South Africa won its first Test series in India since 2000 by defeating the hosts by 408 runs in the second cricket Test. At the time of tea break, India’s score was 90-5…
On Wednesday, South Africa secured its second series win in India in 25 years by defeating the hosts by 408 runs. World Test Championship winners South Africa won the first Test in Kolkata by 30 runs.
Off-spinner Simon Harmer took career-best figures of 6-37 as India were bowled out for 140 in their second innings and lost the two-match series 2-0.
In 2000, the Cronje-led South Africans also won 2–0. The Proteas won both the Tests against Tendulkar-led India in Mumbai and Bengaluru.
Since then, South Africa had managed to win only two out of 13 Tests in India before overturning that record in Kolkata and Guwahati this year.
After scoring 489 and 260-5 runs in the two innings, South Africa had set an impossible target of 549 runs to win. India was all out for 201 runs in its first innings and had gained a lead of 288 runs.
India had lost three wickets in the Wednesday morning session and were 90-5 at tea. Then, he lost five more wickets in just over an hour in the second session, ending a massive defeat before lunch on the fifth day.
This is India’s second home defeat in a consecutive season. New Zealand won 3-0 in October 2024, raising a serious question over India’s transitional phase in the red-ball format.
Harmer led the Proteas to a historic win by taking 17 wickets in the two Tests. It was the off-spinner’s first five-wicket haul on Indian soil – he had taken four wickets four times here before.
Aiden Markram supported him by taking nine catches in the match – the most for a fielder in a single Test in history.
For India, Ravindra Jadeja scored 54 runs in 87 balls with the help of four fours and two sixes, although the host team missed captain Shubman Gill. He suffered a neck injury in Kolkata and could not play the second Test.
Meanwhile, Temba Bavuma has won 11 out of 12 Tests for South Africa as captain, including the 2025 World Test Championship final in June.
This was the first Test played in Guwahati – Barsapara Stadium was the 30th Test venue in India.
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