On Thursday, January 4, the India Team accomplished a remarkable accomplishment in the second and final Test against South Africa at the Newlands Stadium in Cape Town.
Rohit Sharma and company won by seven wickets in just over four sessions, becoming the first Asian side to do so.
The visitors’ victory on a shaky surface where wickets fell at a breakneck pace marked only the second time an Indian side has drawn a Test series in South Africa.
The rubber finished in a 1-1 tie, with the hosts winning the first game by an innings and 32 runs.
The first incident occurred during a three-Test series in South Africa in 2010-11, when India Team entered as the world’s top-ranked side in the format.
Despite losing by an innings in the first Test in Centurion, they won by 87 runs in the second match in Durban.
The hosts scored 362 in the first innings of the final in Cape Town after Indian captain MS Dhoni chose to field first.
Jacques Kallis led the way with 161 runs, but the visitors seized a two-run lead to leave the contest tense.
In the second innings, the Proteas were rocked and reduced to 130/6 until Kallis came to their rescue once more.
He stayed undefeated on 109 this time, forming important partnerships with Mark Boucher, Dale Steyn, and Morne Morkel to defeat the Indians.
India was given a target of 344 to pursue after bowling the hosts out on the fifth morning.
However, with the pitch acting up, the visitors opted for the safe option of batting out time and clinching a draw instead.
Here, we look at India’s playing XI from the 2011 Cape Town Test and where they are currently.
India Team – Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag bat first
Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag of Delhi started the innings for India in the Cape Town Test.
They had opposite fortunes, with Gambhir scoring two fifties (93 and 64), while Sehwag only managed 13 and 11.
Despite an elbow ailment, Gambhir’s tenacious 184-ball 64 in the second innings was critical to India clinching a draw.
Gambhir has been seen in many positions after his retirement, ranging from pundit to team mentor, and will guide the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL 2024.
Apart from playing in the Legends League Cricket and the US Masters T10, he also has a political career.
Sehwag has been regarded as a pundit and expert in his own right, and he will compete in the Legends Cricket Trophy in 2023.
Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Cheteshwar Pujara, and MS Dhoni form the middle order
VVS Laxman, the star of India’s last Test victory in Durban, scored 15 and 32 not out.
Cheteshwar Pujara was caught in front by Dale Steyn for two runs in his lone batting appearance in his third Test.
Dhoni had a duck in the first inning and, while he didn’t bat again, he had four catches throughout the game.
Dravid is presently India’s head coach, while Tendulkar is the face of the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
In addition, he has captained India Legends in the Road Safety World Series.
Laxman, on the other hand, is the head of the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru and frequently fills in as India’s head coach when Dravid is unavailable.
Pujara last played for India in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia in 2023, after which he was dropped.
He is still playing domestic cricket for Saurashtra. Dhoni, who retired from international cricket in 2020, will lead the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL 2024.
Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, and S Sreesanth are the bowlers
Harbhajan Singh, India’s off-spinner, was the standout with the ball in the Cape Town Test.
Despite going wicketless in the first innings, he bowled 7/120 in the second, the best by an Indian spinner in a Test in the Rainbow Nation.
India’s three-man pace assault included Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, and S Sreesanth.
The left-arm grabbed three wickets in the first innings but just one in the second, while Ishant took two and one, respectively.
Sreesanth may have gone wicketless in the second innings, but he was the standout performer in the first, producing 5/114 to keep South Africa to 362.
In addition to commentating, he and Harbhajan continue to participate in competitions such as the Legends League Cricket and the US Masters T10.
Zaheer, who is also the Global Head of Cricket Development at MI, is frequently featured as an analyst on shows.
Ishant last played for India in 2021, although he is anticipated to play for the Delhi Capitals (DC) in this year’s IPL.
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