India vs South Africa, 3rd Test, Day 3: Dean Elgar, Keegan Petersen put South Africa in driver's seat at stumps

South Africa cruised through the chase in the final Test on Day 3 as their captain Dean Elgar (30) and top-order batsman Keegan Petersen (48 not out) combined together to post 101/2, needing 111 runs to win the series when umpires called it day. Chasing a modest target of 212 runs in Cape Town, the hosts lost Aiden Markram (16), in the eighth over of the match. But Elgar and Petersen forged a 78-run second-wicket stand to put the hosts in the driving seat. Elgar hit three boundaries in 96-ball knock while Petersen’s unbeaten innings was laced with seven fours. 

Indian bowlers toil hard for wickets 

In what seemed to be a productive wicket for the South Africa fast bowlers, who bowled out India twice in the final Test, Indian pace attack had to toil hard for wickets in the second innings. 

Virat Kohli used his four seamers Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Shardul Thakur and Umesh Yadav along with veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in the third day but they failed to restrict the hosts early in the chase. Shami, however, got the wicket of opener Markram while Bumrah removed Elgar late in the day as the hosts looked firm in their approach. 

READ MORE: Rishabh Pant Emulates MS Dhoni to Become First Indian Keeper to hit Test ton in South Africa, Proteas need 212

Gritty Rishabh Pant fights back 

Earlier, resuming the day on 57/2, Test specialist Pujara (9) was sent packing without adding to the scoresheet by Marco Jansen with Ajinkya Rahane (1) following the suit to leave India reeling at 58/4.

India Test captain Virat Kohli (29) and Rishabh Pant (100 not out), then, forged a 94-run partnership for the fifth wicket to show some resilience. Interestingly, Kohli played a perfect second fiddle to Pant as he took a cautious approach, while the wicket-keeper batter played his natural game. Kohli hit four boundaries in his 143-ball knock before being dismissed by Lungi Ngidi. 

Pant, then, took matters into his own hands as he made a merry of the formidable South Africa bowling line-up with not much support from the other end. Lower-order batters Ravichandran Ashwin (7), Shardul Thakur (5), Umesh Yadav (0), Mohammed Shami (0) and Jasprit Bumrah (2) failed to survive the test of times as Pant glided to his fourth Test century. It was also the first Test century scored by an Indian wicket-keeper batsman in South Africa as he surpassed the previous best feat of MS Dhoni who notched up an innings of 90 runs in Centurion. The Delhi-batter smashed six boundaries and four hits over the top in his 139-ball unbeaten knock to help India reach 198 runs, setting a moderate target of 212 runs for the hosts. 

For South Africa, young Jansen was the pick of the bowlers in the second innings, as he returned figures of 4/36 while Ngidi picked up a three-wicket haul.