While it is less than 24 hours left in the epic clash of India and South Africa, it will be the 11th encounter when these two top rated teams would be in a field battle. Stage is set to feature this epic series and players are charging themselves up for the big game.
The Gandhi Mandela Series – South Africa’s Tour of India; will be live from 2nd October 2015. In this month long series both the teams will play three T20 internationals, five ODIs and four test matches at various venues across country.
In a meantime let’s go through some of the memorable performances, which came out from past series played both in India and South Africa.
Javagal Srinath in Ahmadabad Test (1996)
Javagal Srinath Indian fast bowler bowling in fourth inning of first test played at Motera, where set the total of 170 for South Africa. It was looking a very easy target for the guest team, but when Javagal opened the bowling attack, trapped Andrew Hudson on ‘Zero’, followed by Daryll Cullinan marked score board with 0/2, but as the game proceeded, this bowler also seized Dave Richardson, Jhonty Rhodes, Allan Donald and Paul Adams. The individual best figures of 6/21 in just 11.5 over bought himself title of Man of the Match and India won the first match.
Lance Klusener in Kolkata Test (1996)
A lighting start for the young bowler of that time, marking its debut in International Test and recoding third best figures of 8/64 for South African squad. The extraordinary pacer forced Indian squad to a collapse, while chasing a mammoth total of 467. Team India just managed to score 137 runs and lost the match miserably.
Allan Donald in Durban Test 1996
It was right after South Africa’s tour to India, that both team got face to face in South Africa and Allan Donald blew away the Indian batting order, giving his team a 1 – 0 lead in the series. The South African pacer took nine wickets in the match, which resulted in worst defeat of Indian team. His bowling figures stood 5/40 in 16 over and 4/14 in 11 over respectively in first and second innings.
Sunil Joshi in Nairobi ODI (1999)
The left-arm spinner confused South African team with excellent figures of 10-6-6-5, playing with the ODI squad in absence of specialist slow bowler Anil Kumble. He bagged Boeta Dippenaar, Hershelle Gibbs, hansie Cronje, Jhonty Rhodes and Shaun Pollack in his 10 over spell. These figures 5/6 are still the best bowling figure against South Africa by any bowler.
Harbhajan Singh in Kolkata Test (2004)
The magical Indian bowler took seven wickets of tourist team, playing through second innings. It was a great display of spin bowling at Eden Gardens, he took 5 wickets on fourth day and on final day bagged two more to get the figures of 30-3-87-7. India went on to chase 117 for the loss of two wickets.
Sreesanth in Johannesburg Test (2006)
Though the bowler has been sidelined by the Indian Cricket authorities, but the fast bowler from Kerala took team India to a Test win on South African soil for the first time. The finest spell by bowled by him at Wanderers, he claimed Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, Mark, Boucher and Shaun Pollack in first inning, bowling out team on lowest total of 84 runs. The finest of the spell continued to second innings as well he took three wickets. The figures 5/40 and 3/59 were fairly awarded with Man of the Match title.
Virendra Sehwag in Chennai Test (2008)
The star Indian opener whipped out with an incredible Triple Hundred scored in 278 balls, quickest in the test format. The player hurried to the mammoth individual score featuring 42 fours and 5 sixes, he also became third batsmen after Sir Don Bradmen and legendry Brain Lara to score two triples. Rahul Dravid partnering with Sehwag, commented it to be a phenomenal, incredible and simply exceptional batting. However the Test concluded without result.
The series of memorable performance continued, when the deadly Dale Steyn crumbled Indian batting attack in Ahmadabad Test played in 2008 with a bowling figures of 5/23 runs. The fast bowler once again stoned the Indian batting in Nagpur Test played in 2010, while bowling figures were even better 7/51. The Nagpur test also witnessed a brilliant knock of dangerous Hashim Amla scoring unbeaten 253 runs as his maiden double hundred.
