2nd Castle Test: India in control as Zaheer Khan leads spirited bowling performance
Going into the second Test of the Castle Test Series against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757, India was under extreme pressure because of its poor showing in the first Test at SuperSport Park. However, the Indians have bounced back quite well in
the series thanks to splendid bowling performances by Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh. At the close of play on day two, India were leading by 166 runs with six second-innings wickets in hand. This was after the home team was bowled out for a mere 131 runs
in its first innings.
Graeme Smith won the toss for the home team at the Kingsmead cricket ground in Durban, and had no hesitation in bowling first against the Indian batting line-up, which has displayed vulnerability to the rising ball. The moisture
and grass on the pitch, reminiscent of the conditions at Centurion, seemed to look promising for the Proteas. The South African team was unchanged since the first match, with the management having decided to retain Lonwabo Tsotsobe as the third seamer instead
of Wayne Parnell or http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ryan-McLaren-c87323.
India, on the other hand, made three changes in its line-up: http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Murali-Vijay-c78035 was drafted into the playing eleven in place of the injured Gautam
Gambhir.
Asked to bat first, India came up with a better batting performance as compared to their first innings at Centurion and, even after a late-order collapse, managed to score 205 runs. However, nearly all the top-order batsmen failed
to capitalize on the starts they made. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mahendra-Singh-Dhoni-c73820 also scored an important 35 before he was caught at deep cover by Alviro Petersen
off the bowling of Dale Steyn.
The South African bowling attack was led by none other than its spearhead Dale Steyn, who took six wickets for just 50 runs. Morne Morkel and Lonwabo Tsotsobe took a couple of wickets each.
In reply, the South African batsmen disappointed home fans as they were just able to score 131 runs in their first innings. Apart from Hashim Amla and Alviro Petersen, none of the South African batsmen were able to make an impression
on the Indian bowlers. Amla and Petersen scored 33 and 24 respectively. As a result, the home team conceded a lead of 74 runs in the first innings.
Zaheer Khan’s comeback made a visible difference to the Indian bowling line-up as he was the one who set the tone for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750’s brilliant bowling performance. He picked up three wickets, while Harbhajan Singh took four wickets for
just 10 runs. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ishant-Sharma-c64566 and S. Sreesanth took a wicket each.
When they began their second innings, India were off to a flying start with a cameo by http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Virender-Sehwag-c95429 but then lost four wickets in quick succession to even things out. An unbeaten partnership between Laxman and Pujara handed
the advantage back to the Indians by the close of play on day two. Laxman will resume his innings tomorrow on 23, whereas Pujara is not out on 10. Sehwag scored 32 off only 31 balls, including six fours.
Tsotsobe took two important wickets for the Proteas, and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Dale-c52110 Steyn picked up a wicket each.
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