good length outside off, Vijay gets forward and defends wide of point for a single

6.4 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, that is a cracker from Morkel. Beats Vijay all ends up. On a good length and slanted in, straightens and beats the back foot defence. Not far from the outside edge and the off stump as well. Vijay had to play the line as it was coming in and then held its line to beat him

6.3 - M Morkel to Vijay, 2 runs, angled in and flicked off middle and leg to deep square leg, for two. Was in the air and just missed the right hand of Bavuma at short leg, it was too quick for him, he stuck his hand out but didn't get a finger on it

6.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, 1 run, Morkel appeals for lbw but that is a thick inside edge onto the pad from Dhawan. He gets off the mark off his 18th delivery. Full and pitched outside leg, Dhawan gets an edge on the flick and gets off strike

6.1 - M Morkel to Vijay, 1 run, dug in short and Vijay rides the bounce to nudge with soft hands to short fine leg, asks Dhawan to cross over and they do so

5.6 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, 1 run, turned with the angle to deep backward square leg, Bavuma gives chase and slides to keep it to a single

5.5 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, this is beautiful bowling. Fullish and angled in, straightens past the forward defence of Vijay, who played inside the line

5.4 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, Vijay is beaten. Needn't have played at that as it was outside off, kept low and beat the outside edge

5.3 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, back of a length and targetting off, Vijay gets a thick inside edge on the back foot defence. The ball rolls to square leg

5.2 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, a bit quicker and angled in again, Vijay takes the bottom hand off and turns it to short mid-wicket

5.1 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, good length and angled in on off stump, Vijay defends it back down the pitch

4.6 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, full on off, Dhawan gets forward and opens the face of the bat to steer to the right of backward point where Piedt dives and saves runs. Keeps Dhawan still on 0

4.5 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, back of a length on the stumps, Dhawan plays a solid back foot defence

4.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, good length on the stumps, Dhawan defends with an angled bat to backward point

4.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, good length outside off, Dhawan is happy to leave for now

4.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, pitched up outside off, left alone

4.1 - M Morkel to Vijay, 3 runs, has Tahir saved a run? May have done so. It was tucked from middle by Vijay who went back and across before hitting the gap. The outfield isn't that quick and Tahir sprinted before pulling it back just an inch or two before the ball hit the ad-cushions

3.6 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, back to leaving as Kyle Abbott plugs away in the corridor of uncertainty

3.5 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, ooh! That has kept low and luckily for Dhawan it wasn't in line with the stumps. Stays down and just outside off as Dhawan shoulders arms. Dies on the way to Vilas. Kyle Abbott closes his mouth with his hands as he can't believe that hasn't hit off

3.4 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, full and well outside off, Dhawan doesn't play at that

3.3 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length outside off, Dhawan defends it back to Kyle Abbott

3.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, teasing line outside off, on a good length, Dhawan lets it go

3.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, pitched up outside off, left alone

Dhawan pulls out as he is unhappy with some movement behind the bowler's arm. Abbott has a word with Dhawan who responds

2.6 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, another short ball, on the middle and leg line, Vijay tucks it to short leg

2.5 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, this short delivery doesn't rise that high, Vijay takes the bottom hand off and defends towards mid-off

2.4 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, short down leg, Vijay misses the nudge and the ball deflects off his stomach, good diving stop by Vilas to his left. Saved runs

2.3 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, down leg, Vijay flicks and misses. Vilas can't glove it cleanly

2.2 - M Morkel to Vijay, 2 runs, first runs of the game. Full outside off, Vijay plays a controlled drive through the vacant cover region for a couple of runs

2.1 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, back of a length outside off, Vijay arches back and plays a nice back foot punch but straight to the fielder at point. Was in the air but went on the bounce to the fielder

1.6 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, now leaves this length delivery outside off alone. Second maiden in a row

1.5 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, another streaky shot. Pitched up outside off, Dhawan bends his knee looking to cover-drive but gets a thick inside edge back to the bowler

1.4 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, this one comes back in from Kyle Abbott, Dhawan doesn't get forward and is lucky to get an inside edge onto the thigh pad

1.3 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, full outside off, Dhawan plays a checked off-drive, but straight to the fielder at mid-off

1.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, back of a length and outside off, again pushed wide of Dhawan who lets it go

Two slips and a gully in place for Kyle Abbott

1.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, full outside off, slanted across Dhawan who shoulders arms

Kyle Abbott, right-arm medium, comes into the attack

0.6 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, dug in short and Vijay rises tall to defend that to point. A maiden to begin for Morkel

0.5 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, tentative from Vijay. The feet aren't moving and he was miles away from the ball as he hung the bat out. On a good length and moved away off the deck after pitching outside off. Kept a bit low as well

0.4 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, short of length on the stumps, Vijay is a tad squared up but adjusts and defends to point

0.3 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, pitched up outside off, Vijay gets forward and mistimes the off-drive to mid-off. Came off the bottom of the bat

Now three slips in place

0.2 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, dug in short on the stumps, Vijay does well to take the bottom hand off and fend it down, the ball goes to short leg. Loose hands and Vijay rode the bounce well there

0.1 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, very fine delivery to begin the game off. On a good length and outside off, straightens past the forward defence of Vijay, who wasn't fully forward. The feet didn't come into line and he just pushed out. Close to the edge and carried nicely to the keeper

Vijay and Dhawan are at the crease. Vijay is on strike. M Morkel will open the attack

Dhawan and Vijay run out onto the field. That is a surprise. It is the former's birthday as well. Wish him many more happy returns of the day. But he needs a score to make sure his place isn't under threat when India play their next Test. Slightly hazy morning. Nip in the air. Let's see whether South Africa can strike early with the ball. Amla has a smile on his face. Good to see. He has been under the cosh all series. Morne Morkel will begin. Vijay on strike. Two slips and a gully in place

Pitch Report: 'There is some natural wear and tear caused by the bowlers' footmarks, but there are no excuses for an international team to be dismissed for just 121. The batsmen must apply themselves and the runs will come. Application and patience on this surface is a must,' reckons Sunil Gavaskar

India had the chance of asking South Africa to follow-on, but instead have decided to bat again - on a wicket that's expected to deteriorate further as the match progresses. The last wicket fell at the fag end of yesterday's play and India will start afresh today - with the knowledge that they can bat South Africa out of this contest. There are three days remaining in this Test, plenty of time for the hosts to force a result. Will they bat in an aggressive manner or will the batsmen look to improve upon their meagre returns so far in this series?

Day 3: It has almost been a perfect match for India. They won the toss, batted first and then rode on Ajinkya Rahane's superb 127, the tail wagged a bit with Ravichandran Ashwin contributing a fine 56 and ended up posting a healthy 334 on the board. While India's batting prospered for the first time in the series, they were also largely helped by some sloppy catching and fielding from the tourists. Hashim Amla dropped three chances and a couple of run-out opportunities were messed up as well. The visitors looked mentally shot and it didn't get any better when they came out to bat. On a pitch which hardly played tricks, they combusted in their first innings - partly through some disciplined bowling from Ravindra Jadeja and co - and also some poor thinking on the part of the batsmen. They were eventually bundled out for just 121 - conceding a massive 213-run first innings lead.

Earlier in the day, Rahane's first-ever-in-India century hauled the hosts to 334, a figure that seemed too big in the context of a low-scoring batting-inept series. Ashwin was the perfect supporting cast, notching up a half-century to bat-irk South Africa this time and made India believe. Rabada-replacer Kyle Abbott collected a five-for to register a rare Kotla feat while Piedt levered-up hopes despite a performance that fizzled out overnight. Limping past the follow-on target became a priority when de Villiers miscued one to Ishant in the deep, handing on-song Jadeja another five-for, although Kohli spared them the follow-on humiliation. The 121-restricted visitors look mentally shot at India's very own Gabbatoir and de Villiers, their last shot at dignity could do nothing much. Join us at 9:00 local tomorrow for Day 3, a day which wouldn't want to be this Test's last.

Summary, Day 2: Kotla at 3:00 pm could have been mistaken for a Jadeja birthday ball - cake of a pitch, plenty of children chirping their throats out and South Africans handing out their wickets in callous gift-wraps. Jadeja collected three in a hurry courtesy Amla's edge to a short-wide delivery, du Plessis' ambitious paddle-scoop and a missed straight ball by the makeshift-opener in Bavuma. Umesh and Ishant rode on reverse swing to roar through the defences of Duminy and Vilas respectively, leaving de Villiers-powered South Africa on the mat at 79-6. Chants of "AB-AB" grew when the marooned batsman powered a few cut shots but that worthily remained South Africa's batting highlight on a more conventional skill-focused day of Test cricket.

Wasn't that quick? South Africa, completely blasted away. Okay, so the follow-on hasn't been enforced. The session started with the match fairly in the balance, and look at it now. What should I say. Can't put it in better words than what the scorecard reflects at the moment. It was a procession. Aided in quite a big part by the pitch. The amount of turn Jadeja was extracting, geez, must have sent shivers down the spines of the South African batsmen waiting to walk in. They were defeated in the dressing room itself. Add to that the magnificent exhibition of reverse-swing bowling from Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma. Just hastened the downfall shooting the opposition out for 121. We are now learning that it is stumps on Day 2. Bad light the culprit once more for the early finish.

49.3 - Ashwin to Tahir, out Caught by (sub)Rahul!! That's it. Will Kohli enforce the follow-on? We'll find out soon enough. Floated up on the stumps, Tahir shimmies down and tries to slog it away, did not turn as much he anticipated and ends up slicing it. Went high in the air towards deep mid-wicket. Rahul came charging forward, ended up having to backtrack but takes it with a reverse-cup before falling backwards. Did not let the ball pop out and breathed a sigh of relief. Tahir c (sub)Rahul b Ashwin 1(9)

Ashwin to Tahir, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

49.2 - Ashwin to M Morkel, 1 run, looped up on middle and leg, works it down to long-on

49.1 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, slow and drops it slightly short, punched to short cover

48.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to Tahir, no run, fuller on the stumps, forward and blocked

48.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to Tahir, no run, again he is doing well to hang in there. Flatter on leg, gets his pad out of the way and blocks

48.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to Tahir, no run, flung down the leg-side, straightens a bit and finds a soft leading edge as Tahir was looking to flick it away

48.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to Tahir, no run, pushed through the air on the stumps, Tahir is doing well to keep them out for now

48.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to Tahir, no run, pushed towards cover

48.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to Tahir, no run, quicker and fuller on off, Tahir is well forward to defend

47.6 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, drifting in on the pads, blocked to the leg-side

47.5 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, goes back on this occasion to block a slider

47.4 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, drifting in on middle and leg, Morkel gets behind the line

47.3 - Ashwin to Tahir, 1 run, Tahir sweeps, gets a top edge, it loops up over mid-wicket. Kohli is the man there, calls for it, runs back. And then fails to hang on. Bounced a little bit more with the over-spinner and hence caught the edge

47.2 - Ashwin to Tahir, no run, floated up on off, Tahir blocks off the front foot

47.1 - Ashwin to M Morkel, 1 run, a flat carrom ball on middle and leg, whips it down to long-on

Imran Tahir, right handed bat, comes to the crease

46.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, out Caught by Ishant!! Runs down the pitch, looks to whack it across the line, the ball turns and AB ends up slicing the shot off the outside half of the bat. Still looked like it would go over the long-off ropes. Ishant follows the path of the ball, might have slightly misjudged it and then had to run back. The good thing he did was to go with both hands. Completed the grab by reaching out to his left, stabilized himself by extending the distance between his two legs and didn't let the momentum take him over the rope. Superb effort from the tall pacer. de Villiers c Ishant b Ravindra Jadeja 42(78) [4s-5]

Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

46.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, flat and sliding on towards off, pushed back down the pitch

46.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to M Morkel, 1 run, slightly slower through the air, guided in front of point

46.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to M Morkel, no run, flatter and slightly short, turns in from outside off, Morkel works it into the on-side

46.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to M Morkel, no run, fuller and turning in from outside off, Morkel is caught on the shuffle and hit on the pad, not turning enough to hit off stump reckons the umpire

46.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, hoho, Ashwin diving. Rare sight. Drops it slightly short on the stumps, AB couldn't quite time the pull and hits it wide of mid-on. Ashwin saves three runs

45.6 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, carrom-ball cutting in from outside off, pushed to short cover

45.5 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, a ripper. Tossed up and drifting in on leg, dips on the batsman as he was trying to defend and spins past the outside edge. Just misses the off-stump

45.4 - Ashwin to de Villiers, 1 run, pushed through the air outside off, AB goes deep in the crease and dabs it late to send the ball behind backward point

45.3 - Ashwin to M Morkel, 3 runs, again too straight, looking for the magic ball perhaps - pitching on leg and knocking the top of off. Doesn't turn. Morkel camps back and whips it through mid-wicket. Another chase for the fielders. Another 3

45.2 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, the drifter down leg, Morkel plays well outside the line of it, and ends up wearing it on the pad. The drift was always taking it down leg

45.1 - Ashwin to M Morkel, 2 runs, too short, too straight, Morkel goes back and whips it through mid-wicket. Looked like a certain boundary but that was before Jadeja hurtled after it and put in the slide to haul it back

44.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, look at that. Even AB has no answers. Darted in on a shortish length on off, AB was making room to cut, but the ball deviates rapidly from the straight. Ends up bailing out from the shot. Wisely so

44.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to M Morkel, 1 run, everything is fired in from Jadeja. Too flat, slightly full just outside off, Morkel works it with the turn down to long-on

44.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, shortish and slanting in on middle, AB hangs back and clips it through mid-wicket

44.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, comes running down the track, Jadeja bowls it quicker and flatter, can only defend it back down the pitch

44.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, well, the short-legs have had quite a hard time in this match. Time for Rohit to take a few blows. Fired in just outside off, AB meets it on the full with the sweep but finds Rohit in the way

44.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, sliding onto the pads, gently clipped to short-leg

43.6 - Ashwin to M Morkel, no run, drifting in nicely on off from round the wicket, not enough turn to take an edge of Morkel's front foot defence

43.5 - Ashwin to de Villiers, 1 run, the over-spinner, bounces more from behind a length on off, AB plays it on the back foot and clips it through mid-wicket

43.4 - Ashwin to de Villiers, byes, FOUR, loads and loads of turn. But it started on the wrong line, pitches on leg and turns square. Saha tries his best to get across but he needs to be as wide as a sight-screen to stop it

43.3 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, well flighted but once more spinning into the pads, gently worked to the on-side

43.2 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, tossed up but too straight, nudged to short mid-wicket

43.1 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, pulls his length back and bowls a carrom ball seeing AB advance, he knows he's done in by the length and smothers it back to the bowler with bat-pad close

42.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to M Morkel, no run, hard hands, hard hands. Play it late, please. Play it softly. Tossed up outside off, Morkel thrusts his hands in front of his body, gets a thick inside edge which flies wide of short-leg

Morne Morkel, left handed bat, comes to the crease

42.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to D Piedt, out Caught by Rahane!! There it is. Every ball I'm expecting a wicket with Jadeja bowling. Bowled it much slower and fuller outside off, lured Piedt into the drive, and he obliged with a terrible demonstration. Hard hands, well away from the body, all the ball had to do was turn slightly which it did. Took the edge and Rahane at slip - well, I've never seen him drop one. Laps it up with ease. D Piedt c Rahane b Ravindra Jadeja 5(18)

Ravindra Jadeja to D Piedt, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

42.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to D Piedt, no run, well flighted on off, well forward to block

42.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, inside edge onto pad, and whistles away low to the right of Rohit at short-leg, hardly had any time to move

42.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to D Piedt, byes, 1 run, my God! How do you play those? I fully sympathise with Piedt here. Pushed through on a length on middle and off, turns square and kicks off the surface to beat the forward prod. Even Saha is taken aback by the bounce and can only manage a glove to take the pace off

42.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, the slider, drifting into middle and leg, AB whips it through mid-wicket

41.6 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, too straight once more, and quick. Allows Piedt to poke it away into the on-side

41.5 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, tossed up nicely, Piedt props forward and taps it on its head

41.4 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, might have been the carrom ball, darted it down leg, Piedt gently flicks it to mid-wicket

41.3 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, loopy and lands very full just outside off, driven to mid-off

41.2 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, rocks back, allows the ball to turn and blocks it safely

41.1 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, teases it up on off, Piedt's bat comes down at an angle while defending and it catches a thickish outside edge. Goes straight to ground

40.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, slower through the air and on a length just outside off, safely patted away off the front foot

40.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, flatter and quicker delivery, sliding on towards middle, AB was looking to whip it away after making room, gets it off the inside half of the bat and the ball lumbers into the leg-side

40.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, much better. Big stride forward and smothers the ball into the off-side

40.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, stays leg-side of the slider and pats it away into the off-side. Risky stuff. Left the off-stump exposed

40.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to D Piedt, 1 run, stays camped on the back foot, the ball doesn't get up from the pitch from a length outside off, Piedt squats a bit and guides it through the cover-region

40.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, sliding into leg-stump, no turn, just skids on, AB works it through mid-wicket and hands it over to Piedt

Ravindra Jadeja [7.0-1-22-3] is back into the attack

39.6 - Ashwin to de Villiers, 1 run, the carrom ball fired down leg, maybe he saw AB getting into position for the reverse-sweep, still the class of the man allows him to adjust, laps it behind backward point. The fielder hustles across and dives to stop

39.5 - Ashwin to D Piedt, 1 run, presses forward, gets close enough to the pitch and pushes it wide of mid-off

39.4 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, more flight, more air just outside off, turns slightly and traces the middle of Piedt's defensive blade

39.3 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, closer to the stumps, safely guarded on the front foot

39.2 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, he's giving it a real rip, loop and dip outside off, Piedt taps it into the off-side off the front foot

39.1 - Ashwin to D Piedt, 2 runs, floated up outside off, Piedt drives it through extra-cover, there is some indecision in the running but the batsmen made it back with considerable ease

38.6 - Ishant to de Villiers, FOUR, oh, genius. That's an even better shot. He was slightly cramped for room on the back of a length delivery, plays it late and cuts it under his eyes through the vacant point region

38.5 - Ishant to de Villiers, FOUR, slightly short outside off and de Villiers has latched onto the opportunity. Doesn't move his feet too much and slaps it square of the wicket

38.4 - Ishant to D Piedt, 1 run, very full ball bending in on off and middle, Piedt is late once again. Your back-lift is too high mate. It gets down in time to sneak in an inside edge, the ball dribbles away behind square

38.3 - Ishant to D Piedt, no run, slanted in from a back of a length on middle and leg, Piedt is late to get his bat across on the back foot defence, just about manages an inside edge onto the thigh pad

38.2 - Ishant to de Villiers, 1 run, speared into the blockhole, the ball was dipping in alright but de Villiers is up to the challenge, flicks it away through square leg. He is now finding his balance, his posture. Will do well to find a companion

38.1 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, back of a length delivery slanting into the corridor, de Villiers lets it come on and steers it towards backward point. He played that when the ball was right in line with his eyes

37.6 - Ashwin to D Piedt, no run, well flighted outside off, dips to land on a length, Piedt goes deep in the crease and knocks it into the off-side

Dane Piedt, right handed bat, comes to the crease

37.5 - Ashwin to Kyle Abbott, out Lbw!! My oh my! 84/7. And Ashwin has his first wicket. The under-cutter, pushes it through just behind a length on off, Abbott went right back at his stumps, plays for some turn, there isn't any and the ball simply skids on after pitching, beats the outside edge and hits him on the knee-roll of the back pad. He was so far back that height was never an issue. Kyle Abbott lbw b Ashwin 4(6) [4s-1]

Ashwin to Kyle Abbott, THAT'S OUT!! Lbw!!

37.4 - Ashwin to Kyle Abbott, FOUR, just an extension of the forward defence and .. wait a minute. It's running away straight of mid-off. The fielder was too close and once it beat him, it sped away

37.3 - Ashwin to Kyle Abbott, no run, floated up outside off, well forward and blocked

37.2 - Ashwin to Kyle Abbott, no run, slightly short but turning back in sharply from outside off, Abbott is cramped for room on the back foot and ends up punching it tamely to mid-off

A slip, silly point and short-leg in place

37.1 - Ashwin to de Villiers, 1 run, looped up wide of off, de Villiers meets it on the full with a big stride across after sitting on the back knee, and sweeps it to deep square leg

36.6 - Ishant to Kyle Abbott, no run, stays low from a back of a length to scoot under the bottom of the bat and on the bounce to Saha. Luckily for the batsman the line was wider of off

36.5 - Ishant to Kyle Abbott, no run, fuller length delivery on off, Abbott is pinned on the crease but brings the bat down straight enough to keep it out

Kyle Abbott, right handed bat, comes to the crease

36.4 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, out Bowled!! Ishant has sent the off-stump cartwheeling. That off-pole symbolises South Africa's state right now. Blown away. It's also Ishant's first wicket of the series. And what a rip-roaring delivery to get it with. Jags back from a length outside off, Vilas initially wanted to leave it alone, sees it snake back in and then ends up swishing his bat at an angle to keep it out. Too late mate. Your off-stump has already gone for a walk. Dane Vilas b Ishant 11(21) [4s-1]

Ishant to Dane Vilas, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

36.3 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, no run, trying to draw the batsman forward, succeeds in doing so, but Vilas raises his arms high after seeing the line. Very good leave

36.2 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, no run, back of a length delivery nipping back in, not close enough to off to warrant a shot, left alone after a shuffle to cover his sticks

36.1 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, no run, the shiny side on the outside and the ball shapes away from a fuller length outside off, Vilas aims a drive through the covers, played for a straight ball and is beaten on the edge

Time to have a drink! I said at Tea time that this would be a big last session. And look at the junkyard of batsmen's corpses lying around. The pitch suddenly seems unplayable. Jadeja is flinging them in and getting variable turn. Umesh Yadav has become an impersonation of Waqar Younis. And South Africa are batting with toothpicks. Just ridiculous. Even the word 'miserable' would look down at South Africa and scoff at them

35.6 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, floated up on off, de Villiers turns it to FSL

35.5 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, tossed up well wide of off, de Villiers shapes to cut but the ball comes whirring back at him, has to check his shot and dab it into the off-side

35.4 - Ashwin to Dane Vilas, 1 run, he under-cut this one, pushes it quicker through the air and on a length on off, the ball simply slides on to take a thick edge on Vilas's defensive prod, rolls away fine of backward point, Vilas rumbles to the safety of the other end

35.3 - Ashwin to de Villiers, 1 run, too straight on this occasion, Villiers hustles to get inside the line and nurdles it with the turn behind square

35.2 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, skips out, realizes he is not quite to the pitch and just bunts it back to the bowler

35.1 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, well tossed up on a length just outside off, de Villiers inclines forward to defend

34.6 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, FOUR, clipped neatly off the hips through mid-wicket, Jadeja gives chase all the way, does all the hard work, and then allows the ball to sneak through despite a slide

34.5 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, 2 runs, full ball on off, Vilas pushes it wide of mid-off after half-a-stride forward, Ashwin is the man there. Which means two is on. They don't hesitate and make it easily

34.4 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, no run, a lifter but the line is pretty accomodating, just outside off, Vilas can easily evade by leaning back and dropping his wrists

34.3 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, no run, two deliveries holding their line outside off, and now one slanting back in on middle, Vilas is up to the challenge this time, moves his leg out of the way and offers the maker's name in defence. Albeit not very well balanced on the crease. Slightly on the walk

34.2 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, no run, fuller just outside off, never really committed to the cover-drive, went at it half-heartedly, ends up slicing it towards backward point

34.1 - Ishant to Dane Vilas, no run, length delivery holding its line outside off, Vilas shuffles across and needlessly pecks at it, left squared up and gets it off the outside half of the bat

Ishant Sharma [9.0-4-12-0] is back into the attack

33.6 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, this is the better option - to stay on the back foot. Allows him to cope with the mischief (the turn), nudges it in front of leg-slip

33.5 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, teased up on a length outside off, takes a big puff of dust before going straight on, de Villiers was playing for some turn on the front foot, the ball slides on and beats the edge

33.4 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, walks across his stumps to a delivery turning from wider of off, and then jams it at his feet, his bat coming down like a fly-swatter

33.3 - Ashwin to Dane Vilas, 1 run, slower through the air, turning back in from a length outside off, Vilas hangs on the back foot and clips it through mid-wicket

33.2 - Ashwin to de Villiers, 1 run, hangs it up in the air, quite contrary to his spin twin, a big stride across from AB to meet the pitch and work it with the turn down to long-on

33.1 - Ashwin to de Villiers, no run, floated up on middle, AB presses forward and knocks it back down the pitch

Ravichandran Ashwin [5.0-4-3-0] is back into the attack

32.6 - U Yadav to Dane Vilas, no run, shorter in length and outside off, makes it easier to play off the back foot

32.5 - U Yadav to Dane Vilas, no run, his head fell over to a demonic inswinging yorker on middle and leg, somehow squeezes it off the inside edge behind square. He is living on the edge (quite literally)

32.4 - U Yadav to Dane Vilas, no run, on a good length and shaping back in late, Vilas covers for the movement and plays it under his eyes with a straight bat

32.3 - U Yadav to Dane Vilas, no run, slightly shorter than a full ball just outside off, Vilas stays on the crease and pats it in front of cover-point

32.2 - U Yadav to Dane Vilas, 2 runs, this is brilliant reverse swing bowling, it's hooping around now. Pacy full ball swinging back in on middle and off, Vilas is visibly rushed but brings his bat down just in time to get an inside edge. Whistles away fine but fine leg is at hand to cut the boundary off

32.1 - U Yadav to Dane Vilas, no run, bending back in on a fuller length on middle, Vilas clips it to short mid-wicket

31.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to Dane Vilas, 1 run, full and quick on off, pushes it towards long-off and will keep strike

31.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to Dane Vilas, no run, now props forward to a delivery which is fairly full and quick, not much turn to beat the edge, smothered

31.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to Dane Vilas, no run, slung in from his low-arm action, slightly short and skidding onto the pads, Vilas goes back and tucks it to FSL

31.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, ventures down, converts it into a low full toss and belts it down to long-off

31.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, sliding on towards off-stump, de Villiers defends it off the front foot

31.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, wider of off, turns away further, no need to play

Dane Vilas, right handed bat, comes to the crease

30.6 - U Yadav to Duminy, out Bowled!! This is an annihilation. It's like a judge has sentenced South Africa to "death by firing squad". Absolute disaster. Skiddy back of a length delivery angled in on off, the ball holds its line slightly but that's enough to open Duminy up in his flat-footed defence, beats the outside edge and pegs back the top of off stump. Might have clipped the back pad on the way. Duminy b U Yadav 1(8)

U Yadav to Duminy, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

30.5 - U Yadav to Duminy, no run, overpitched on off, Duminy drives it well but picks out mid-off

30.4 - U Yadav to Duminy, no run, late to get his bat down on a skiddy back of a length delivery, jams it on the popping crease and it bounces before getting cushioned in the bat-pad gap

30.3 - U Yadav to Duminy, no run, back of a length delivery which stays low on middle, Duminy just about crouches low enough to keep it out

30.2 - U Yadav to Duminy, no run, that's the straightest of straight drives and in course with how South Africa's luck is going, it knocks over the stumps at the other end. AB had to really rush to make his crease and falls down. But the bowler hadn't got a hand

30.1 - U Yadav to Duminy, no run, angled in from a back of a length on the hips, clipped to short mid-wicket

29.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, quick, quick and more quick. Not much turn on this occasion, blocked after moving halfway forward

29.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 2 runs, now finds the other edge. This is difficult. Pushed through on a length on off, de Villiers is left opened up on the forward defence and it runs away fine wide of slip. Not much pace on the ball though and it's chased down

29.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, slides on from a length on off, finds an inside edge on de Villiers' forward prod and trickles in front of short-leg

29.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, sliding on from a length towards off, de Villiers presses forward and defends

29.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to Duminy, 1 run, that was an iffy kind of defensive stroke, tries to hide his bat behind the pad, it was flatter and outside off, manages to somehow knock it into the vacant cover region, Jadeja himself cuts it out

29.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to Duminy, no run, pushed through on a length outside off, Duminy plants his foot across and defends

A hoarde of close-in fielders

28.6 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, harpooned into the blockhole on off and middle, de Villiers squeezes it towards mid-on

28.5 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, on a back of a length on middle, hops back and defends

28.4 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, short of length delivery in the channel just outside off, de Villiers opens the bat-face on impact and guides it towards backward point

28.3 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, a hint of tail back in on middle from a length, once again de Villiers is so shaky with his footwork, they go nowhere. The angle takes the inside edge onto pad

28.2 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, length ball slanting in on middle, defended from the crease to short mid-wicket

28.1 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, all sorts of things happening now. The Kotla pitch has come alive with all its vigour. Kicks and spits at de Villiers from a back of a length just outside off, he does well to loosen his grip because of which the thick edge doesn't carry to slip

Jean-Paul Duminy, left handed bat, comes to the crease

27.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to du Plessis, out Caught by Rahane!! Jadeja is unplayable, Jadeja is vicious, and Jadeja is running riot at Kotla. Faf du Plessis has another duck to his name. Bends down low for a paddled scoop, the ball was fairly well flighted, but ends up just chipping it in the air off the bottom of the bat, lobs up to where a leg-slip would have been. Stays in the air long enough for Rahane to move across from his position at slip and grab it easily. du Plessis c Rahane b Ravindra Jadeja 0(2)

Ravindra Jadeja to du Plessis, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

27.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to du Plessis, no run, a shout for LBW, no, going down leg. The arm ball once more, pitches on a length on middle and leg, skids on to hit the pad. Going down

27.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, flatter through the air and angling in on off, de Villiers plays it late and opens the bat face to send it behind backward point

27.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, sliding in on middle, de Villiers allows it to come on and defends

27.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, FOUR, okay so he's decided that defence isn't the way to go, puts on his skates, gets close enough to the ball and powerfully hits it back over the leaping bowler. It was a full blooded sledge-hammer, hammered it. Jadeja nearly got a hand as well on the leap

27.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, looped up and drifting in on off, stomps towards the ball and pushes it to the right of Kohli at short-cover, he dives across and stops

26.6 - U Yadav to de Villiers, 1 run, drifting onto the hips this time, and clipped down to backward square. Not sure de Villiers wants to be at Jadeja's end right now. Who does anyway?

26.5 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, jumps and softly punches this back of a length delivery towards cover. You could feel the apprehension

26.4 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, on a good length just outside off, de Villiers tries to plonk forward but his feet don't listen, the ball traces the middle of the bat in defence though

26.3 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, spears in a full delivery on off, de Villiers checks his drive to mid-on, it's like he isn't confident enough

26.2 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, again rooted to the crease to a length ball around off, defended to cover

26.1 - U Yadav to de Villiers, no run, short of length delivery angled in on off, de Villiers ekes out an inside edge onto thigh pad while looking to defend from the crease

Faf du Plessis, right handed bat, comes to the crease

Umesh Yadav [8.0-1-29-1] is back into the attack

25.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, out Caught by W Saha!! Jadeja is up in arms, the umpire's finger stays put but Amla is walking. Might have just been a feather. Flatter and quicker through the air, turns slightly off the surface which clearly caught Amla unawares. He had rocked back and was aiming a back-cut, but the ball turns and just about grazes the edge of the cross-batted stroke. Not enough deflection which made the grab easier for Saha. South Africa are plummetting quickly. Amla c W Saha b Ravindra Jadeja 3(34)

Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

25.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, now fullish on the stumps, easily kept out

25.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, moves the line slightly wider of off, Amla is tempted into the inside-out drive but cannot get it past short-cover

25.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, quicker and fuller on the stumps, Amla smothers it on the pitch

25.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, tries to be a bit more extravagant, the length wasn't quite there for the drive, ends up mistiming it to cover

25.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, pushed through fullish on middle, defended with half a stride

24.6 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, again holds its line from a length just outside off, leaving the batsman squared up a tad. de Villiers does well to adjust and guide it towards backward point

24.5 - Ishant to de Villiers, 2 runs, length ball angled in the channel outside off, de Villiers had to play at it, might have slightly held its line to catch a thickish edge which runs away behind backward point, Rahul gives chase and hauls it back in with a slide just inside the ropes. He is on for Pujara

24.4 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, probing away on a length outside off, de Villiers leaves it ungroped

24.3 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, angled in on off and middle, de Villiers is caught flat-footed, does well to maintain a loose grip and offer a straight bat, it turns in his hands and ends up dribbling towards short mid-wicket

24.2 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, length ball around the fifth-sixth stump, de Villiers offers a stout defence on the front foot

24.1 - Ishant to de Villiers, 2 runs, back of a length delivery outside off which stays a touch low, de Villiers aims a steer behind backward point, gets it off the bottom of the bat and the ball goes much finer than he originally intended. Fetches him a couple before the fielder hunts it down

23.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, 1 run, tossed up outside off, eases into the push down to long-off

23.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, 1 run, Amla was looking to force it through the off-side, the ball slides on, takes the inside half of the bat and rolls towards mid-on. The fielder is caught on his heels and the batsmen get across easily. There is a direct-hit and the umpire goes upstairs. Needless

23.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, sliding on towards middle, blocked easily back down the pitch

23.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, oooh, was that a leading edge. Might have been. This time he couldn't resist the temptation seeing the ball drift on the pads, closes his bat face too early and finds a soft leading edge towards mid-on

23.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, now drifting onto the pads, instead of playing against the turn, Amla offers a straight bat

23.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to Amla, no run, slowish by Jadeja standards, lands it on a length on off, Amla gets a big stride forward and defends

22.6 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, Ishant is revving it up nicely, 140ks now, pitched right up, de Villiers punches it to mid-off after tilting forward

22.5 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, created a more acute angle by bowling wider of the crease, angles it in, but the ball is still too far outside off to evoke a stroke

22.4 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, further up outside off, de Villiers moves his front foot inches forward and pushes it to mid-off with bat and pad close

22.3 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, not much movement across on the back foot, just thrusts his hands away from the body and pushes it towards backward point. His feet are not at the most nimble presently

22.2 - Ishant to de Villiers, no run, easy, easy. Short of length delivery in the corridor, de Villiers is left in two minds whether to play or leave, just about lifts his bat to let it go at the last moment

22.1 - Ishant to Amla, 1 run, short ball outside off, Amla pivots on the back foot and pulls it hard through mid-wicket. There is protection in the deep and only a single results

21.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, FOUR, ah, that's a cracker-jack of a shot. Sliding into the pads from a length, de Villiers goes deep in the crease and whips it wide of mid-on

21.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, FOUR, slightly more air, lands a bit too full on off, de Villiers clears his front leg to get beside the line of the ball and pastes the drive through extra-cover

21.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, another slider, skids on after pitching on a length, de Villiers guards it by offering a vertical bat

21.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, now the arm-ball, sliding in on middle, de Villiers presses forward and knocks it back down the pitch

21.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, this is hard work. It's turning at pace for Jadeja. Slung in on a length on off, the ball goes against the angle to beat the edge as de Villiers pushes at it

21.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to de Villiers, no run, slanted in on a fuller length on middle, de Villiers works it softly to the right of the bowler

It should be noted that Pujara is still not on the field after the blow he took earlier..

20.6 - Ishant to Amla, no run, hops on the crease and drops this back of a length delivery with soft hands into the off-side

20.5 - Ishant to Amla, no run, pitched up outside off, he strides towards the ball and pushes it to cover

20.4 - Ishant to Amla, no run, pulls his length back considerably, Amla stands on his toes and punches it softly to cover

20.3 - Ishant to Amla, no run, he is building up some good steam here, 143 clicks, on a length and skidding on just outside off, Amla is very hesitant to come forward and stays flat-footed before blocking it into the off-side

20.3 - Ishant to Amla, no ball, length ball homing in on off, Amla is pinned on the crease, brings the bat straight to block. Ishant had marginally overstepped with his heel on the line

20.2 - Ishant to Amla, no run, slightly short outside off, Amla hops to ride the bounce and chops it to backward point

20.1 - Ishant to Amla, no run, back of a length delivery angled in, straightens after pitching to leave Amla stranded as he aimed a poke at it, luckily for him it beats the edge

AB de Villiers, right handed bat, comes to the crease

Ishant Sharma [6.0-4-6-0] is back into the attack

19.6 - Ravindra Jadeja to Bavuma, out Bowled!! Oh dear. Bavuma's vigil is over. That slider from Jadeja. Even he doesn't know if it will turn or not. How will the batsman? I told you Bavuma was flirting with danger hanging back. This time the ball skids on from a length just outside off, Bavuma plays for some turn on the back foot and ends up playing outside the line, finds the gate between bat and pad and knocks over off stump. Bavuma b Ravindra Jadeja 22(55) [4s-3]

Ravindra Jadeja to Bavuma, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

19.5 - Ravindra Jadeja to Bavuma, no run, had to crouch a bit as the bounce was not consistent, gets the bat down in time

19.4 - Ravindra Jadeja to Bavuma, no run, flatter and turning away from behind a length on off, Bavuma is flirting with danger staying back, knocks it gently into the off-side

19.3 - Ravindra Jadeja to Bavuma, no run, stays camped on the back foot, accounts for the turn and meets it with a firm defensive willow

19.2 - Ravindra Jadeja to Bavuma, 2 runs, sliding onto the pads with the angle this time, glanced fine, the batsmen are back for the second before the ball is hounded down by backward square

19.1 - Ravindra Jadeja to Bavuma, no run, and look at that. Pushed through on off from round the wicket, disturbs the surface and turns square past Bavuma's bat, he was caught on the crease as well

Okay, so a big session coming up from the South African point of view. Need to ensure that they are still in the game at the end of it, else another visiting team slaughter-fest will go down in Kotla's bowels. The Indians are all smiles, joking around and dawdling out to the centre. I guess Kohli will employ spin and pace at either end. Here's Jadeja at the top of his mark getting ready to sling a few. One slip and a short leg

Earlier, Kyle Abbott joined the list of elite visiting pacers to pick a fifer in these trying, testing conditions. Hastened the end of India's ever-growing-in-confidence tail by getting rid of Ashwin pretty soon after the break. But that was not before India had posted a decent 334 on the board. Tough times lie ahead for South Africa but that's nothing to do with the pitch. It's as good as it ever will be during this match. Just need to flush out their mental scars. The final session will tell us more - whether their scars get flushed or they themselves. Stay tuned..

Tea, day 2: South Africa needed this session to go their way after a poor morning one. But the loss of their most gritty batsman (on this tour) has sort of evened the scales as far as session counts go. He went chasing after a very full ball, clearly edged it through to the keeper and then stood staring at the umpire's finger as if it was an object of disgust. To be fair to him, his bat hit the turf while the edge was found so he might not have been able to decipher what's going on.

18.6 - U Yadav to Amla, no run, good short ball from Umesh to finish the session. It was well directed at the batsman, who arches back to try and sway away from the line, the ball brushes Amla's shirt around the chest area and goes through to the keeper. Probably Amla wasn't expecting that and did well to get out of the line of fire in the end

Last ball before tea coming up

18.5 - U Yadav to Amla, no run, on a good length and on off, Amla is solid in his defence

18.4 - U Yadav to Bavuma, 1 run, short of length delivery outside off, Bavuma hangs back as he looks to defend, the bat face turns on impact with the ball and it dribbles away through square leg, giving the opportunity to the batsmen to cross over

18.3 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, just short of a good length and on off, Bavuma taps it towards cover-point

18.2 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, much fuller and targetting the stumps once again, Bavuma comes half-forward as he blocks it into the on-side on this occasion

18.1 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, angling in on off and middle, Bavuma pushes it into the off-side off the front foot

17.6 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, once again Amla gets to the pitch of the ball and defends

17.5 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, was that a chance? Maybe. However, it was probably a little to quick for Rohit to react. Flatter and turning in on the stumps, Amla flicks it uppishly towards short leg, it was hit right off the face of the bat and hits Rohit on the shin guard near the knee area. Probably, only Superman or Flash could have taken it

17.4 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, once again Amla lunges forward across off to defend

17.3 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, flighted delivery just outside off, Amla defends off the front foot

17.2 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, half-an-appeal for a caught behind but the umpire is unmoved. This was darted down the leg-side, Amla was looking to flick it fine, misses and the ball catches the pad on its way to the keeper, who takes it smartly. The sound off the ball clipping the pad got the Indians interested

17.1 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, very slow and just outside off, Amla had to wait for a long time before he dead-bats it

16.6 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, drives this length delivery into the off-side with soft hands. A maiden for Umesh

16.5 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, the Indians were interested for a moment, but Bavuma didn't get any wood on that. Banged in short and down the leg-side, Bavuma was looking to hook it away but couldn't get any bat on it, the ball was going further away to the left of the keeper and that's what made the Indians think that there might be some bat involved. Not to be

16.4 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, fuller in length and on the stumps, Bavuma drives it straight back to the bowler

16.3 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, angling in on off, Bavuma pushes at it with hard hands, gets an inside edge onto the pad and the ball rolls away towards the slip cordon

16.2 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, almost another wicket for Umesh! Short of a length delivery just outside off, Bavuma gets on his toes and defends it onto the pitch, the ball hits the surface and bounces over the stumps, Bavuma was quite alert though and saw it all the way through. He must have had his heart in the mouth for a moment though

16.1 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, length delivery on off, may have kept a little low, Bavuma is happy to defend it from the crease

15.6 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, once again Amla decided to stay deep inside the crease to defend

15.5 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, slightly quicker and flatter outside off, Amla hangs back and blocks it into the off-side

15.4 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, once again Amla gets his front foot across as he leans forward to defend

15.3 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, slower through the air and just outside off, Amla prods forward and blocks it back down the pitch

15.2 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, floated up just outside off, Amla comes half-forward and defends it into the off-side with soft hands

15.1 - Ashwin to Amla, no run, presses across to get outside the line of off and dead-bats this flighted delivery

14.6 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, banged in short and outside off, Bavuma was first looking to defend, drops his wrists at the last moment and allows it to sail through to the keeper

14.5 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, almost a yorker around off, Bavuma was looking to jam out the drive, ends up dragging it into the on-side off the inside half of the bat

14.4 - U Yadav to Amla, 1 run, Amla gets off the mark first ball. Angling in on middle stump line, Amla comes across and works it through backward square leg for a single

Hashim Amla, right handed bat, comes to the crease

14.3 - U Yadav to Elgar, out Caught by W Saha!! Elgar walks back disappointed. Umesh is ecstatic as he bags the first breakthrough for India. Elgar was gutted when the umpire raised his finger, but he has to go. Coming to the ball, it was very full outside off, Elgar was trying to squeeze it out into the off-side. The ball on its way up after pitching, catches the outside edge and goes through towards the keeper, who crouches low to his left and hangs on. Elgar probably didn't know much about the edge as he also jammed his bat hard onto the ground at that very moment. He couldn't believe the call from the umpire, but it was the right one. Elgar c W Saha b U Yadav 17(50) [4s-2]

U Yadav to Elgar, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

14.2 - U Yadav to Elgar, no run, on a good length and straightens just a touch outside off, Elgar was feeling for it away from his body, the ball whizzes past the outside edge and goes into the hands of the keeper

14.1 - U Yadav to Bavuma, 1 run, Vijay saves some runs for his team. Short of a length and outside off, Bavuma gets on top of the bounce, opens the face of the bat and punches it to the right of backward point, Vijay dives across and stops the ball, couldn't prevent the batsmen from taking the single though. A good stop nevertheless

13.6 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, defends this slower delivery towards short cover

13.5 - Ashwin to Bavuma, 1 run, this time Bavuma connects with the sweep. Kneels down and sends it through the square leg region, the batsmen cross over

13.4 - Ashwin to Bavuma, no run, kneels across and goes for the sweep, misses the flighted delivery and wears it on the back thigh. There was a stifled appeal for an lbw but the impact was just outside the line of off

13.3 - Ashwin to Elgar, 1 run, on middle and leg, Elgar works it through mid-wicket and gets off strike

13.2 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, floated up outside off, Elgar drills the drive but hit it straight to Kohli at short cover

13.1 - Ashwin to Bavuma, 1 run, flatter and turning in towards the batsman, who was cramped for room as he goes on the back foot, manages to bunt it backward of square leg and the batsmen race across for a quick single

12.6 - U Yadav to Elgar, no run, pitched up in the channel outside off, Elgar comes across and lets it go

12.5 - U Yadav to Elgar, no run, length delivery just outside off, Elgar decides to hang back as he defends it into the off-side with an angular bat

12.4 - U Yadav to Elgar, FOUR, great shot! Short and angling in towards the batsman from round the wicket, Elgar goes for the pull, swivels and times it really well, gets it over mid-wicket and it crashes into the fence in a hurry

Elgar has some words to say to his partner as Umesh decides to come round the wicket

12.3 - U Yadav to Bavuma, 1 run, short of length delivery outside off, Bavuma stays back, opens the face of the bat late and runs it down to third man for a single

Two slips in place for Umesh

12.2 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, goes fuller this time but the line is still slightly wide outside off, Bavuma once again is content with a leave

12.1 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, short and well outside off, Bavuma thinks about slashing hard but controls the temptation, leaves it alone for the keeper in the end

Umesh Yadav [4.0-0-21-0] is back into the attack

11.6 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, turning away outside off, Elgar goes on the back foot and punches it straight to extra cover, second maiden in a row for Ashwin

11.5 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, drags his length back slightly and bowls it well outside off, Elgar doesn't offer a shot

11.4 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, this time he prods forward to smother the spin on this flighted delivery on off

11.3 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, slower through the air and a hint of turn away outside off, Elgar lets it go

11.2 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, drifting in on middle and leg, Elgar turns it behind square on the on-side with soft hands, doesn't take the single as the keeper was quick to reach the ball

11.1 - Ashwin to Elgar, no run, bit of extra bounce on this flatter delivery outside off, Elgar lets it go

Ashwin will come from round the wicket to the left-hander

10.6 - Ishant to Bavuma, FOUR, nicely done! Good use of the wrists from Bavuma. He leans across and clips this fullish delivery in the gap between mid-wicket and mid-on, no need to run for those

10.5 - Ishant to Bavuma, no run, this one keeps a touch low outside off. It was bowled on a length outside off, Bavuma tries to drive it away from the body, is lucky that he didn't edge it to the keeper. Saha collects it low, just before the ball was about to bounce

Gully goes back in position once again

10.4 - Ishant to Bavuma, no run, length delivery on off stump line, Bavuma gets right behind the line and defends with a straight bat

10.3 - Ishant to Bavuma, no run, short of length delivery that comes back in from outside off, but not enough to make the batmsan play, who leaves it alone

10.2 - Ishant to Bavuma, no run, angling in on off and middle, Bavuma stands tall and defends it to the right of the bowler

Two slips in place now for Bavuma

10.1 - Ishant to Elgar, 1 run, banged in short and at the batsman, Elgar swivels on the pull, rolls his wrists over it to send it along the ground, the batsmen take a single as the ball dribbles away to deep backward square leg

9.6 - Ashwin to Bavuma, no run, flatter and turning in on leg, Bavuma goes deep in the crease and turns it straight to backward square leg. Ashwin starts off with a maiden

9.5 - Ashwin to Bavuma, no run, floated up on the stumps, Bavuma kneels down and drags his sweep straight to backward square leg

9.4 - Ashwin to Bavuma, no run, another one that's slower in pace and tossed up outside off, Bavuma goes on the back foot to defend

A slip and a short leg in place

9.3 - Ashwin to Bavuma, no run, slower through the air and turning in on off, Bavuma goes deep in the crease and blocks

9.2 - Ashwin to Bavuma, no run, floated up on the stumps, Bavuma comes forward to defend it into the on-side

9.1 - Ashwin to Bavuma, no run, Ashwin bowls a full toss first up, Bavuma misses out on the freebie as he drives it straight to mid-on

Ravichandran Ashwin, right-arm off break, comes into the attack

8.6 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, banged in short but the line is wrong, it's down the leg-side. Elgar drops his wrists as he swivels, leaves it for the keeper yet again

8.5 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, angling away outside off, Elgar covers his stumps and lets it go

8.4 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, on a good length and just outside off, Elgar opens the face of the bat and gently pushes it into the off-side. His bottom hand came off the handle as he made contact with the cherry

Two slips and a gully in place

8.3 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, on middle and leg stump line, Elgar comes slightly across and turns it to mid-wicket

8.2 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, almost dragged on! Short of a length delivery that's angled across the left-hander, Elgar hangs his bat at that, gets an inside edge that rolls away past the leg stump. Wasn't too far away though

8.1 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, continues to target the off stump channel, Elgar brings his bat down in front of the pad and defends it back to the bowler

I got that one wrong. It's Rohit at FSL, will confirm if Pujara is on the field in a while..

7.6 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, short of a length and holding its line outside off, left alone

7.5 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, short of a length and just outside off, defended towards the off-side

Pujara is still struggling, but I can't see the physio. Ah, he's come out now. Pujara is getting some treatment. Has he done some damage to his wrist? There's still one more innings to go in this Test series and India's next Test series is probably six months away. OK, Pujara is fine now and he's back at the FSL position

7.4 - U Yadav to Elgar, 5 runs, that's poor from Kohli, he's cost Umesh four extra runs, this was banged in short and just outside off, Elgar swivelled across and pulled it towards FSL, the ball hit Pujara on his left wrist and rolled away towards square leg. Even as Pujara was hobbling in pain, Kohli ran across and flung in a wild throw at the bowler's end. Elgar was comfortably in and Jadeja couldn't back up in time, the ball rolled away to the long-on boundary for four extra runs

7.3 - U Yadav to Bavuma, 1 run, back of a length and on Bavuma's pads, tucked away to the left of mid-wicket where Jadeja dives and makes a clean stop, keeps the batsmen down to a single

7.2 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, fuller length delivery and just outside off, Bavuma gets forward and pushes it towards mid-off

7.1 - U Yadav to Bavuma, 2 runs, short and on Bavuma's hips, he gets inside the line and tucks it past square leg, Jadeja gives chase and keeps them down to a couple of runs

6.6 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, short of a length and on the stumps, Elgar prods across and defends it back towards the bowler

6.5 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, fuller length delivery and just outside off, Elgar closes the face of the bat and pushes it towards mid-on

6.4 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, the bouncer from Ishant, but it's too short and well down the leg-side, Elgar gets inside the line and lets it go

6.3 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Elgar leans forward and drives it towards mid-off

6.2 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, tad fuller and on the stumps, Elgar drops his bottom hand and defends it back towards the bowler

6.1 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, Ishant is troubling Elgar here, this one stays a tad low and went with the angle, Elgar was late in bringing his bat down, the ball whizzed past the bat and missed the off-stump by a whisker

5.6 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, tad fuller and in that channel outside off, Bavuma watches it sail through to the keeper

5.5 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, on a good length and just outside off, stayed a tad low as well, Bavuma crouches across and defends it - off the bottom of the bat

5.4 - U Yadav to Bavuma, FOUR, lovely shot, pitched up and on the stumps, Bavuma leans forward, plays with a straight bat and gets the gap past mid-on, with a sumptous looking on-drive, no need to run for those

5.3 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, fuller length delivery and on Bavuma's pads, he was looking to flick and missed, the ball rolled away towards FSL off the pads. Pujara breaks the stumps but Bavuma was back in by then

5.2 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, short of a length and on the stumps, Bavuma gets across and pushes it towards short mid-wicket

5.1 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, loose from Bavuma, short and on the off-stump line, Bavuma rocked back on the pull and is beaten, went sailing over the top of the stumps

4.6 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, appeal for LBW, but this one wasn't coming back enough, tad fuller and shaping across the left-hander, Elgar covered the line and let it go by, this one though nipped back in slightlly, clips Elgar's pads. Ishant was convinced but there was no way this was hitting the stumps

4.5 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, short of a good length and a hint of shape away from outside off, Elgar gets a big stride forward, covers for the movement and lets it go

4.4 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, tad fuller and on the stumps, Elgar presses across and defends it with a straight bat towards the on-side

4.3 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, short of a length and on the stumps, Elgar prods across and defends it towards the on-side

Third slip has moved across to gully

4.2 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Elgar prods forward and defends it with soft hands

4.1 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, on a good length and around off, Elgar gets well forward and defends it towards the off-side

3.6 - U Yadav to Elgar, 1 run, another short delivery from Umesh, this time Elgar was ready for it, he swivels across, rolls his wrists across and pulls it behind square on the on-side for a single

3.5 - U Yadav to Elgar, no run, that was an ugly looking pull from Elgar, he gets lucky that it didn't carry to Pujara at FSL, this was banged in short and on the stumps, Elgar was taken by surprise, makes a late call to play the pull, the ball lobbed off the gloves and goes towards FSL. Pujara was on his heels, by the time he could react, the ball had already fallen onto the ground, would have been a tough chance even if he was alert

3.4 - U Yadav to Elgar, no run, on a good length and just outside off, Elgar gets back and defends it with a slightly open face

3.3 - U Yadav to Elgar, no run, nicely bowled by Umesh, tad fuller and shaping away from outside off, Elgar has a feel for that and is beaten by a long way

3.2 - U Yadav to Elgar, no run, tad fuller and on Elgar's pads, flicked away straight to the fielder at mid-wicket

3.1 - U Yadav to Elgar, FOUR, short of a good length and angling across the left-hander, Elgar is slightly squared up as he looked to defend, the ball finds his outside edge, goes down low and past Rahane at third slip, gets going with a boundary, Elgar

2.6 - Ishant to Bavuma, no run, short of a length and holding its line outside off, left alone

2.5 - Ishant to Bavuma, no run, on a good length and just outside off, Bavuma plays with an open face and defends it towards the off-side

A FSL for Bavuma as well

2.4 - Ishant to Elgar, 1 run, too straight from Ishant, ends up drifting onto Elgar's pads, he closes the face of the bat and tucks it past the fielder at short-leg. Ashwin lumbers after the ball, puts in an awkward looking slide and keeps them down to a single

A short-leg is in place now

2.3 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, fuller length delivery and in that channel outside off, looking to lure Elgar into the drive, he resists, lifts his bat and lets it go

2.2 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, short of a good length and in that channel outside off, Elgar gets behind the line and defends it towards the off-side

2.1 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, appeal for LBW, but Dharmasena says NO. Did it pitch outside leg? Replays say it did pitch outside leg, Elgar was caught in his crease as he looked to defend and missed, gets struck right in front of the stumps

1.6 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, that's a strange way to defend, this was full and just outside off, Bavuma could have let it go, instead, he brings down the bat at an angle, plays with soft hands and defends it towards the slip cordon

1.5 - U Yadav to Bavuma, FOUR, first runs for Bavuma, fraction too short and on Bavuma's pads, he gets inside the line and clips it past square leg, beats the fielder and Bavuma gets going with a boundary

1.4 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, tad fuller and in that corridor outside off, Bavuma presses across, plays with soft hands and defends it close to his body, the ball rolls away towards the off-side

1.3 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, fuller length delivery and in that channel outside off, Bavuma isn't going to play at those, covers the line and lets it go

1.2 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, Umesh keeps it full and wide outside off, looking to lure Bavuma into the drive, he resists and lets it go

1.1 - U Yadav to Bavuma, no run, short of a good length and a hint of shape away from off, Bavuma covers the line, lifts his bat and lets it go

Umesh Yadav, right-arm fast medium, comes into the attack

0.6 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, fuller length delivery and slanting across the left-hander, left alone, the ball carries nicely through to Saha, who takes it above his head

0.5 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, much better from Ishant, keeps it full and on the stumps, met with a firm push back towards the bowler

0.4 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, Ishant keeps it full and well outside off, Elgar doesn't need to play at those, left alone

0.3 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, fuller and wider from Ishant, goes further away from the left-hander. Saha dives in front of first slip and collects the ball

0.2 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, Ishant keeps it full, but the line is well outside off, Elgar doesn't need to play at those, left alone

0.1 - Ishant to Elgar, no run, fuller length delivery and on the stumps, no swing or seam for Ishant, Elgar shuffles across and defends it back towards the bowler

Elgar and Bavuma are at the crease. Elgar is on strike. Ishant will open the attack

The Indians are already out there. Striding to the centre. Big beaming walks. They are still congratulating Rahane. Okay, so here it begins. The final chapter of this massive tour. Ishant Sharma steaming in..

Okay, so India will have close to 20 minutes before Lunch to have a crack at the South African openers. Tricky little phase. Today started off with Kohli nearing his ton. But that dream unfortunately never came to realization. It wasn't meant to be as a ball went hugging the pitch to scoot onto his pads pinning him in front of off and middle. Rahane at the other end was flashing away. The realization soon dawned on him though about the landmark. And the Mumbai lad went on to win Delhi hearts. Hardly a smile on his face afterwards. As cool as you like..

100.1 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, there it is. The arms go up in the air. Waves his bat to the galleries. Everyone is up in applause. The entire dressing room, Kohli at the forefront. He allows Rahane to soak in the moment and then after a moment, gestures to call the batsmen back in. That's it then. India have declared. But let this moment be about Rahane. His debut, his horrid debut at the Kotla. And what a way to exorcise those demons. Twin centuries in his return to the capital. Gets to the landmark with a gentle flick of the wrists through mid-wicket after which he hurtled across. Each and every member of the South African team run up to him to shake hands. Played boy! Only the fifth Indian to make hundreds in both innings of a Test. Joins an elite club which includes Vijay Hazare, Sunny Gavaskar (thrice), Rahul Dravid (twice) and Virat Kohli. What a way to silence your critics as well and the perfect answer to doubters who questioned his pedigree. Before this game - his highest score in India was 15. Now he has twin hundreds in the same match. Cannot make a more emphatic statement than that to the critics. And look at his reaction after getting to a hundred - he seemed almost apologetic at getting there. And when the South Africans rushed to shake his hand, he felt shy. What a man and what a character - the diminutive Mumbaikar who is here to stay for a long time in Indian cricket!

99.6 - Elgar to W Saha, no run, nearly yorks himself after venturing down, squeezes it out comfortably

99.5 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, easy, easy. Flatter and sliding in on middle and leg, Rahane goes deep in the crease and nudges it down to long-on

99.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, presses forward and gently blocks a floated up ball. No rush

99.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flatter and sliding on from a shortish length outside off, Rahane punches it off the inside half of the bat back down the pitch. Was initially looking to go through the off-side but the ball simply slided on to him

99.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, tossed up on a length just outside off, Rahane opens the bat-face in defence towards backward point

Right, plenty of open spaces with fielders positioned at the boundary. Can just tap and run two here..

99.1 - Elgar to W Saha, 1 run, skips down the track, takes it on the full and drives it down to long-off

98.6 - Tahir to Rahane, 2 runs, moves on the back foot and punches it crisply through extra-cover, the ball is running away, but Bavuma races across to field. Fires in the throw at the non-striker's end where Saha had to put on his skates. The throw wasn't the most accurate

98.5 - Tahir to W Saha, 1 run, low loopy full toss, bunts it down to long-off

98.4 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, a quicker wrong 'un, lands on a length on middle and turns back in, Saha is late on his flick and wears it on the pad

98.3 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, gets too close to the pitch of the ball after advancing, ends up jabbing the drive to mid-on

98.2 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, shortish and turning away wide of off, slapped to sweeper cover

98.1 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, flatter and drifting on middle and leg from a shortish length, Rahane sits on his back knee and pulls it to short fine leg. Either side of the fielder would have been a boundary

97.6 - Elgar to W Saha, no run, lots of loop and dip outside off, Saha opts to leave it alone

97.5 - Elgar to W Saha, FOUR, much more in control of this sweep. Premeditated it and got it exactly where he would have wanted. Looped up on a length on middle, slaps it behind square. The ball rockets away

97.4 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, nicely drifting in on off, Rahane works it beside the pitch and sets off. The ball was too wide of Elgar which facilitated the run

97.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, not quite. Pushed through flatter, skids on from outside off, Rahane allows it to come on the back foot and blocks cozily

The crowd are getting right into this. They fancy Rahane will smack a six now

97.2 - Elgar to W Saha, 1 run, looped up on off, Saha comes down the track and pushes it down to long-off

97.1 - Elgar to W Saha, no run, slowish, yet short. Holds up slightly on Saha who was on the back foot. Checks his push along the ground to the left of Elgar who dives to stop

96.6 - Tahir to W Saha, 1 run, shimmies down the pitch and milks a single down to long-off

96.5 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, slightly short and flat, softly punched to point

96.4 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, well flighted googly turning in from a fuller length on off, Saha gets far forward, gets his head low over the bat and jams it into the turf

96.3 - Tahir to W Saha, FOUR, that's a brilliant stroke. Came down the track, didn't quite meet the pitch of the delivery as it dipped on him but still went through with the drive. Those wrists enabled the stroke. Rolled them beautifully to generate the power. Skims away straight past the non-striker

96.2 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, flatter and quicker outside off, steered towards point

96.1 - Tahir to W Saha, FOUR, India are getting a move-on. I fancy a declaration the moment Rahane reaches the landmark. This was a poor ball. A half-tracker just outside off. Saha rocks back and crunches the pull over mid-wicket

95.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, shapes for the pull to a shortish delivery. However, what undid him was the amount of turn. Meant that he had to fetch it from well outside off. Ended up dragging it off the toe-end to mid-wicket

95.5 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, now the slider, skids on from a length towards off, Rahane prods forward and blocks it back down the pitch

95.4 - Elgar to W Saha, 1 run, well tossed up just outside off, driven through the cover region

95.3 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, drops it slightly short outside off, Rahane goes deep in his crease and cuts it to sweeper cover

95.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, loopy delivery outside off, left alone

95.1 - Elgar to Rahane, SIX, Rahane moves into the 90s. No trudging along to a hundred for him. He's galloping along. Runs down the pitch, gets close enough to the pitch of the flighted delivery and just whacks it across the line over deep mid-wicket. Dismissed it from his presence

94.6 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, flatter trajectory once more, the leg-break lands on a length just outside off and turns slightly, Saha gets a good stride across and knocks it into the off-side

94.5 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, drifting in with the arm on middle, not a lot of turn from a fullish length, Saha taps it into the leg-side

94.4 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, pushed through quicker and fuller outside off, Saha pushes it on the walk to the left of Tahir who collects it easily

94.3 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, sliding onto the pads, neatly clipped through mid-wicket

94.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, another well flighted googly, works it with the turn to mid-on

94.1 - Tahir to Rahane, SIX, Rahane sits on his back knee and pulverizes the googly over deep mid-wicket. Nailed the slog sweep. It was tossed up and landed on a perfect length for him to execute

93.6 - Elgar to W Saha, no run, there you go. Another sweep attempted and missed out on. Loopy full toss outside off, and he's missed out. Dear me

93.5 - Elgar to W Saha, no run, very full and slow on off, squeezed into the turf off the front foot

93.4 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, uses his feet, makes sure to leave enough room to go inside-out and hits the drive past a diving extra-cover, gets it a lot straighter than desired and long-off cuts it off

93.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, floated up, a bit quicker and on a length just outside off, Rahane prods forward and blocks

93.2 - Elgar to W Saha, 1 run, Saha has played the sweep in this series and struggled each and every time. Still not holding back. This he meets on the full and shovels it to deep backward square

93.1 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, lobs it up on a fuller length, Rahane leans into the ball and pushes it down to long-off

Expect Rahane to up the rate and then if he gets to his hundred, India might declare immediately. The odd ball is staying low and that is not good news for South Africa. India have all the time in the world to wrap this game up. But one is waiting for the declaration first

Time for drinks. India started the day expecting to ramp up the scoring but Morkel and Abbott bowled disciplined lines to keep the pressure on. Rahane was looking to take the initiative and scored a couple of boundaries. Kohli was set for a hundred until he got a delivery that stayed low and pinged him in front of all three. Saha has struggled for fluency ever since has come in. That has put off Rahane too who is inching towards his second hundred of the match.

92.6 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, tossed up on middle, gently nudged to short mid-wicket

92.5 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, flat outside off, Rahane flat-bats off the back foot to long-on

92.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, googly and rushes onto Rahane who was trying to work off the back foot, missed and rapped on the pad above the kneeroll. Going down too. Easy decision

92.3 - Tahir to W Saha, 1 run, Saha gets forward and eases a drive to long-off

92.2 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, now a pre-meditated paddle, to a straight delivery on the stumps, early into the stroke too, gets a bit of bat first on the shot and then the ball rolls into the ground after hitting the boot

92.1 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, this flat delivery bounces a bit more and beats Saha's top edge on the cut

91.6 - Elgar to W Saha, 1 run, another low full toss, Saha's bottom hand comes off as he drives to long-off

91.5 - Elgar to W Saha, no run, tossed up outside off, driven to cover

91.4 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, takes it on the full and gets a single to long-on

91.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, should've been forward to that. Instead misjudges the length and goes back, the ball pitches and rips past the outside edge. Well beaten and far from the edge. Spun a mile after pitching around off

91.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, again on the stumps, forward defence from Rahane

A slip in place as Elgar comes from round the wicket

91.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, tossed up on middle and leg, Rahane gets forward to block

Dean Elgar [8.0-1-19-0] is back into the attack

90.6 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, loopy full toss down leg, Saha misses the paddle, and for some reason Tahir has his hands on his head. He felt that it was close to leg stump, when the reality is totally different

90.5 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, very full and eased down to long-on

90.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, quicker delivery on the stumps, punched to the left of AB at short mid-wicket, who runs and slides to stop the ball

90.3 - Tahir to W Saha, 1 run, now the googly, flighted too, Saha doesn't pick it and gets a thick inside edge on the drive, the ball goes through mid-wicket. A puff of dust when the ball landed

90.2 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, the flipper, stayed very low on middle, Saha did well to keep it out. Tahir thought he had gotten through Saha's defences there

90.1 - Tahir to W Saha, no run, tossed up on off, Saha gets forward to block

Imran Tahir [21.0-4-49-1] is back into the attack

89.6 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, 1 run, good length and stays a bit low on the stumps, Saha nudges it in front of mid-on and takes a quick single

89.5 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, fullish outside off, Saha thought about flirting and then decided against it

89.4 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, good length and angled in on off, Saha gets forward to block to cover

89.3 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, good length outside off, left alone

89.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, angled in on off and middle, Rahane softly turns it to short mid-wicket and rotates the strike

89.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, pitched up outside off, Rahane gets forward and drives to mid-off. The bat face turned on impact and that's why there was no real timing

88.6 - M Morkel to W Saha, no run, back of a length and rising outside off, Saha does well to let it go

88.5 - M Morkel to W Saha, no run, fullish outside off, Saha has that pre-dominant forward movement before the ball pitches, it catches the inside edge and then hits the thigh pad before going down. Awkwardly played

88.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, back of a length outside off, Rahane opens the face of the bat and guides it to deep backward point

88.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, good length on the middle and leg line, turned to short mid-wicket

88.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, oooh! This stays low. Thankfully for Rahane it wasn't in line with the stumps, it was outside off and went under the bottom edge of Rahane who was looking to block

88.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, Morkel pulls the length back outside off, left alone

88.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no ball, FOUR, Morkel oversteps and bowls a half-volley outside off, Rahane leans forward and bends his back knee to caress a drive through cover. Just eased it into the gap and it raced away. Lovely stuff from the Mumbaikar

87.6 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, good length outside off, Saha shoulders arms

87.5 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, pitched up outside off, driven to cover. More in control but that's because the length was right up there

87.4 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, fullish outside off, Saha again goes hard on the drive, finds Bavuma at cover. Again a big gap between bat and pad and one can see it visibly on replays. Saha needs to be careful about balls nipping back in through that gap

87.3 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, short of length outside off, left alone

87.2 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, that's how he got out in the first innings. To the same bowler, full outside off, nips in and catches Saha's inside edge on the drive, this time it crashes into the pad. A slight gap between bat and pad as Saha drove on the rise

87.1 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, good length and angled in towards leg stump, Saha falls over and misses the flick, the ball rolls off the pad to Vilas

86.6 - M Morkel to W Saha, 1 run, clumsy from Amla at mid-off. He dived too early and that meant the ball escaped past his left-hand. Saha drove on the rise taking the bottom hand off the bat handle, the misfield from Amla gets him off the mark

86.5 - M Morkel to W Saha, no run, dug in short on the stumps, Saha ducks under that

86.4 - M Morkel to W Saha, no run, fullish outside off, Saha gets forward and presses it to mid-off

86.3 - M Morkel to W Saha, no run, back of a length outside off, Saha leaves

A short leg in

86.2 - M Morkel to W Saha, no run, short of length outside off, Saha shoulders arms

86.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, back of a length outside off, Rahane opens the face of the bat and slices it to deep backward point

85.6 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, good length and outside off, Saha lifts his bat over his shoulder and lets it go. A wicket-maiden for Kyle Abbott

85.5 - Kyle Abbott to W Saha, no run, pitched up outside off, left alone

Wriddhiman Saha, right handed bat, comes to the crease

85.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, out Lbw!! Unplayable. The crowd can't believe it. As does Kohli. A grubber and raps Kohli on the pad right in front of all three. They are checking for the no-ball but Kyle Abbott is fine. Angled in towards off and middle, stayed low and defeated Kohli's back foot defence, when the ball stays so low and is in line, you got to consider yourself very unlucky. Kohli's dream of getting a Test hundred on his home ground has been shattered. Has to wait a bit longer for that to be realised. But a fine hand nonetheless. Reward for the excellent Kyle Abbott. Kohli lbw b Kyle Abbott 88(165) [4s-10]

Kyle Abbott to Kohli, THAT'S OUT!! Lbw!!

85.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, back of a length outside off, left alone

85.2 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, good length on off, Kohli gets forward and pushes it to mid-on

85.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, so close to the outside edge. On a good length and bouncing outside off, Kohli got forward to block, but the ball held its line to miss the edge. Lovely delivery

84.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, SIX, what a good shot that is! Initially he was looking to duck as he expected the bouncer to rise much higher, but this stayed a bit down, then he ramped it over third man after arching his back. Got so much wood that it carried all the way, the fielder backpedalled but saw it go over his head. Terrific timing from Rahane as he used the pace of Morkel

84.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, good length outside off, Rahane gets forward and defends to the right of point. A loud call of "no" to Kohli

Morkel loses his run-up

84.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, angled in on off and middle, clipped wide of mid-on, Tahir does the fielding

84.3 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, full and outside off, Kohli shuffles across and presses it to mid-on. Rehearses his forward defence again after the ball rolls to the fielder

84.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, this short ball hurries Rahane on the pull, spliced it over Bavuma at square leg, the little fellow is very quick and slides to prevent the second. Superb fielding to keep it to a single

84.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, short and wide outside off, Kohli reaches out and slashes it hard square of the wicket, there is protection in the deep though

83.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, back of a length outside off, again punched with an open face, but Faf runs to his left at backward point and makes the stop. Prevents any runs

83.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, pitched up outside off, Rahane is on the walk as he drives to mid-off

83.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, FOUR, shot! Superbly played by Rahane. On a back of a length and rising outside off, Rahane stands tall and punches behind point, it was in the air but in the gap. He has decided to play his strokes. Kyle Abbott just wears a resigned look

83.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 1 run, good length and angling in, tucked off the back foot to deep mid-wicket, Kohli wanted two but the fielder was in quickly

83.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, full outside off, Rahane strides forward and punches it straight down the ground, hits Kyle Abbott on the shin and deflects away. They take a single

83.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 1 run, big swing for Kyle Abbott and he almost raps Kohli on the pad. Only an inside edge onto the pad saved Kohli, who was trying to flick after getting his front foot across, the ball rolls wide of AB at slip who shies and gives away an overthrow. There was no backing up

82.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Rahane plays with an open face and guides it towards backward point

82.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, FOUR, slashed away, full and wide outside off from Morkel, Rahane throws his hands at that, hit intentionally in the air and to the left of a diving backward point, it was in the air but well wide of the fielder, brings up the first boundary of the morning

82.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fuller length delivery and just outside off, hint of swing for Morkel, Rahane looks to drive and mistimes it towards the bowler

82.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fraction too straight from Morkel, gets some extra bounce as well, Rahane drops his bottom hand and nudges it behind square on the on-side

82.2 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, back of a length and just outside off, Kohli gets behind the line, plays with an open face and guides it backward of square on the off-side for a single

82.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a length and in that channel outside off, almost drew Kohli into a hesitant poke, he withdraws his shot at the last moment and lets it go

81.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Rahane stays back and punches it towards cover-point

81.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, angled in towards off and middle, Rahane is late on the back foot defence, the ball rolls to square leg off the thick inside edge

81.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, swing for Abbott but the line is outside off, Rahane gets forward and leaves to the keeper, dies on the way to Vilas

81.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, third leave in a row as Abbott gets swing after pitching it up outside off

81.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, well wide of off, easy leave that time

81.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, fullish and seams away after pitching, nice line to begin with, Rahane gets forward and then leaves

It is a very cool morning in Delhi. Hazy and smoggy as well. The South Africans are ambling along to the centre. Their heads are down already. Rahane and Kohli punch gloves before walking out. The latter is eyeing his first hundred of the series. Once he gets there, one can say shots being played. Abbott has the new ball.

"There is the normal wear and tear which you would see with the bowler's footmarks. However there are spots from which the ball might bounce awkwardly. However, Kohli and Rahane showed that if you have the patience you can actually survive. It's not going to get any easier though with these spots coming into play and expect wickets to fall more frequently," predicts Sunil Gavaskar in his pitch report

Yesterday was actually a pretty important day from India's point of view. Their skipper fought himself into some good batting form. Rahane properly buried his Kotla ghosts. And the duo displayed some currently-out-of-fashion grit and patience to stick it out. Now here is something for the traditional cricket purists to chug on - 190 runs were scored yesterday at a rate of 2.35. But it should be a lot different today and fancy India to come out hard. Interesting to see if South Africa, especially their pacers, keep bounding in like they have done manfully all series. Or maybe they just adhere to the doomsday predictions and go through the motions.

Day 4: How much is too much? No, I am not talking about your kingly Sunday morning breakfast, which you can't have enough of anyway. I reckon that India will wait till Kohli completes his ton, maybe Rahane as well, and then throw a little burst at South Africa before Lunch. Whenever they do declare eventually, there is enough time to bowl South Africa out. Heck, they can bowl South Africa out twice the way they have batted so far.

How many more runs will India add? Will there be an overnight declaration? Can the bowlers take 10 wickets and complete the 3-0 demolition tomorrow itself or will South Africa fight and take this Test to the final day? Do join us for all the action tomorrow. For now, cheers and bye..

Coming to the Indian batting, it was a Kohli-show after a long, long time. The local boy might have fallen prey to bad luck in the first innings but he made sure that there were no hiccups during his second outing and went onto score his first fifty of the series. While others found it a little tough to get the scoreboard ticking, Kohli was smooth with his stroke-making. Even Rahane deserves a mention for his compact innings. From an Indian perspective, it is great to see him amongst the runs in home conditions. Tomorrow, the only question would be when does Kohli declare? However, that would hardly matter, for South Africa are down and almost out. Just to support my argument, 400 has never been chased down in Tests in India.

Stumps, Day 3: Another day that has gone India's way. Going into the second innings, they were already on top and made sure that they shut the doors on a South African comeback. Talking about today, Amla's men put up a neck and neck fight till the second session. But the weight of the lead conceded in the first innings eventually hampered their morale, allowing Kohli and Rahane to take the game further away from them. The only takeaway for South Africa was Morkel's bowling. He did not let the match situation deter him and troubled the batters regularly. However, South Africa would be disappointed with the way their spinners bowled. There were rough marks and cracks on offer but none among the trio of Tahir, Elgar and Piedt optimized it. The odd ball did dance but was not enough to break the partnership.

Dharmasena takes another reading with the lightmeter. He doesn't look too happy and that will be stumps on Day 3. India finish Day 3 at 190/4, an overall lead of 403 runs. A slow day by any standards, India seemed to have decided just to bat and bat all day, runs were never a necessity, it was all about pushing the South Africans on the back foot - and they have done it so successfully.

80.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a length and angling onto Kohli's pads, he looks to flick and is struck high on the pads

Morkel loses his run-up at the last moment and pulls out of his delivery stride. Another false start..

80.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a length and holding its line outside off, Kohli covers the line, lifts his bat and lets it go

South Africa have taken the second new ball. The second slip is back as well

80.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, the bouncer from Morkel, Kohli ducks under it and lets it go

80.3 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, defended with a solid stride forward

Second slip goes back to third man

80.2 - M Morkel to Kohli, FOUR, nicely played by Kohli, short of a good length and just outside off, Kohli waits on it, opens the face of the bat at the last moment and dabs it past second slip, India's lead is now 403

80.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of a length and just outside off, Kohli hops across and defends it back at the bowler

Two slips and a short mid-wicket in place..

Morne Morkel [16.0-6-25-3] is back into the attack

The second new ball is due now, will Amla take it? The light isn't at its best and the umpires might be wary about two pacers bowling with a brand new cherry. The fourth umpire comes out with the second new ball, Morkel is getting ready for another spell. It's not yet taken, Morkel will continue with the old ball..

79.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, this one is given plenty of air, Rahane gets well forward and blocks

79.5 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, slower and on the stumps, punched down towards long-on for a run

79.4 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, flatter and well outside off, Kohli plays with an open face and guides it towards backward point

79.3 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, pushed through by Elgar, ends up drifting onto Rahane's pads, nudged away in front of square on the on-side for a single

79.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, tossed up and wider outside off, driven straight to the fielder at short extra cover

79.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flatter and just outside off, Rahane makes room and cracks it straight to the fielder at short cover

Dean Elgar [7.0-1-17-0] is back into the attack

The light is fading and Amla will continue with spin, it's Elgar who's on

78.6 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, fraction short and just outside off, punched off the back foot towards mid-on

78.5 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, pushed through flatter and on middle, stayed a tad low as well, Kohli goes back and blocks it

78.4 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, slower and just outside off, Kohli prods across and defends it towards the on-side

78.3 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, full and wide from Tahir, Kohli leans forward and drives it towards short extra cover, there's a fumble and Kohli wants a run, the back-up fielder gets across quickly and prevents it

78.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, flighted delivery and well outside off, Kohli lunges forward and defends it

78.1 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, tossed up and well outside off, Kohli goes hard on the drive and mistimes it towards mid-on

77.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, short of a length and holding its line well outside off, left alone

77.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 1 run, short of a length and angling back into Kohli's pads, tucked away in front of square on the on-side for a single

77.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, on a good length and well outside off, Kohli plays away from his body and gets a toe-edge, wide of the lone slip

Looks like the ball has gone out of shape. We are just 15 deliveries away from the second new ball, the fourth umpire comes out with a set of replacements.

77.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, tad fuller and just outside off, Rahane works it to the left of mid-wicket for a single

77.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 2 runs, workmanlike fifty for Rahane, perhaps one of his slowest efforts as well, he doesn't realize that he has passed a milestone, Kohli gets across and pats him on the back. On a good length and just outside off, Rahane was pushing forward and gets a thick outside edge behind square on the off-side, runs hard and comes back for the second run

77.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, on a good length and just outside off, Rahane gets a good stride forward and defends it back towards the bowler

76.6 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, slower and just outside off, Rahane plays with an open face and eases it square past cover for a run

76.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and just outside off, Rahane gets his bat and pad close as he defends

76.4 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, Tahir drops one short and well outside off, Kohli gets on top of the bounce and cuts it square on the off-side for a single, there's a man in the deep

76.3 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, Tahir drifts one on the off-stump line, Kohli makes room and drives it towards extra cover

76.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, tossed up outside off and spinning away, Kohli doesn't need to play at those, left alone

76.1 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, the leg-break from Tahir, Kohli gets well forward and defends it towards the off-side

75.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and on the off-stump line, might have stayed a touch low as well, Rahane gets behind the line and defends it

75.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, this time to the right of Piedt at backward point, back of a length and well outside off, Rahane got on top of the bounce and dabbed it square on the off-side

75.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, short of a length and well outside off, Rahane was looking to work it towards the off-side, gets a toe-edge to the left of backward point

75.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, on a good length and on the stumps, Rahane presses across, presents a straight bat and pushes it towards mid-on

75.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, tad fuller and on the stumps, Rahane gets forward, presents the full face of the bat and punches it to the left of mid-on. Faf gets across and has a shy at the bowler's end, he missed it by a long way, nearly took out his bowler who wasn't watching the action

75.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 1 run, almost chopped on, short of a good length and just outside off, Kohli was looking to dab it down towards third man, played with an angled bat as well, gets an inside edge past leg-stump for a single

74.6 - Tahir to Rahane, FOUR, that has been clubbed! Rahane picked up the length early, gets close to the pitch of the ball and drills it to the left of mid-on, beat the fielder and races away to the fence in a hurry

74.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, nicely tossed up by Tahir, spins from middle, Rahane gets his bat in front of the pads and blocks

74.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, slightly short and just outside off, Rahane makes room and cuts it towards backward point

74.3 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, slower and just outside off, worked with the spin towards mid-on for a single

74.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, this one is given more air, Kohli used his wrists and was looking to force it towards the on-side, gets an inside edge back towards the bowler

74.1 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, flighted delivery and on the stumps, punched down towards long-on for a single

The floodlights are beginning to take effect now. Will Amla bring on his other quick as well? South Africa have nothing to gain by bowling more overs. For the moment, Tahir will continue

73.6 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, fraction fuller and on the stumps, Kohli shuffles across and defends it towards the on-side

73.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, Abbott shortens his length on off, Kohli presses across, closes the face of the bat and turns it towards the on-side

73.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, tad fuller and just outside off, Kohli presses forward and defends it with a straight bat, the ball slowly goes on and hits the stumps at the other end

73.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, on a good length and in that channel outside off, Kohli gets a big stride forward, lifts his bat and lets it go

73.2 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Kohli stays back, plays with an angled bat and defends it towards cover-point

Just one slip for Abbott

73.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, short of a length and just outside off, Kohli presses across and nudges it towards the on-side

Kyle Abbott [14.0-5-33-0] is back into the attack

72.6 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, flighted and on the leg-stump line, Kohli gets a good stride forward and eases it down towards long-on

72.5 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, pushed through flatter and down the leg-side, Kohli covers the line and lets it go, the ball slides past the leg-stump

72.4 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, the attempted wrong 'un from Tahir, doesn't land it perfectly, Rahane was looking to play the sweep, gets a bottom edge and the ball rolls away backward of square on the on-side for a single

72.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, this one is given more air, Rahane gets half forward and defends it

72.2 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up and on Kohli's pads, nudged in front of backward square for a single

The floodlights have been switched on

72.1 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, flighted delivery and on Rahane's pads, nudged away behind square on the on-side for a single

Tahir, from round the wicket. A slip and a FSL in place

Drinks are on the field now! After watching India's approach this session, I guess it's safe to say they are in no hurry whatsoever. Just looking to build on some batting form. And why not! The series is won. Their batsmen are short of runs. So why not.

71.6 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, milks a single down to mid-on

71.5 - Elgar to Rahane, FOUR, loopy full toss, Rahane takes a couple of strides forward looking to pummel it across the line, might have sliced it slightly, lobs up in the air but enough to clear the infield. The fielder at mid-on gives chase, slides and flicks the ball back in. But his foot was in contact with the ropes while he did so

71.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, well flighted ball outside off, driven hard to mid-on

71.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, tossed up outside off, defended towards point

71.2 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, flatter and sliding onto the stumps, Kohli clips it through mid-wicket

71.1 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, slow, loopy, teased up outside off, Kohli leaves it alone

Dean Elgar [6.0-1-11-0] is back into the attack

70.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, well flighted leg-break just outside off, defended into the off-side

70.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, tossed up outside off, pushed to cover

70.4 - Tahir to Rahane, FOUR, very slow by Tahir standards, hence resulted in Rahane being too early with his sweep, gets it right off the bottom of the bat but manages it drag it through mid-wicket

70.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, tossed up on off, poked into the off-side

70.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, flipper just outside off, drives it on the up to cover

70.1 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, flatter googly turning in from outside off, turns a lot more than Rahane expected and he is hit on the thigh pad after missing with his clip. Too high though and going down

69.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, FOUR, now Kohli with a sweep. Rarely plays it but times this one well. Sits down on his back knee, the length was perfect and the line was on leg stump, cracks it behind square. That was a daisy-cutter. First hundred stand of the series and the two batsmen embrace each other

69.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, worked to short mid-wicket

69.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, looped up on the stumps, works it down to long-on

69.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, 2 runs, slowish and lands on a length in line with leg stump, Rahane looks to hack it fine, misses and the ball hits the pad. Rahane had quite an extended followthrough, and ended up knocking the ball off the back of the bat behind backward point. It actually went in the air through where first slip would have been. Amla was there initially but had moved across to his left to intercept the sweep. Might have been a chance

69.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, fullish and worked down to long-on, Faf tried to cut it off from his position at mid-wicket with a desperate dive but didn't even get a hand

69.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, wrists a loopy delivery to mid-on

68.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, teases up the googly outside off, Rahane spots it, gets a good stride in and defends into the off-side

68.5 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, drifting onto the pads, a turn of the wrists to flick it through mid-wicket

68.4 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, slightly short and skidding on outside off, Kohli waits on the back foot, lets it come on and dabs it to backward point, might have wanted to hit it much finer than he eventually did

68.3 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, some air on this leg-break, Kohli eases it to mid-off

68.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, looks to whip this away, was bowled quicker through the air and on a length, Kohli went on the back foot trying to muscle a pull maybe, ends up swatting it to mid-wicket

68.1 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, a nice floaty leg-break, dips on a length on off, doesn't turn enough to trouble Kohli on the front foot

67.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up slightly more on the stumps, DEFENDED

67.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, drifting across off, Rahane pushes it towards point off the back foot

67.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, stays slightly low from behind a length as it was pushed through, Rahane turns it to FSL

Forgot to mention that Piedt is bowling from round the wicket..

67.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, almost a similar delivery like the previous one, simply skids on and traces the middle of Rahane's front foot defence

67.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, pushed through the air and sliding on from a length on leg, Rahane stays beside the line of the ball and blocks it back down the pitch

67.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, flatter ball on the stumps, drops it slightly short as well, Kohli moves towards the leg-side on the back foot and whips it through square leg

Dane Piedt [16.0-1-44-0] is back into the attack

66.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, teased up and dipping on a length just outside off, Rahane languidly moves on the front foot and pats it away into the off-side

66.5 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, the upper body leans towards the pitch of this flighted delivery and pushes it through the pockets of space between short cover and point

66.4 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, flatter on the pads, clipped to mid-wicket

66.3 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, only slightly short, not very wide either, Kohli manufactures the room by moving leg-side and cuts it well. Finds backward point though

66.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, flighted leg-break on off, Kohli pushes it with the turn to the right of cover where the fielder is quick to intercept and cut it off

66.1 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, pushed through the air, drifts in and lands around leg before turning away, Rahane had to crouch slightly on the back foot as the ball stayed low before punching it in front of backward point

65.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, his feet are moving nicely. Anything in his half and he is well forward. Blunts it towards cover. But their approach tells me that the plan is to bat the Proteas into the dirt. Might well bat till Lunch tomorrow morning

65.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, length ball slipping down leg, Kohli reaches out to kiss it fine but fails to lay bat on the glance

65.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, Kohli jumps with the bounce of this short of length delivery, which means that he originally intended to play at it, but sees it bouncing like a tennis-ball and then drops his wrists to sway out of the line

65.3 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of length delivery outside off, Kohli lets it pass

65.2 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, overpitched and bending back in on off and middle, flicked crisply to mid-wicket

65.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of length delivery climbing on Kohli as he was looking to turn it away on the back foot, gets big on him and hits the glove before rolling away behind square. Rahane had hurtled halfway down the pitch looking for a single but Kohli was going nowhere seeing the fielder swoop in

64.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, goes back and punches this flatter delivery to backward point

64.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, looped up on off, Rahane defends cautiously on the front foot

64.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, Vilas lets out a "yeah" after pouching the ball. He thinks there is a clear edge. Dharmasena remains unflappable. The South African close-in fielders can't believe it. Plenty of hands on hips. But it's a top, top decision from the ump. Tahir gives this leg-break a lot of air, the dip yanks it on a length out of Rahane's defensive reach and then it turns to beat the edge. There is a noise as the ball went past but that was the bat hitting the ground

64.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, dipping on a length on off, Rahane presses forward to defend

64.2 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up nicely just outside off, opens the bat-face and guides it through the cover region after a big lunge forward

64.1 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, well flighted ball, the drift takes it down leg, Kohli uses his footwork to get behind the line and works it to mid-on

Imran Tahir [13.0-3-29-1] is back into the attack

63.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, pitched up on off stump, Kohli presses forward and pushes it in front of mid-on who is caught on his heels, allows a comfortable single

63.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, short of length delivery outside off, Kohli drops it with soft hands in front of point

63.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, 1 run, ooh, scathing. Climbs concerningly from a short of length, the line was awkward as well, just under the armpit, Rahane gets himself into a tangle looking to fend it away, is rapped on the gloves but manages to keep it down. Trickles away in the leg-side. That premeditated movement forward means that he gets into awkward positions to ball leaping at him

63.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of length delivery in line with the stumps, hurries onto Rahane as he was pushing forward, splices it at his feet

63.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, full ball outside off, Rahane is least bothered

Meanwhile, Steyn is enjoying himself on the sidelines. Knows exactly how to sway the crowd. He would have been handful with the reversing ball

63.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, the angle takes this length delivery on middle and leg, glanced down to fine leg

Morne Morkel [14.0-5-22-3] is back into the attack

62.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, lots of loop outside off, however not much revs imparted, turns only slightly, Rahane leaves it untouched

62.5 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, flatter delivery sliding into the pads, Kohli clips it through square leg

62.4 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, overpitching outside off, cracks the drive but straight to the man at extra-cover

62.3 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, floated up on a length just outside off, Kohli had made the decision to leave it pretty early, the ball skids on and almost kisses his front pad through to the keeper

62.2 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, lots of inward drift, means that the ball ends up on Kohli's pads, he wrists it to mid-on

62.1 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, tossed above the eyeline, very full outside off, Rahane goes very hard on the cover-drive, mistimes it and the ball goes labouring to deep cover

Well, if the idea is to make South Africa bat for a bit this evening, they certainly have done well to masquerade it. Slow going after Tea

61.6 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, full outside off, nothing doing

61.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, full ball just outside off, Kohli is very far forward in defence, elegantly blocks it into the off-side bending his back knee

61.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, length ball tailing back in from wide of off, Kohli stays flat-footed on the crease and offers only half the bat, was trying to run it down to third man. Doesn't get the desired connection and lumbers it to backward point instead

61.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, on a back of a length and too wide of off, a shuffle across before leaving it alone

61.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, 1 run, slightly treacherous, playing round your front pad to a ball shaping back in, miss that and you are gone. But he didn't. Flicks it to fine leg

61.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, back of a length delivery just outside off, Rahane almost defends it on the walk to cover

60.6 - Elgar to Kohli, 2 runs, push, push, push and Kohli has pushed his way to a second run. Went right back in his crease to a flatter delivery sliding on towards leg-stump, nudges it softly behind square. Knew how hard he had hit it and was always looking to rush back for a couple

60.5 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, looped up full outside off, driven to deep cover

60.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flatter delivery sliding on after pitching outside off, Rahane goes leg-side to make room and punches it well. Can't get it past backward point

60.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, well flighted and drifting in on off, forward and defended

60.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, slightly short outside off, Rahane limply cuts it towards cover, didn't really look to pack a punch. It was there for the taking

60.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, lots of air and dipping on off, Rahane doesn't allow it to turn with a good stride forward

59.6 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, pitched up and swerving in from outside off, Kohli meets the pitch of it with a big lunge and smothers it down

59.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, back of a length delivery outside off, and he's pecked it to backward point. Just don't get the point of this stroke. Not going to fetch him any runs. Only thing it's going to do is land him in trouble

59.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, too wide to tempt even a Kohli to hang his bat, left alone

59.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, angled back in on a back of a length, Kohli stands tall, moves across slightly and drops it with soft hands beside the pitch

59.2 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, fuller and wider, gimme a drive, gimme a drive. Kohli resists. Gets a big stride in before leaving it alone

59.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, Kohli is all at sea currently against Abbott. Now one stays low. Back of a length delivery outside off, Kohli pokes at it but the ball scoots under his willow, might have slightly played outside the line of it as well

58.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, tossed up just outside off, defended into the off-side

58.5 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, quicker and flatter, sliding on towards middle, Kohli works it to the right of mid-on and hustles across

58.4 - Elgar to Kohli, 2 runs, very full outside off, makes room and strokes a drive through the cover region, and some clumsy work from Morkel in the deep. Fires in a wild throw allowing an extra run

58.3 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, goes back to a slightly short ball and gets right behind the line

58.2 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, "catch du Plessis" shrieks the keeper, but it falls well short of him. The flight draws Kohli forward into the drive, holds up on him and he has to check his shot. Ended up chipping it in front of cover. Safe

58.1 - Elgar to Rahane, 1 run, loop and dip, lands on a length just outside off, Rahane pats it in front of point, there's a pocket of space and allows a comfortable single

57.6 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, brilliant over from Abbott. Kept Kohli on tenterhooks right through. Back of a length delivery veering back in towards off, Kohli looked to work it across the line and finds an inside edge onto pad

57.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, FOUR, now beaten on the other edge. Well, not completely beaten. He got a thick outside edge after being squared up by a ball which straightened off the pitch. Goes to ground and wide of a diving second slip before skimming away to the third man fence

57.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, Kohli is cut in half by a back of a length delivery jagging back off the pitch. He dangled his bat to play at it after being stuck on the crease, the ball comes back in, through the gate and whistles over the off-bail

57.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, back of a length delivery outside off, Kohli doesn't get across and softly punches it away from the body towards mid-off

57.2 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, prodigious inward dip, pitched right up and was gunning for off-stump, Kohli hurries to bring his bat down, ended up playing round his front pad towards square leg. Moral victory for the bowler here. But unfortunately it doesn't show in the scorebook

57.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, back of a length delivery on that sixth-seventh stump line, so far so good from Kohli. Not tempted into a poke

56.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, well wide of off, Rahane kicks it away after swishing the bat behind his back

56.5 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, nicely flighted again, very slow, forward and defended

56.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, Elgar is almost lobbing 'em up in the air. Not much turn off the pitch though and meets the dead-straight bat of Rahane

56.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, looped up outside off, Rahane strides across and gently taps it to cover

56.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, sliding in on middle from a length, bunted to mid-on

56.1 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, punched to sweeper cover and that brings up a much-required fifty for the Indian skipper. He has been short of runs for quite some time now. Shakes hands with his partner and gives a thumbs-up to the dressing room

Dean Elgar [2.0-1-1-0] is back into the attack

Well, just one over for Piedt after the break. Elgar on for him now. One slip in place

55.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, hooping back in on a fuller length, once more Rahane's loose grip means that the bat turns in his hands while pushing forward and sends it towards mid-wicket

55.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, that must have hit a crack. Rahane was initially looking to poke at it, sees the ball leap and veer off the surface and withdraws

55.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, uff, that was close! The ball teases leg-stump but rolls well wide of it in the end. Length ball just outside off, Rahane pushes forward and thrusts his hands in front of the body to bunt it into the off-side, gets an inside edge which clips the pad and misses the stumps

55.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, pitched right up and bending back in, Rahane accounts for the movement, moves his front foot as late as possible to get beside the pitch of the delivery and punches it to mid-on

55.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, stays a touch low from a length outside off, didn't warrant a stroke due to the wideish line, and Rahane doesn't offer one either

55.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, dipping in on off stump from a fuller length, Rahane's bat turns in his hands while attempting a straight drive and mistimes it to mid-on

Kyle Abbott [10.0-3-28-0] is back into the attack

54.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, hangs it up in the air landing almost yorker length on middle, Kohli moves his leg out of the way and rolls his wrists on the ball towards mid-wicket

54.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, 2 runs, goes deep in the crease to a flatter delivery, the turn was taking it down leg, lets it come on and tickles the glance very fine. Holds up in the outfield and fetches him a couple

54.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, straight line once more, Kohli neatly clips it to short mid-wicket

54.3 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, well flighted on middle, turned to FSL

54.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, FOUR, that's a terrific shot. He had to stretch out for the drive. Drifting away well wide of off with the angle, the length was very full, Kohli reaches out and roundhouses the drive through the cover region

Switches to round the wicket..

54.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, FOUR, and there's the straight ball. Beautifully looped up outside off, threatens to rip off the pitch but instead just skids on, catches a thick edge as Kohli came forward to defend and runs away wide of Amla

Right then, final session coming up. I expect India to push on here. Get their eyes in once more and then take toll of the tiring South African bodies. That must be the plan. Out come the players. There is a sense of purpose in Kohli's walk while the South Africans are just dawdling along. Dane Piedt it will be to get us underway. A slip and short-leg waiting..

Earlier, in what looked like a repeat of the morning session, South Africa scalped two early wickets to send the Indian batsmen on the back foot. Morkel started the session on a high and cleaned up Dhawan with a perfect yorker. To be honest, Dhawan had concentrated hard but never looked comfortable during his stay in the middle. If Dhawan fell prey to a ripper, it was a flipper from Tahir which turned away a little to breach the defence of Pujara. There is certainly a brick missing in his wall as he keeps getting out in similar fashion. Things could have been grave for India had Tahir not overstepped when Kohli was adjudged caught behind off him. The Indian skipper looked miffed with the decision and took his time before starting to leave. However, umpire Oxenford went upstairs and Kohli got a reprieve. It has been an exciting day so far and the visitors are trying hard but the general feeling is that the ship has sailed. Join us shortly for the final session...

Tea, Day 3: It might have taken India more than three and a half hours to get 100 on the board but they will be happy with the way things panned out in the second session. Virat Kohli played like the commander-in-chief and saw the lead swell up to 300. He was well supported by Rahane, who has not been as authoritative as the first innings but decent enough to keep the danger at bay. Both the batsmen had a shaky start and took their time to settle in. But since they have all the time in the world, it is not going to hurt India's plan.

53.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, Elgar drifts one on the leg-stump line, Rahane lunges forward and defends it towards square leg. That's tea on Day 3

53.5 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, this one is given more air, Rahane plays with an open face and drives it towards cover

53.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flighted and just outside off, Rahane prods forward and defends it

53.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, appeal for LBW, but the angle was taking it down the leg-side, this was the slider from Elgar, went through with the angle and pinged Rahane on the pads, in front of leg-stump. Not a chance though

53.2 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, slower and on the off-stump line, Rahane blocks it with a dead defensive blade

53.1 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and on the stumps, defended with a straight bat

52.6 - Tahir to Kohli, FOUR, nicely played by Kohli, pushed through outside leg, Kohli waits on it, uses Tahir's pace and glances it very fine past the keeper, no need to run for those

52.5 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, pushed through with a flatter trajectory, Kohli stays back and defends it with a straight bat

52.4 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, Tahir tosses one on the leg-stump line, defended back towards the bowler. Tahir fumbled but the batsmen decide against a single

52.3 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, Tahir gives this one more air, eased down towards long-off for a single

52.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, pushed through on off, blocked with a straight bat

52.1 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up and well outside off, punched down towards long-off for a single

Imran Tahir [12.0-3-23-1] is back into the attack

51.6 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, flighted delivery and on the stumps, Rahane is happy to block it back at the bowler

51.5 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, this one is given more air and on the off-stump line, Rahane gets well forward on the defensive stride

51.4 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, Elgar drifts one just outside off, Rahane prods forward and blocks

51.3 - Elgar to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane gets well forward and blocks

51.2 - Elgar to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up and just outside off, driven with a straight bat towards long-off for a run

51.1 - Elgar to Kohli, no run, flighted and just outside off, Kohli gets his bat and pad close as he blocks

Elgar replaces Morkel, just one slip in place. He's starting from round the wicket

Dean Elgar, left-arm orthodox, comes into the attack

50.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one is given plenty of air outside off, Rahane lunges forward and smothers the spin

50.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, pushed through flatter and on the stumps, Kohli brought his bat down late, gets an inside edge behind square on the on-side

50.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, slower and just outside off, Kohli stays back and defends it with a straight bat

50.3 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, flighted delivery and just outside off, Kohli plays with the spin and works it wide of mid-wicket. Faf fumbles but Duminy was backing him up, no run

50.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, tossed up and spinning into Kohli, turned towards FSL

50.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, flighted and just outside off, Kohli gets forward and defends it

Piedt from over the wicket

49.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, on a good length and a hint of shape back into Rahane, draws the batsman into an uncertain prod forward and rolls away towards the on-side, off the inside edge

49.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and holding its line outside off, left alone, bounces twice before going to Vilas

Two slips and a short mid-wicket in place

49.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, FOUR, good cricket all around, this was the inswinging yorker from Morkel, Rahane watches it all along, closes the face of the bat at the last minute, takes it on the full and clips it past square leg for a boundary

49.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Rahane leans forward and defends it towards mid-on

49.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, on a good length and angling back into the right-hander, Rahane shuffles across, closes the bat face on impact and pushes it towards mid-on

49.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fuller length delivery and just outside off, punched back towards the bowler

48.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, flighted delivery and well outside off, Kohli prods across and defends it towards the off-side, he wanted a run but is sent back by Rahane

48.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, tossed up and well outside leg, Rahane bends down onto his knees and sweeps it behind square on the on-side for a single

48.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, this one is given more air, Kohli gets to the pitch of the ball and drives it towards long-on

48.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, Piedt drops one short and well outside off, Rahane rocks back and pulls it wide of mid-wicket for a single

48.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up and well outside off, Rahane gets well forward and defends it

48.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, flatter and on the stumps, punched towards deep mid-wicket for a single

47.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, another loud shout for LBW, but once again umpire Oxenford remains unmoved. On a good length and a hint of shape back into Rahane, he got a big stride across, lifted his bat and let it go, the ball jagged back in to strike the top of the pad, but it wasn't doing enough to come back and hit the stumps, the height was an issue as well

47.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, huge movement for Morkel, but Rahane has judged it to perfection, short of a good length and angling back in, Rahane covers the line, lifts his bat and lets it go

47.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Rahane gets behind the line and defends it

47.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fuller length delivery and angling back into Rahane, he meets ith with a firm punch back towards the bowler, was in the air for a while but bounced well in front of the bowler. Replays suggest that the ball did carry, but it hit Morkel's shin even before he could bend down, just got a right hand on that and deflected onto his leg. Very tough chance, but a chance nonetheless

47.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, on a good length and just outside off, Rahane defends it solidly with a straight bat

47.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, too straight from Morkel, ends up angling onto Kohli's pads, nudged in front of mid-on for a quick single, brings up India's 100 as well

Coming to that leg-side caught behind call off Rahane, Ultra Edge showed a spike as the bat went past the ball. Only Morkel went up, neither did Vilas nor the slip cordon. Has Rahane got lucky?

46.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane gets well forward and blocks

Back to round the wicket

46.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, 2 runs, flighted delivery and well outside off, Piedt is back to over the wicket for Rahane, he nudges it behind square on the off-side. Morkel lumbers across from backward point and keeps them down to a brace

46.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, tad too short from Piedt, Kohli uses the depth of the crease and whips it towards deep mid-wicket for a single

46.3 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, flighted and well outside off, Kohli prods across and defends it with an angled bat, the ball rolls away towards backward point

46.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Kohli gets well forward and defends it towars straightish mid-wicket

46.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, FOUR, edged and four, this was the slider from Piedt, went with the angle outside off, Kohli was playing for the turn, plays with soft hands, gets an outside edge past Amla at first slip

45.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, on a good length and just outside off, Rahane leans forward and defends it towards the off-side

45.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, 2 runs, the ball is definitely reversing for Morkel, full and tailing back in sharply, Rahane just about brings his bat down in time, gets a thick inside edge past mid-wicket for a couple of runs

45.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, fuller length delivery and sliding onto Rahane's pads, he looks to flick and misses. Morkel was excited for a while but Dane Vilas isn't

45.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, lovely delivery, huge appeal for a caught behind, but Oxenford says NO, and it's a cracker of a call as well. This was a leg-cutter from Morkel, fast and on a good length just outside off, drew Rahane into the flick before leaving him, he's completely opened up once again. The ball misses the outside edge, clips the flap of the back pad and it's taken by Vilas. The South Africans were convinced, but the umpire's finger stayed down. It couldn't have been LBW as well, the impact was well outside off and the height was an issue as well

The short cover moves across to gully now

45.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, short of a good length and just outside off, Rahane plays with an open face and defends it towards cover-point

A man on the drive now, at short cover - almost staring at the face of Rahane

45.1 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, a corker first up, on a good length and a hint of shape away from outside off, Rahane was moving forward on the defensive push, is completely opened up and is beaten on the outside edge

Two slips in place as Morkel comes back

Morne Morkel [11.0-5-15-3] is back into the attack

44.6 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, tossed up and on the stumps, Kohli gets a good stride forward, plays with the spin and turns it towards the on-side

44.5 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, slower and just outside off, Kohli goes right back and blocks it

44.4 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, tossed up and just outside off, Kohli plays with a slightly closed face and defends it back towards the bowler

44.3 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, this one is given more air and drags Kohli wider outside off, he covers for the spin and defends it towards cover-point

44.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, slower and wider outside off, Kohli prods across and defends it towards the off-side

44.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, no run, tossed up wider outside off, Kohli plays with an open face and slices it towards backward point

43.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, very full and on the stumps, Rahane closes the face of the bat and drives it towards mid-on

43.5 - Tahir to Kohli, leg byes, 1 run, full toss on Kohli's pads, he was looking to flick and is beaten as the ball dipped onto him, it clips his pads and rolls away past the keeper

43.4 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, nice loopy leg-break from Tahir, Rahane plays with the turn and works it to the left of cover for a single

Just one slip and a FSL in place

43.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, tossed up on the leg-stump line, Rahane gets well forward and defends it towards FSL

43.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, the slider from Tahir, pushed through flatter and just outside off, Rahane stays back and defends it towards the off-side

43.1 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up and on the stumps, nudged away behind square on the on-side for a single

42.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, this one is given more air, the length is tad fuller and just outside off as well, Rahane lunges forward and smothers the spin

42.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slightly short and just outside off, Rahane makes room and punches it to the right of point

42.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane gets well forward and defends it

42.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, pushed through quicker and going with the angle, Rahane was looking to whip it towards the on-side, is beaten by the lack of bounce

42.2 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, Piedt drops one short and gets it to go with the angle, stays a tad low as well, Rahane was shaping for the cut, withdraws his shot at the last moment

42.1 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, tossed up and on the leg-stump line, Kohli drops his wrists and nudges it past FSL for a single

41.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, very full and on the stumps, Rahane was clearing his left leg, almost yorked himself in the process, does well to bring his bat down and jams it back towards the bowler

AB has left the field, not sure why, the substitute fielder comes on - Rabada is the man

41.5 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, this one is tad fuller and wider outside off, Kohli plays with an open face and pushes it square on the off-side for a single

41.4 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, Tahir tosses one slower and on the off-stump line, Kohli goes back and defends it with a straight bat

41.3 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, flatter and on the stumps, Kohli goes back and clips it towards mid-wicket

41.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, this one is given more air, Kohli gets forward, closes the face of the bat, plays against the spin and whips it towards mid-wicket

41.1 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, flighted and on the stumps, Kohli gets well forward and defends it towards the off-side

40.6 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, pushed through by Piedt, Rahane goes back on the flick, hits it in the air but well wide of FSL

40.5 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, tossed up and on off, Rahane gets a good stride forward in defence

40.4 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, slower and just outside off, Rahane backs away slightly and pushes it towards the off-side

40.3 - D Piedt to Rahane, no run, that spun a mile! This was flatter and just outside off, Rahane made room for the cut, the ball turned back into the right-hander, cramped him for room, he gets lucky as he manages an inside edge

40.2 - D Piedt to Kohli, 1 run, flighted and on Kohli's pads, he goes back and works it in front of square on the on-side for a single

40.1 - D Piedt to Rahane, 1 run, flatter and on the stumps, Rahane goes back and punches it to the right of the diving bowler for a single

Dane Piedt [9.0-0-19-0] is back into the attack

A slip and a FSL in place as Piedt comes on. He's bowling from round the wicket..

Phew, that was some hour of cricket. Riveting stuff. But now it's time to cool down and have a drink! Started off with an absolute ripper from Morkel. Broke the monk-like concentration of Dhawan and castled him with a searing yorker. He certainly couldn't do much with it. Then Tahir struck showing how potent a weapon he is when getting it right. Pujara has another 'BOWLED' against his name. That's something he needs to sort out. That problem has been like a 'back rash'. Just doesn't go away. Tahir could have had another one you know. But he overstepped. He overstepped, really. However, Kohli hadn't nicked it anyway. So justice was served.

39.6 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, slightly short and turning away outside off, Rahane is quick to make room while going back and cuts it to sweeper cover

39.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, slightly quicker through the air than the previous one, Rahane is pressing forward nicely and smothering it away

39.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, loop and dip on off, well forward to defend

39.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, a superbly tossed up wrong 'un, lands a bit too full on off, Rahane clips it with the turn but can't get it past a brilliant and diving Faf at mid-wicket

39.2 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, teased up on off, Kohli eases into the push down to long-off

39.1 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, nicely tossed up googly turning in from wide of off, Rahane winds up and flat-bats the drive to sweeper cover. Initally it looked like he wanted to blast it away. Checked his shot taking into account that it was the googly

38.6 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, closer to off stump on a length, defended right under his eyes

38.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, short of length delivery outside off, defended on the back foot into the off-side. Again, playing slightly away from the body. He keeps flirting with it

38.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, angling into the pads on a good length, the ball holds its line after pitching because of which Kohli is early in closing his bat-face. Finds a soft leading edge which goes to ground quickly

38.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, good length ball outside off, left alone

38.2 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, short of length delivery outside off, there. Right there. That's where he gets in trouble. Pokes it away from the body towards backward point. Any movement off the pitch and he's nicking it behind. Not on this occasion though

38.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, FOUR, oh gorgeous. That's a blistering extra-cover drive. Blistering as in figuratively. Half-volley wide of off, Kohli leans towards the ball while getting a good stride across and drives it superbly wide of mid-off

37.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, googly turning into off, Rahane blocks it obdurately on the front foot

37.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, floated up outside off, pushed to cover

37.4 - Tahir to Rahane, 2 runs, slightly too full on the stumps, Rahane whips it powerfully straight of Duminy at mid-on, he sprints across, dives but can only make a half-stop. Allows the batsmen to sneak in another run

37.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, nicely tossed up leg-break, meets the defensive blade of Rahane on the front foot

37.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, slightly short on middle and leg, Rahane sits on his back knee and attempts to pull it away fiercely, anticipated more bounce on that and gets a big bottom edge which smacks onto the pad and lobs straight up. Vilas tried to hustle forward but Rahane came in the way. Well in his right to do so, mind you. Doesn't need to make way for the fielder. Just stood his ground

37.1 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, this is good control from Tahir. Has been so impressive in this spell. Nicely looped up on a length on off, Rahane is well forward to defend into the off-side

36.6 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, short of length delivery wide of off, Kohli drops it with soft hands in front of point

36.5 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, length ball around the kryptonic sixth stump line, Kohli overcomes it by letting it go

36.4 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, probing away constantly outside off, this time on a fuller length, Kohli is decisively forward to defend

36.3 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, fraction full and closer to off, forward and blocked to cover

36.2 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, much better way to tackle a length delivery outside off, a big stride across and meets it under the eye before defending to cover

36.1 - Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 2 runs, angling into the pads of Kohli, he just doesn't miss out on anything there. Clips it behind square and sets off for two straightaway. He knew exactly where he'd hit it

35.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, gets very low down in his front foot defence and pats it away into the off-side

35.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, fullish on middle, whipped to mid-on

35.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, some more air on this leg-break which drops on a length on off, Rahane pushes it gently back to the bowler

35.3 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, very full on middle, strongly wristed straight of mid-on, Duminy rushes across and had to put in the dive to stop

35.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, skidding on from a length on off, Kohli defends it off the inside half of the bat

35.1 - Tahir to Kohli, 2 runs, pushed through the air but drifting down leg, Kohli flicks it through mid-wicket and Abbott has some ground to cover from his position at deep backward square. Easy couple

34.6 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, fraction fuller and close to off, defended on the front foot

34.5 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, on a good length outside off, Rahane lets it go

34.4 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, length ball wide of off, Rahane ain't interested in it

34.3 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, FOUR, big stride. Big, big stride. Gets him beside the pitch of the fuller length delivery wide of off, unfurls a crisp drive through the covers

34.2 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, a hint of inward movement from a good length, comes forward and defends into the off-side

34.1 - Kyle Abbott to Rahane, no run, tailing back in on off from a length, Rahane props forward after covering for the movement, blocks

Kyle Abbott [7.0-3-18-0] is back into the attack

33.6 - Tahir to Kohli, FOUR, short and flat on the stumps, that's the problem with Tahir at times. Kohli camps back and whips it through square leg. Bread and butter shot for him

33.5 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, tosses this outside off, very full, Kohli plays a whippy drive but cannot get it past a diving extra-cover fielder

33.4 - Tahir to Rahane, 1 run, drops it slightly short outside off, Rahane cuts it to sweeper cover

33.3 - Tahir to Kohli, 1 run, the flipper sliding onto middle, Kohli misjudges the length and plays on the back foot, just about gets his bat down in time to get an inside edge behind square

33.2 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, well flighted delivery on off, defended to cover

33.1 - Tahir to Kohli, no run, flat and fast googly on off, Kohli plays back to a full ball but manages to keep it out

33.1 - Tahir to Kohli, no ball, the finger has gone up. Kohli doesn't want to leave. Stands there for an eternity giving the umpire a big glare. Now, he's been asked to wait to check for the no-ball. And Tahir has overstepped. What a comical turn of events. Imran Tahir, you've cost yourself a wicket. Well flighted delivery turning away from a length outside off, Kohli comes forward, waits for the ball to arrive and then attempts to dab it fine. Looks like he failed to get any bat but the umpire adjudged him caught-behind. But that all came to nil. It seems like Rahane was keeping tabs on Tahir's front foot and asked the umpire to go upstairs as there was something fishy. You can't do that now, can you? And surely the umpire didn't go to the third umpire because of Rahane's persistence. Tell me he didn't. There is nothing on ultraedge so it's safe to say there was no bat involved in the first place. Okay, on further replays it is conclusive that Oxenford was going upstairs before Rahane had a word with him. Had removed his walkie-talkie to communicate with the third ump

32.6 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, that's the one. A hint of tail back in on a yorker length, it's low backlift time for Rahane, rushes to dig it out

32.5 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, now hangs back to a short of length of a length delivery and taps it into the pitch

32.4 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, again you can see the keenness from Rahane to press forward. Pretty hard to do against Morkel when he lands it on a length. But Rahane's whole weight leans forward with the upper body, and he knocks it to cover

32.3 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, Morkel is just drifting a bit too wide outside off, giving the new man nice early sighters

32.2 - M Morkel to Rahane, no run, length ball nipping back in, however it's too wide of off to induce a stroke

32.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, 1 run, back of a length delivery angling in on off, Kohli moves across, picks it from there and clips it down to fine leg

31.6 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, googly down leg, Rahane fails to get any bat on his glance

31.5 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, again given a decent amount of air, gets it to drift and pitch on a length, skids on and takes the inside half of the bat towards short leg

31.4 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, well flighted leg-break, dips on a length on off, Rahane is assertively forward in defence

31.3 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, looped up on the stumps, lands very full, Rahane clips it to short mid-wicket

31.2 - Tahir to Rahane, no run, greets the new man with a googly turning in from outside off, gave it a lot of air as well. Rahane is well forward and across to defend with bat and pad close

Ajinkya Rahane, right handed bat, comes to the crease

31.1 - Tahir to Pujara, out Bowled!! Wow. The South African bowlers are producing some real peaches after Lunch. That's a wonder ball from Tahir. And he's away to celebrate. Surely must have been a striker in his childhood days. That's how you celebrate goals, not wickets. Pushed quicker through the air on a length on off (flipper), Pujara played for the trajectory rather than the length and went back to defend, the ball spins away ever so slightly to open him up, beats the edge and pegs back the off-stump. Definitely should have been forward to it. It was the trajectory which defeated him. Pujara b Tahir 28(79) [4s-3]

Tahir to Pujara, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

30.6 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, length ball wide of off, Kohli lets it go

30.5 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, back of a length delivery in the channel outside off, Kohli stays rooted on the crease and meets it with a straight bat

30.4 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, pitched right up and wide of off, inviting a drive, Kohli turns it down

30.3 - M Morkel to Kohli, FOUR, full ball just outside off, Kohli gets a big stride across to get beside the line, opens the bat-face on impact to steer it behind a diving backward point. The key was that he played with bat and pad close together. But that's not the length which troubles him anyway. It's more when the ball is pitched behind a good length which has him poking away from the body

30.2 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, length ball outside off, Kohli leaves it alone for the keeper

30.1 - M Morkel to Kohli, no run, skiddy back of a length delivery, Kohli is neither forward nor back, but manages to keep it out

29.6 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, another wrong 'un, full and floated up, Pujara picks it early and taps it back down the pitch

29.5 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, flatter googly turning back in from a shortish length, Pujara camps back and pushes to cover

29.4 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, floated up on off, turns away slightly and Pujara is well forward to defend

29.3 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, the slider, pitches on a length just outside off and skids on, Pujara was on the move forward while squeezing it between the inside edge and pad. Half an appeal from the South Africans but he clearly got bat first

29.2 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, sliding down leg, Pujara fails to get his bat across in time for the flick and is thudded on the pad. Comfortably going down leg

29.1 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, looped up outside off, Pujara steps across and knocks it away into the off-side

Virat Kohli, right handed bat, comes to the crease

28.6 - M Morkel to Dhawan, out Bowled!! That's a searing yorker. WHAT. A. BALahore. Angled into the boots of Dhawan at pace from round the wicket, he drags them out of the way and rushes to bring his bat down. Way too late. The ball is already through him and clips leg-stump. If there is something called as 'Birthday luck', Dhawan certainly wasn't showered with it. Ripping delivery. Would have castled him 90 times out of 100. Meanwhile, the crowd has broken into chants of "Kohli, Kohli". Lots of support for the local lad. Dhawan b M Morkel 21(86) [4s-2]

M Morkel to Dhawan, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

28.5 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, closer to off on this occasion, Dhawan keeps it out while staying flat-footed on the crease

28.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, Morkel switches to round the wicket. Bowls it on a back of a length around the fifth stump, Dhawan pulls his bat inside the line and leaves it alone

28.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, dishes it up on a fuller length and angling away outside off, Dhawan props forward, sees the line and decides to let it go. He is seriously putting in a lot of effort is Dhawan. Usually like to throw his hands at anything outside off. This innings is different

28.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, bouncer but the line was slightly down leg, also sort of looped up over the batsman, Dhawan watches it sail over his right shoulder through to the keeper

28.1 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, now a trigger movement back and across, it was a back of a length delivery on off stump, Dhawan wrists it off the back foot towards mid-on

27.6 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, he uses the wrong 'un a lot. Another one. Nicely tossed up and turning in towards off from a length, Pujara picks it and works it with the turn to short mid-wicket

27.5 - Tahir to Dhawan, 1 run, looped up on the stumps, hard to tell if it was a googly as it pitched very full, Dhawan works it down to long-on

27.4 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, pushed through on a length wide of off, Dhawan camps back, allows it to turn and defends it late under the eyes

27.3 - Tahir to Pujara, 1 run, overpitching outside off, driven away through the cover region. Anil Kumble had previously advocated for Tahir to be given an ODI field. Seems to be the case now. Plenty of fielders back at the boundary

27.2 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, drifting in with the arm on a length on off, Pujara hangs back and defends down the pitch

27.1 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, oh dear. Inauspicious start. Loopy full toss outside off, Pujara hits it straight to extra-cover

Imran Tahir [3.0-1-3-0] is back into the attack

Tahir given a vote of confidence. Had kept things fairly tight in the 3 overs he bowled earlier

26.6 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, on a good length and in the channel just outside off, nothing doing

26.5 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, slanted across on a fuller length, trying to sucker him into the drive, not this time. Holds his bat aloft

26.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, that's where he can get in trouble sometimes. The ball didn't deviate on this occasion so it's perfectly okay. Short of length delivery on off, doesn't move his back foot across at all and just blocks

26.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, short of length delivery on the hips, tucked away to square leg

26.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, length ball on middle, Dhawan is late in bringing his bat down, keeps a loose grip though and clips it towards square leg. Bavuma unnecessarily makes a mess of the stumps at the non-striker's end with a direct hit

26.1 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, pushed across the lefty on a back of a length, Dhawan doesn't quite cover his off-stump and leaves it alone

The South Africans are ambling out to the centre. India well ahead in this match and Pujara-Dhawan steadied things nicely after the two early losses. Plenty at stake here. Particularly for birthday boy Shikhar Dhawan. India don't play a Test for quite some time after this. This is the last innings and he would certainly look to make the most of it. Morkel, who was stupendous in the morning, will start off. Two slips in place and he runs in from over the wicket..

Another talking point from the session was Morne Morkel. In the absence of Dale Steyn, he has stepped in and has been able to find the right length on the surface. He was well supported by Abbott in the first hour. However, Abbott struggled to get it right in his second spell and leaked a couple of easy boundaries. Once again Imran Tahir was not the first choice spinner. By the time he came, both Dhawan and Pujara had got their eye in and barring a few odd balls where he hit the rough, was not a threat to the pair. India have not got many runs from this session but their deeds from the first innings continue to keep them in a commanding position. We'll be back at 12.10 local for the post-Lunch session

Lunch, Day 3: Throughout this series, batsmen have been under the thumb of bowlers and the order did not change in this session. South Africans came charging at the Indian batsmen and did not allow any quick runs by managing two early wickets. They were lucky to see the back of Vijay and there was some drama in the middle as the opener exchanged a few words with umpire Dharmasena. Replays showed that the ball had brushed Vijay's arm-guard on its way to the keeper. However, the second wicket of the session was a result of some relentless bowling from Morkel, who delivered a peach to get rid of Rohit Sharma. What a dismal run he is having! The baffling move to send him at no. 3 ahead of Pujara failed miserably. Shikhar Dhawan looked tentative at the start and took 15 balls to get off the mark on his birthday. He might have weathered the storm but did not look like having answers to every question posed to him, especially by Morkel and Piedt. By the end of the session, he looked a lot more comfortable and the longer he continues, the better it will be for the hosts.

Interesting to note that while all the 'Dhawan-annoyance' saga was playing out, Ravi Shastri was fuming in the dressing room. He had an expression as if to suggest "What is going on?". Apparently, Dhawan wanted some medical attention and a forearm protector after being hit on the forearm. Rahul was too slow to respond. Came out late. And faced the wrath of Dhawan

25.6 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, looped up just outside off, Pujara has a big stride across and knocks it into the off-side. And that will be Lunch on Day 3.

25.5 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, pushed through quicker and turning in on off, Pujara closes the bat face on the back foot and clips it to mid-wicket

25.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, shimmies down once more, not quite to the pitch and bunts it to silly mid-on

25.3 - D Piedt to Pujara, 2 runs, lovely use of the feet, gets him right to the pitch of the ball and behind it, whips it wide of long-on. Easy jog back for a second before the fielder tidies up

25.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, very full on off, Dhawan moves his leg out of the way and drills it down to long-off

25.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, looped up on off, Dhawan strides forward and taps it to silly point

24.6 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, much better. Assertive footwork. Sees the trajectory, and the length, goes right back at the stumps to block

24.5 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, a good stride forward on this occasion to keep out a flighted ball on the stumps

24.4 - Tahir to Dhawan, 1 run, floated up on off from round the wicket, Dhawan flicks it through mid-wicket

24.3 - Tahir to Pujara, 1 run, drops it slightly short outside off, cut away to deep cover

24.2 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, flat and short outside off, Pujara cuts it wide of backward point and Dhawan sets off, was nearly halfway down the pitch before being sent back. And rightly so, backward point had dived across in a flash to stop and fire the throw back

24.1 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, the googly drifting down leg, Pujara misses with his glance

Dhawan looked a bit ruffled up prior to the start of the previous over. Certainly not very happy about something. And throws a spew of words to Rahul and Gurkeerat who had come out. Not sure what's all that about. In the end, Rahul offered him a banana as a peace-settlement but Dhawan refused. Hmm..

23.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, slices his punch off the back foot to the right of Faf at extra-cover, takes a few strides down the pitch looking for a run but is sent back

23.5 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, Pujara has to watch out here. Sometimes his front foot gets stuck in the pitch not going anywhere to a length ball. Floated up on off, doesn't turn as much as he expects and takes a thick edge before rolling away behind backward point

23.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, spinning into the pads, gently played to short-leg using his wrists

23.3 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, takes a couple of steps down and blunts it to silly mid-on

23.2 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, pushed through on the stumps, Pujara goes back and clips it to short mid-wicket

23.1 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, shimmies down the track, doesn't get to the pitch and attempts to smother it away, the ball turns slightly and beats the inside edge to hit the pad

Dhawan is gesturing to the dressing room indicating he wants a forearm guard

22.6 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, flat and quick googly on middle, tucked away neatly but finds Bavuma in the way

22.5 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, googly which scoots along hugging the pitch, luckily for Dhawan the line was outside off, he tried to punch it away but played on top of the ball which sneaked under his bat

22.4 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, shapes to cut and hits him on the forearm. Phew, that's turned a mile. Pushed through wide of off, lands on the footmarks and takes off. Leaps at Dhawan who was completely cramped. Lucky not to get any glove

22.3 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, turning into the pads with the angle, clipped to mid-wicket

22.2 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, went hard on the drive to a full ball just outside off, gets an inside edge which rolls past where a leg-slip would have been, also overbalanced and wandered out of the crease

Tahir is bowling round the wicket now..

22.1 - Tahir to Dhawan, no run, right in the blockhole outside off, Dhawan jabs it back down the pitch

21.6 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, flatter on the stumps, turned to short-leg

21.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, looped up on a length on middle, turns against the angle and catches a thick edge as Dhawan was prodding, dies immediately to the left of Amla who dives and gets a hand but cannot stop it cleanly

Dhawan has been having sight-screen issues all morning. Again backs away. Sorted now

21.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, lots of in-drift which ends up taking the ball into the pads, gently clipped to FSL

21.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, drifting in closer to off, Dhawan is making a conscious effort to get his pad beside the line to negate the way he was dismissed in the first innings, defends stoutly

21.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, well flighted delivery drifting in towards off, Dhawan defends off the front foot into the off-side

21.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, half a shout of "catch it". Well tossed up ball which lands too full just outside off, Dhawan clears his front leg and drives to extra-cover. Was in the air but only for a while

20.6 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, might have been another googly, tossed up on middle and leg, Pujara gets his pad out of the way and blunts it out

20.5 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, now a googly. Pujara was well forward looking to defend, had his bat and pad close side by side and got it off the inside edge onto pad

20.4 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, pushed through quicker on a length on off, disturbs the surface and rips away past the edge of Pujara's front foot defence

20.3 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, now decisively back to a shortish length and defends

20.2 - Tahir to Pujara, no run, indecision in footwork from Pujara, hesitantly came half-forward. I think the trajectory had a fair bit to do with that. It was flatter and on a length just outside off, Pujara pats it away into the off-side

20.1 - Tahir to Dhawan, 1 run, slower through the air, the length is slightly short and drifting away outside off, Dhawan camps back and chops it to the right of extra-cover

Imran Tahir, right-arm leg break, comes into the attack

Okay, so Tahir has been brought on fairly early this time

19.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, sliding on towards middle and leg, Dhawan goes deep in the crease and works it to the left of Duminy at mid-on, his weight was on the back foot and that made him slow to take off for the run. Duminy rushes across, collects and rifles in a throw at the bowler's end. Dhawan would have been at least a yard short had he hit

19.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, slower but slightly short outside off, punched solidly to cover

19.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, again too wide of off with the loopy off-break, Dhawan strides towards the ball and pads it away

19.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, floated up wide of off, kicked away

19.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, goes deep in the crease to a flatter trajectory, the ball slides on and threatens to hit the pad, just about gets his bat down in time and jabs it to short leg

19.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, tossed up on off, turns slightly, Dhawan defends with bat and pad side by side towards cover

18.6 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, good length on off, stayed low but Pujara defends to point

18.5 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, good length outside off, left alone and the ball goes on the bounce to Vilas

18.4 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, outside off, left alone

Pujara is standing outside the crease to negate the swing on offer

18.3 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, full outside off, Pujara is very confident defending off the front foot, dead-batted to mid-off

18.2 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, angled in towards off and middle, Pujara is slightly on the shuffle but gets the bat in front of the pad to block to mid-on

18.1 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, good length outside off, Pujara strides forward to block confidently to mid-off

17.6 - D Piedt to Pujara, leg byes, 1 run, spinning down leg, Pujara misses the glance, off the pad and a leg-bye

17.5 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, "Catch" is the cry as Pujara skipped out and pushed it in the air, but well in front of mid-wicket

17.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, too full and Dhawan gets forward to drive to long-off

17.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, more flight and Dhawan gets forward to drive to cover

17.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, tossed up on off and middle, Dhawan gets forward to block

17.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, defended off the back foot to short leg

16.6 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, nothing shot. Really poor. On a good length and outside off, Pujara was trying to stab it down to the vacant third man fence, two slips were waiting for the edge and he didn't connect. Could've so easily feathered it

16.5 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, pitched up outside off, Pujara gets forward and plays a solid forward block to mid-off

16.4 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, FOUR, now an inside edge runs away for four. Kyle Abbott and Faf look very disappointed. Pujara's bat face was pointing towards backward point, he looked to play that with an angled bat, the ball seamed in and took the inside edge, before missing leg stump. Not by much and another boundary to Pujara. He is quickly onto 23, surpassing Dhawan. But sure he won't be pleased with how he got the boundary

16.3 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, that's why you don't drive so straight. The stumps at the other end saves four runs for South Africa. Overpitched by Kyle Abbott, drilled by Pujara with strong wrists. Problem is he hit it too straight and got unlucky. Denies him a four

16.2 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, full outside off, Pujara presses it to cover

16.1 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, FOUR, good delivery but Pujara will get four. On a good length outside off, Pujara opens the face of the bat and guides it wide of the diving second slip. Was in control and looked an intentional stroke, considering there was no third man. Has a chat with Dhawan after that

15.6 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, turning in, Pujara knocks it wide of short leg and gets an easy single

15.5 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, comes down the track and flicks to Faf at mid-wicket who dives to stop

A man at silly mid-on

15.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, FOUR, trifle short and Pujara is quick on the back foot to put it away. Whipped through mid-wicket and used the wrists to get himself a four. Lovely shot and he is strong there

15.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, flat and turning away outside off, Dhawan was a tad surprised by the turn, but adjusted to punch that off the back foot to sweeper cover

15.2 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, tossed up and Pujara comes down the track to drive to long-on

15.1 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, slower and Pujara defends off the back foot

14.6 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length and slanted across Dhawan who shoulders arms, Vilas though fluffs the take

14.5 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length on the middle and leg line, Dhawan defends to mid-off, looks for a quick single, not there

14.4 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, now is beaten again. But the ball dies on the way to Vilas. Full outside off, Dhawan drives and the low bounce defeats his stroke. Slightly expansive stroke attempted

14.3 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length outside off, Dhawan pulls the bat inside the line to leave

14.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, nice comeback by Kyle Abbott, angles it away and around the fifth-stump line, Dhawan pokes uncertainly and is beaten. Not far from the outside edge. Well bowled by Abbott. Dhawan was pointing out something behind the bowler's arm to the umpire, not sure what he was worried about

14.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, FOUR, Kyle Abbott bowls a rare loose delivery and is dispatched. Begins with a half-volley on the stumps, Dhawan rifles a drive past Pujara who had to be quick to get his feet out of the ball's way. Races into the long-off fence. A puff of dust when the ball landed but Dhawan smashed that

Kyle Abbott [4.0-2-6-0] is back into the attack

13.6 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, and again on off, Pujara this time defends from the crease to short leg. Vilas goes - "oh, danger". Not sure what he was intending there

13.5 - D Piedt to Pujara, no run, flighted on off, Pujara gets the bat in front of the pad to block

13.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, on the stumps, tucked past short leg's left. Gets off strike

13.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, uncertain! Dhawan doesn't know which one is turning and which is going straight, this is the latter, outside off, Dhawan tucks his bat inside the pad and lets it go. Not convincing at all

13.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, an inside edge onto the pad and Dhawan gets away. It was sliding on towards off, Dhawan was late on the forward block but since he got an edge, got away. Lovely bowling from Piedt

13.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, tossed up on off and Dhawan gets forward to defend

Overall a fascinating hour of Test match cricket. Piedt has settled in nicely and is causing Dhawan some issues. He got him out in the first innings after setting him up well. Can he do the same again here? The second hour should see more riveting action, hopefully...

Time for drinks as well. I suspect that will be the end of Morkel as well. His spell reads 7-3-10-2. A fabulous one at that. Ran in hard and was right on the money. Posed a threat with every ball. Was lucky to get Vijay's wicket but there was no luck when it came to Rohit's. Cleaned him up with a beauty. South Africa needed some inspiration from their leading man today and Morkel has stepped up wonderfully well. The fielding has been sharp too and the runs aren't coming. Batting seems to be a struggle and at one end Dhawan is battling for his Test place

12.6 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, fullish and heading towards off and middle, Pujara presses it solidly to mid-off

12.5 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, another delivery outside off and again a leave from Pujara

12.4 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, good length outside off, a comfortable leave for Pujara and some breathing space

12.3 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, another delivery that is angled in and attacking off, Pujara defends to point and looks for a quick single but Faf is in very quickly

12.2 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, angled in on off, on a fuller length, Pujara blocks solidly towards mid-off

12.1 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, full on off, Pujara gets forward to push to mid-on

11.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, tossed up on off and middle, Dhawan defends to cover

11.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, loud shout for lbw but Oxenford shakes his head. Was it not coming back in enough? Looks like it. Replays show that Oxenford got that right. The slider, angled in, quicker too, Dhawan padded that away, not coming in enough to strike the stumps. Great variation from Piedt after spinning the last one appreciably

11.4 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, look at that. Spun a long way, bounced as well, Dhawan was looking to get forward, then after it pitched, the ball tricked the batsman who bailed out of the shot. Saw it go over his bat and a good take by Vilas

11.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, angled in on off, Dhawan defends from the crease to cover. The bat came down at an angle but he was in control there

11.2 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, Pujara comes down the track and looks to defend, but the ball holds its line after pitching, a thick outside edge runs through backward point. They take a single

11.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, very full and eased past the dive of short cover's left

10.6 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, angled in on off, Pujara gets half-forward and blocks solidly to cover

10.5 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, full and outside off, shaped back in after Pujara left it alone, carries well to Vilas. Probing stuff from Morkel

10.4 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, good length outside off, left alone

Still don't know why Rohit came in at 3. Was it to protect Pujara's injury which happened yesterday. In that case Pujara wouldn't have walked out at 4. If it was a chance for Rohit to make a case for himself at 3, then can understand the move. He has been badly out of sorts and probably the team management thought it was better to send him up the order. But such is his luck at the moment, that he got a ripper which castled him comprehensively

10.3 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, back of a length outside off, Pujara goes back and shoulders arms

10.2 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, short and loopy, tennis-ball bounce for Morkel, Pujara has an easy duck

10.1 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, good length outside off, Pujara lets it go

9.6 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, tossed up and around the fourth-stump line, Dhawan gets forward to block

9.5 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, outside off, padded away

9.4 - D Piedt to Pujara, 1 run, down leg, Pujara kneels down and sort of plays a half-paddle, gets a single to fine leg

9.3 - D Piedt to Dhawan, 1 run, short outside off, Dhawan rocks back to cut to sweeper cover

9.2 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, flighted outside off, holds its line, left alone again

Slip and a short leg in

9.1 - D Piedt to Dhawan, no run, tossed up from round the wicket and it spins away after pitching outside off, Dhawan lets it go

Dane Piedt, right-arm off break, comes into the attack

8.6 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, full on off stump, Pujara plays a solid front foot defence to mid-off

8.5 - M Morkel to Pujara, 2 runs, full on the stumps, Pujara's bat face closes and the thick inside edge flies wide of Bavuma at short leg. It was in the air but nowhere near catching range. They take two

8.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, 1 run, down leg, clipped to fine leg

8.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, much better. On a good length on the stumps, Dhawan gets forward to block to cover. The feet moved well

8.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, awkward from Dhawan. He is expecting the short ball and is stuck on the crease. Wanted to sway away even before the ball pitched, then realises it isn't short but a back of a length delivery, tries to defend, but the ball cuts him in half and goes past the inside edge. Looked more like a tailender rather than a specialist opener. Has a wry smile on his face

8.1 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, pitched up outside off, slanted across Dhawan who shoulders arms

7.6 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, good length and hint of nip back in, Pujara covers the off stump and shoulders arms

7.5 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, good length outside off, easy leave

7.4 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, full outside off, left alone and it flies to Vilas who takes it near his face

7.3 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, full outside off, Pujara gets forward and presses it to cover

7.2 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, angled in on off and middle, softly turned to mid-wicket

7.1 - Kyle Abbott to Pujara, no run, full outside off, left alone

6.6 - M Morkel to Pujara, 5 runs, look at Pujara. He is gutted that the throw deflected off his bat and runs away for four more runs. Doesn't want those runs. It was pushed wide of cover, Pujara was taking on Faf from point and made it, but the throw hit his bat and went wide of the backing up fielder. Totally unintentional and will go against Morkel who doesn't show any anger or resentment. But Pujara put his head back in disappointment once he saw the ball escape the fielder. Shows the character of the man. Gets off the mark with five!

6.5 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, back of a length and angled into the thigh pad, Pujara flicks and misses, Bavuma at short leg went with one hand initially then with two and dropped it. But there was no bat or glove. Wonder how Bavuma dropped that. It looped to him and he is such a good fielder

6.4 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, short outside off, Pujara half-ducks and lets it go

6.3 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, fast good length delivery outside off, Pujara doesn't get forward, just stabs at it from the crease to point

6.2 - M Morkel to Pujara, no run, hat-trick ball! Fullish outside off, Pujara lets it go

Cheteshwar Pujara, right handed bat, comes to the crease

6.1 - M Morkel to Rohit, out Bowled!! Rohit goes for a golden duck. He looks heavenwards and walks off. What a ball from Morkel though. Angled in towards off and middle, Rohit did nothing wrong there, defended with bat and pad close together, but somehow the ball sneaked past the outside edge and rattled the stumps. If you had to be critical of Rohit, you could say he was playing slightly inside the line. But he was playing the angle and the ball just escaped past the bat. When it is not going your way, these things happen. Rohit can't believe his rotten luck. Has a shrug and departs the scene. Morkel on a hat-trick now. Cracking delivery for he took his time, set the field and then delivered a peach. Could be a while before Rohit is given another chance in Tests, even though it will be another seven months before India play another Test. Anything could happen in that timespan, but Rohit's scores recently will go against him. Rohit b M Morkel 0(1)

M Morkel to Rohit, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!

5.6 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length outside off, Dhawan defends off the back foot towards mid-off

5.5 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, dug in short outside off, doesn't bounce much, Dhawan initially thought about pulling then left it alone

5.4 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, full on off, Dhawan gets forward and presses it to cover

5.3 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, FOUR, laced wide of mid-off. Again the feet didn't move but since the length was full and the line was outside off, Dhawan strode slightly forward and drove it wide of the fielder who didn't dive, raced away

5.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, fullish and nips in, beats the inside edge and thuds into the thigh pad, Dhawan's feet didn't move there and he was caught on the crease. No real appeal from the South Africans

5.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length on middle and leg, defendd back down the pitch

Rohit Sharma, right handed bat, comes to the crease

4.6 - M Morkel to Vijay, out Caught by Dane Vilas!! Vijay and Dharmasena are having a go at each other. Vijay looks very unhappy that he has been given out. Has a word or two with Dharmasena who gives it back. I can understand why Vijay is so distraught at being given out. Replays show that it came straight off the arm-guard. No bat or glove. Searing short ball right at Vijay, he was looking to hop and fend, missed and the ball went off the arm-guard, missing the glove. Great take by Vilas too, leaping high to his left to snaffle that one-handed. Dharmasena gave it out instantly and then began the altercation. Not a good idea from Vijay for he could get in trouble for arguing with the umpire. But what a short ball that was from Morkel. Completely surprised Vijay. As soon as it went off the arm-guard, Vijay was pointing it out to Dharmasena. Even when he was walking off, he did the same. All to no avail though. Dharmasena got that wrong. Vijay c Dane Vilas b M Morkel 3(15)

M Morkel to Vijay, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!

4.5 - M Morkel to Dhawan, 1 run, well run! Dhawan defends in front of cover, knows Faf has ground to cover and makes it in. Faf slides forward and under-arms a direct hit. But Dhawan was home by then. Off the mark with that single

4.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, full on the stumps, Dhawan gets forward and plays a soft drive past Morkel, mid-on is there though

4.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, short of length on the stumps, Dhawan defends off the back foot to cover

Pujara isn't in his whites. Looks like Rohit will bat at 3. He is padded up

4.2 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, fullish on off, Dhawan defends with bat and pad close together to mid-off

4.1 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, beaten on the edge. Teasing line and length outside off, slanted across, Dhawan pokes without any conviction and nearly nicks off

Dhawan pulls out and Morne Morkel lets out a grunt. Some movement behind the bowler's arm. That's why Dhawan wasn't happy. Neither is Morkel

Once again Kyle Abbott has been superb today. He is hitting a line and a length and asking questions with each and every delivery. Wonder whether South Africa missed a trick by not choosing him in their initial squad for this tour. Will pose a selection quandary even when Steyn and Philander are fit and available for selection

3.6 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, good length on off, stayed a touch low, but Vijay did well to keep it out

3.5 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, pitched up outside off, Vijay opens the face of the bat on the square drive, good fielding by Duminy at point as he dives to his left and half-stops. That is good enough to prevent the quick single

3.4 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, full and outside off, Vijay plays a solid forward block to mid-off. Came right off the middle of the bat and the feet moved nicely into position

3.3 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, fullish outside off, draws a thick outside edge on the forward defence, but the ball dies down quickly and rolls to gully. Kyle Abbott plugging away

3.2 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, 2 runs, angled in on off, hurried onto Vijay's defensive stroke, he is late on the shot, the thick inside edge runs behind square, he takes on Morkel and rushes back for the second

3.1 - Kyle Abbott to Vijay, no run, full and outside off, left alone

2.6 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, nice line and length, on a back of a length and around off, Dhawan plays inside the line, pulls the bat in and lets it go

2.5 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, awkward from Dhawan. Not the length to be pulling or trying a short-arm pull, it was on a back of a length and hurried onto him, misses the bat and thuds into the thigh pad. After he missed, he stumbled to his left as his momentum gave away

2.4 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, good length on off, stays a touch low, Dhawan defends from the crease to point

2.3 - M Morkel to Dhawan, no run, full on off, Dhawan gets forward and presses it solidly to cover

2.2 - M Morkel to Vijay, 1 run, shortish on the hips, Vijay is on the hop and gets an inside edge onto the thigh pad on the flick, well wide of Bavuma at short leg. India get off the mark in a streaky way

2.1 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, good length outside off, Vijay shuffles across and then shoulders arms

1.6 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, pitched up outside off, Dhawan's bat face closes on the off-drive, that skews away all timing and the ball rolls to the left of mid-off

1.5 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, nice and full, teasing Dhawan outside off, but for now he lets it go. Shaped away too into the keeper's gloves

1.4 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, length on middle, Dhawan punches softly to mid-on

1.3 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, good length on the middle and leg line, tucked to mid-wicket

1.2 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, nips in after pitching around leg, Dhawan fails to lay bat on the flick, the ball hits the thigh pad and rolls back down the wicket

1.1 - Kyle Abbott to Dhawan, no run, full and outside off, slanted across Dhawan who shoulders arms

Kyle Abbott, right-arm medium, comes into the attack

0.6 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, poor from Vijay! It was a pre-meditated pull and he didn't get anywhere near connecting the ball. Not the length to be playing that shot too, back of a length outside off, Vijay is early into the stroke and beaten on the bottom edge

Bavuma is coming into field at short leg with a helmet on

0.5 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, good length outside off, Vijay plays slightly away from the body as he pushes it to cover

0.4 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, nice and full outside off, Vijay is watchful and shoulders arms. Carried well to Vilas

0.3 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, good length outside off, seamed away, easy leave

0.2 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, very full on off, almost yorker length, Vijay jams it out to cover

0.1 - M Morkel to Vijay, no run, full outside off, hint of shape back in, but not threatening off. Vijay though shoulders arms

Vijay and Dhawan are at the crease. Vijay is on strike. M Morkel will open the attack