Heroic Pandya stands tall

RESOLUTE Allrounder’s 93 and stand with Bhuvneshwar rallies India on Day 2

aim at the body while Philander bowled five consecutive maidens. The beauty of this ferocious South African bowling attack is it didn’t let up on the pressure even after Steyn hobbled off due to a heel problem.

When Steyn and Philander were finally done piling on the misery, Morne Morkel and Kagiso Rabada took over. Rohit displayed uncharacteristic patience but Rabada beat him for pace to trap him leg before.

Soon after Pujara’s dismissal, R Ashwin poked at a Philander delivery. Wriddhiman Saha then shouldered arms to a Steyn delivery that nipped back and struck his back pad, prompting Pandya to throw caution to the wind.

His was not a chanceless innings though. Steyn appeal for caught behind was upheld but so confident was Pandya that it had only hit his back thigh he instantly reviewed it. This was after Elgar had dropped Pandya at gully, again off Steyn. By the time Quinton de Kock missed a stumping in left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj’s first over, Pandya was in rampage mode.

First picking Philander by scoring three boundaries, Pandya then focused on Morne Morkel, off whom he also brought up his fifty with a boundary through mid-off.

With Bhuvneshwar Kumar ably holding one end up, Pandya went about scoring quick runs. By the time Pandya fell to an attempted ramp shot, India were one short of 200.