India v South Africa 4th Test, Day 4 Review: South Africa takes the match into final day with a defensive approach

Ajinkya Rahane became the fifth Indian batsman to score twin tons in a Test match, as India declared half an hour from lunch to set the visitors a target of 481. In the morning, Rahane looked for quick runs and was successful after India resumed 403 runs ahead. He went after everything that was wide of the stumps and picked up two fours and a six in the first four overs of the morning.

Kohli, who began the day on 83, only added five to his overnight score before he was LBW to a ball from Kyle Abbott that bounced at shin height. Rahane and Wriddhiman Saha though kept playing their shots. The Mumbai batsman hit sixes in successive overs off Imran Tahir and Dean Elgar, and Saha swept three fours in two overs. Tahir bowled one full at Rahane’s pads, and he clipped it away through the leg side to bring up a 100 and walked off towards the dressing room.

South Africa lost Dean Elgar before lunch as R Ashwin looped one up to him from around the wicket, drifting it into the left-hander and getting it to leave him from a middle-stump line. Elgar did not get to the pitch of his drive, and Rahane took a simple catch at slip. Hashim Amla and Temba Bavuma blocked for the next 35 overs and added just 35 runs before lunch.

Twitter Reactions: Twitter trolls Hashim Amla for his slow start in the second innings

It took Amla 46 balls to get off the mark as he kept defending every ball. Bavuma defended his way to 34 off 117 balls before becoming Ashwin’s second wicket of the innings. In trying to defend off the front foot, he lost his off-stump. Amla was lucky to survive twice off the bowling of the part-timer Dhawan. One ball that flew off the edge hit Saha’s pad while the other landed behind Pujara who tried valiantly with a full-length dive running behind from silly-point.

The visitors ended the day on 72/2 from 72 overs as Amla blocked 207 balls for his 23 while AB de Villiers scored 11 off 91 balls. South Africa require an unlikely 409 more runs to win while the home side needs another 8 wickets to take the series 3-0 on the final day.

Brief Scores:

India 1st innings– 334/10 in 117.5 overs (A Rahane 127; K Abbott  5/40).

South Africa 1st innings– 121/10 in 49.3 overs (AB de Villiers 42; R Jadeja 5/30)

India 2nd innings–267-5d in 100.1 overs (A Rahane 100*; M Morkel 3/51)

South Africa 2nd innings–Target 481– 72/1 in 72 overs (T Bavuma 34; R Ashwin 2/29)