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Star speedster Jasprit Bumrah further etched his name as one of the most successful Test bowlers for India in overseas conditions following the visitors' seven-wicket victory against South Africa in the second Test on Thursday.
Bumrah ended the second Test with a six-fer which marked the eighth occasion in 28 matches when he claimed more than five wickets in overseas conditions. Only legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev is ahead of him with nine five-wicket hauls to his name in 45 matches in the overseas. With his figures of 6-61, he levelled the tally of the likes of Ishant Sharma, BS Chandrasekhar and Anil Kumble. After the game, Bumrah talked about the experience of playing at the same venue where he made his Test debut in 2018. "This ground will always hold a special place in my heart. It was always a dream to play Test cricket and the journey started here, there's always fond memories of my first game. Very happy that it went well today as well. That journey started in 2018 - our bowling unit was experienced and we wanted to create an impact. We knew that if we want to do well in foreign conditions, we'll have to bowl a lot more and consistently," Bumrah said after the game. Bumrah talked about India's new-looking set-up in the Test and the difficulty that they faced to eclipse South Africa in the second red-ball affair. "In India, the spinners do a lot more work. The vision started from there. Our team is also going through a transition. Lot of the bowlers have been changed, but the message is still the same, you have keep fighting. It's not easy playing in South Africa, different conditions, the crowd is also something. We fought it out in the last game as well. It's difficult to keep coming at it because it requires a lot of strength and patience. If you lose it, in one session, the game goes out of your hand," Bumrah added. Coming to the second Test match between India and South Africa, saw the visitors levelling the series on a spiteful surface surrounded by the idyllic Table mountains, where the ball did all kinds of tricks, India made short work of the hosts with the ball on the second day, despite a heroic ton by opener Aiden Markram, and chased down a paltry target under 11 overs. The two-day affair brought the curtains down on the international career of Protea opener Dean Elgar. With regular skipper Temba Bavuma out injured, Elgar took over the reins in the second Test as stand-in skipper. However, the hosts ended up on the losing side after two days of intriguing and, to a large extent, bizarre cricket. India's leading pace pair of Jasprit Bumrah (6-61) and Mohammed Siraj (6-15) were the architects of India's redeeming, series-levelling win. (ANI)
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