Ken Borland

South Africa’s second game in the FIH Hockey Pro League in Potchefstroom saw them once again come undone as they were hammered 10-2 by a fast and skilful India side who were relentless in the first half.

India powered into an 8-0 lead at halftime with four goals in each quarter, their short-corner work being particularly clinical, Jugraj Singh scoring a hat-trick from the set-piece.

The pace at which they played clearly rattled the South Africans, who struggled to match the ball-speed and inevitably made basic mistakes or gave the possession away through poor passes. They also lacked composure in defence, with India earning a short corner with just about every circle-entry in the early stages of the match.

South Africa began the second half in much better fashion, keeping India in their own territory with much better ball-retention and earning a couple of short-corners which were well-saved by goalkeeper PR Sreejesh. India’s brilliant counter-attacking skills then came to the fore as they broke out of their cell and swiftly stormed downfield, Gursahibjit Singh scoring with an excellent angled finish.

South Africa were 9-0 down but they provided some hope with a strong performance in the second half, producing patches of attractive hockey.

Daniel Bell found the box with a low short-corner flick in the 44^th minute and Richard Pautz punched home early in the final quarter, after good build-up by Tyson Dlungwana down the left flank and neat touches by Dayaan Cassiem and Bili Ntuli.

India had the final say though, two minutes before the end as Dilpreet Singh broke free and fired a superb shot into goal from the top of the circle.

“We did not start the way we wanted,” Bell admitted, “we struggled to get into our rhythm in the first half. We wanted a more competitive game and we need to keep them out better.

“In the second half there was a big change, we started to play some hockey and show our flair.”

“The first half was not a true reflection of our ability,” Pautz said. “We had a very slow start and our mindset was off. But a 2-2 draw in the second half shows our capability.

“That’s what we should be doing consistently and we need to be more clinical in the circle.”

India owe numerous debts of gratitude to their captain Virat Kohli, who batted for four-and-a-half hours and wrestled them to 223 all out with his defiant innings of 79, but his conqueror, Kagiso Rabada, said the secret to his and South Africa’s success on the first day of the decisive third Test at Newlands on Tuesday was not coming up with any special plans but rather being relentless in their basics.

Rabada was outstanding in his 50^th Test and actually deserved better than his final figures of 4/73 in 22 overs on Tuesday, such was the quality of his fast bowling. His tussle with Kohli was dazzling at times, and South Africa’s talismanic fast bowler eventually won the day when he had the great batsman caught behind as the penultimate wicket of the innings.

“Kohli batted extremely well and he was very patient with leaving the ball,” Rabada said. “People think we have such wicked plans but it was all about bowling a good line and length, being relentless and resilient.

“I wasn’t going for his pads obviously. I was just trying to get the ball to swing away, that’s where he’s been getting out lately, and the important thing was to just stick at it.

“Bowling very seldom feels perfect, but it was a good day for me. I just tried to be as consistent as possible. Nothing changes, I’m just trying to do the same thing.

“Things went my way today, I feel good about the way I bowled and it was a decent day,” Rabada said with some modesty.

India chose to bat first with dark clouds enveloping the ground and a greenish tinge to the pitch. Armed with the hard, red new ball, Rabada and Duanne Olivier made life hard for them from the outset.

But although there was movement and some steep bounce, Rabada said the Newlands pitch is not exactly poisonous. South Africa, batting under clear blue skies, had reached 17/1 in the eight overs they faced before stumps.

“There’s still quite a bit in the pitch, but it looks a proper Test wicket. Batsmen will have to grind, but the bowlers still have to bowl well. We have no control over conditions, but I don’t think it’s going to get much easier for batsmen tomorrow [Wednesday],” Rabada said.

The 26-year-old, who took his tally to 230 Test wickets, was in his element on Tuesday. His action was liquid smooth, his accuracy superb and the ball was talking.

India have a couple of mean fast bowlers of their own though, and South Africa’s batting line-up are going to have to support their bowlers now and do well as a unit.