Ken Borland

Two South African wickets were on the funeral pyre but captain Dean Elgar was holding firm as the Proteas reached 118/2 at stumps on the third day of the second Test against India at the Wanderers on Wednesday, needing another 122 runs for an unlikely victory.

Elgar had survived for three hours, scoring a typically determined 46 not out as he occupied the crease for 121 deliveries. He will have Rassie van der Dussen, who has dug in for 11 not out, for company on Thursday morning as they look to chase down a target of 240 for a series-levelling victory. Defeat will mean India win a series in South Africa for the first time.

The Proteas skipper shared in two important partnerships at the top of the innings as the home side made the sort of solid start that was absolutely essential as they set off for what would be their third-highest successful run-chase in South Africa.

Aiden Markram looked in fine touch as he breezed to 31 off 38 balls, putting on 47 for the first wicket with Elgar in just 10 overs, before an in-ducker from Shardul Thakur hit him on the back knee and he was given out lbw in the third over after tea. It was the culmination of an impressive over from the paceman who took seven wickets in the first innings.

Keegan Petersen then scored an enterprising 28, adding 46 for the second wicket with Elgar before going right back on to his stumps to a delivery from off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and being trapped lbw.

That delivery turned quite sharply, just to add to the mountain South Africa already have to climb. Puffs of sand are occasionally apparent as the ball lands on the deteriorating pitch and the batsmen have to deal with variable bounce as well as movement, some of it exaggerated if the delivery hits a crack.

India began the day on 85/2, leading by 58, and the Proteas made their life much harder by a woeful bowling performance in the first hour. It allowed Cheteshwar Pujara (53) and Ajinkya Rahane (58) to pile on the runs, the embattled duo regaining form in brave fashion as they added 111 in 105 minutes.

But Kagiso Rabada came with a massive effort after the first drinks break, removing both and taking three wickets in successive overs as he had Rishabh Pant caught behind for a duck, the left-hander foolishly charging down the pitch and trying to the champion fats bowler into the stands.

India made it to 266 and a sizeable lead thanks to Hanuma Vihari wrangling the lower-order and finishing with 40 not out, while Thakur added a quickfire 28.

Lungi Ngidi finished with another three wickets and Marco Jansen added to the mounting excitement over his international career by taking 3/67 to give him seven wickets in the match.

Quinton de Kock’s previous absence from the Proteas team caused much discussion on microphones and keyboards around the world, but South Africa’s ace wicketkeeper/batsman is set to miss at least one, probably two of the forthcoming Test matches against India.

He will miss the second Test at the Wanderers from January 3 for a reason that nobody could rationally criticise: The 28-year-old and his wife Sasha are awaiting the birth of their first child and that is due to happen in early January. But because of the strict Covid protocols the series will be played under, players will surely not be allowed to leave and then return to the bio-secure bubble, meaning De Kock will also be absent from the third Test in Cape Town from January 11.

De Kock’s previous withdrawal from a Proteas match came in controversial circumstances as he pulled out of the ICC T20 World Cup match against the West Indies in Dubai in October, rather than follow a CSA Board directive to take a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter initiative.

This absence will have the blessing of the selectors, however, even though it robs the Proteas of one of their most imposing batsmen.

De Kock’s situation is why the selectors have chosen three wicketkeepers, Kyle Verreynne and Ryan Rickelton, being the others, in the 21-man squad they announced on Tuesday. Keegan Petersen also has some experience behind the stumps for the KZN Dolphins.

The strict Covid protocols, with replacements not being allowed to be brought into camp, means the selectors have had to cover all the bases up front in the original squad.

Verreynne made his Test debut in South Africa’s previous Test series, against the West Indies in June, but Rickelton has been in impressive form for the Central Gauteng Lions with two centuries in three innings and an average of 93.

Adapting and executing have been two of the watchwords of the Proteas team in the T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates and senior player Keshav Maharaj said on Friday that the last week of turmoil has merely strengthened the squad that is now living the old adage of adapt or die.

South Africa take on Sri Lanka in Sharjah on Saturday and, although defeat will not eliminate them from semi-final contention, it would be their second loss and would make it extremely difficult for them to progress given that both England and Australia have not lost any matches yet.

Having beaten the West Indies despite CSA’s BLM directive and Quinton de Kock withdrawing from the team, Maharaj says the Proteas are showing the excitement of a team that has been through the fire and is now (hopefully) out the other end.

“Obviously it’s been a tough week, but the boys are mature enough to adapt,” Maharaj said. “The spirits are high, the buzz is back after a long two days. We’ve drawn a lot of inspiration from how we’ve reacted to these setbacks both now and in the past.

“I think you’ll see the team come out with a lot more energy against Sri Lanka because the last week has brought us together even more. We’ve handled things maturely and that will hopefully feed our performance.

“We’ve had earnest chats as a team and we respect everyone’s view. Players not taking the knee is no big deal, we all support each other. It’s part of our pillars and values as a team to respect everyone’s beliefs, culture and religion.

“Nobody in this team is a racist. The team is in a good space and we have drawn strength from what happened. What doesn’t hurt us can only make us stronger,” Maharaj said.

The left-arm spinner also said De Kock has returned to his normal self after the brouhaha.

“We’re always in the team room together, having dinner together, and I think Quinny is in a good space. He’s very mature despite what people might think.

“I know if he gets an opportunity against Sri Lanka, a player of his calibre will slot right back in,” Maharaj said.

Sri Lanka had a troubled build-up to the tournament, including losing 3-0 to South Africa at home last month. But they did not just curl up and die in the UAE.

“Sri Lanka are a side in form and they are playing some really good cricket now. We can’t take anything for granted and hopefully we have done our homework,” Maharaj said.

The Springboks may have been conned into deviating from their strengths a bit in their two losses to the Wallabies, but their determination to build on what they did in their narrow loss to New Zealand last weekend will have been boosted by the three changes the All Blacks have made to their backline for Saturday’s Rugby Championship Test on the Gold Coast.

South Africa have spent this week stubbornly refusing to deviate from their plan despite mounting criticism from doe-eyed lovers of ball-in-hand rugby that kicking the ball away in the last 10 minutes was what cost them a 19-17 defeat at the death.

The All Blacks have changed their wings, with Sevu Reece and Rieko Ioane now set to face the aerial bombardment, and have chosen a scrumhalf with an even stronger kicking game in Brad Weber.

“We back our style and our physical presence, and we have great leaders we trust. We have full confidence in our plan and we want to rock up and play great rugby,” prop Steven Kitshoff said this week.

“We believe our DNA is good enough to win big matches, so on Saturday we want to really pitch up and play dominant rugby.”

Perhaps the key work-on for the Springboks, however, is ensuring that the chances that arise from their superb pressure game are utilised better on Saturday, especially in the closing stages. “We had a lot of opportunities and some crucial moments didn’t go our way,” Kitshoff admitted.

Sunny and warm conditions, with a bit of wind, on the Gold Coast on Saturday could also help the Springboks’ kicking game because sweat from what coach Jacques Nienaber described as “the biggest Test of the year, the same intensity as the World Cup final”, combined with sub-tropical humidity could make handling the ball when hundreds of kilogrammes of South African beef are bearing down on you rather tricky.

Nienaber also said South Africa’s strategy was conditional on how the All Blacks chose to defend. But even with three different players in their backline, New Zealand are unlikely to change from the packed frontline of 14 defenders and just one at the back that they had last weekend.