IND vs SA | Pune Day 1 Talking Points - Mayank Agarwal's mettle and Anrich Nortje's obscure aggression
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Bowling first on a wicket that offered enough spice, South Africa started well but withered as the day progressed as Mayank Agarwal scored his second ton of the series to deflate the visitors. The Proteas will now need early wickets on Day 2 to have any chance of staying alive in the series.
Mayank proves his mettle by overcoming morning blues
As soon as Virat Kohli flipped the coin and it landed, there was a grin of disappointment on Faf du Plessis’s face. Yes, he had lost the toss yet again and yes, his bowlers had to prepare themselves to put in the hard yards on a Day 1 pitch in India once again. But as he himself admitted, it was not a tragedy by any means, as the pitch offered enough spice for the pacers to exploit, evident by the fact that both teams fielded three quicks each.
In the very first over of the match, Mayank Agarwal was beaten twice - once off his back foot and once off his front foot. On just the fifth over, he survived an extremely close LBW call off Philander - lucky to have survived, one has to say - and a few overs later, he was struck clank on the helmet by a fiery Anrich Nortje. For a brief moment, it felt like we were witnessing a match in Port Elizabeth and not Pune. Both the openers were put to the ultimate test and while Rohit failed, Agarwal stood tall, solved the problems thrown at him and passed it with flying colours.
The very next ball after he was hit on the helmet, Agarwal smacked Nortje for a four through cover. That, in itself, told a story; Despite being under immense pressure, despite copping a heavy blow, Agarwal asserted his dominance in the first opportunity he got. Post the turn of the hour, he turned into a completely different batsman and at no point did he look like he was in trouble. After his onslaught in Vizag, all he needed was an innings of mettle, of substance to prove that he is the real deal and on Thursday morning, he did just that.Â
South Africa’s bewildering tactics against Pujara leave heads scratching
Oh South Africa. You are just not helping yourself by doing this, are you? Surely, surely, after what transpired in the second innings in Vizag, one would have expected them to learn from their mistakes and be clever with their tactics, line and lengths to Pujara, but unfortunately, no lessons seemed to have been learned and so once again they paid the price for their naivety and inconsistency. Anyone who has followed Indian cricket - or Cheteshwar Pujara - closely over the course of the last few years would know that he has two major areas of scoring against spinners - firstly, the area between mid-wicket and mid-on where he generally skips off the wicket and flicks it and secondly, through backward point where he usually cuts the ball away.
While for a brief moment in the second innings of Vizag they shunned down the leg-side by stacking up fielders, South Africa soon reverted that approach and Pujara feasted on it once they did so. While one thought they would go for a similar approach and limit Pujara’s scoring options, they instead committed the sinful act of letting the on-side open, giving the right-hander plenty of space to exploit. To add to their woes, Maharaj also erred on his line and length big time, often dishing out juicy leg stump half-volleys and serving it on a platter for Pujara to put it away.Â
A more sensible option would have been to either shun out the leg side and pack it with fielders, or to pack the off-side and maintain a fourth or fifth stump line. Alas, neither was done and Nortje’s short ball tactic to Pujara also looked like desperation more than a clear-cut tactic and at no point did Pujara look like he was troubled by the pace and bounce of the South African.
With tactics like these, it’s unsurprising to see why South Africa are already playing catch-up in this Test.
Anrich Nortje’s lack of clarity lets India off the leash
“We’ve brought in Anrich Nortje for the extra pace” said du Plessis at the toss. It was an unsurprising move, really, especially after seeing the kind of help that the pitch looked like offering to the quicks. Coming into bowl on the back of a really tight opening half an hour from Philander and Rabada, the debutant did well, cranking up the pace and even smacking Agarwal on the helmet once. But it seemed like he ran out of ideas as the day progressed and at one point felt like he had absolutely no clue on how to approach Test cricket.Â
After starting the day off with a combination of full and good length deliveries, Nortje reverted to a “hit the helmet” approach post-lunch in an attempt to unsettle both Agarwal and Pujara. However, the plan massively backfired as while Pujara sucked his energy out by harmlessly letting the deliveries go to the keeper, Agarwal instead opted for the more aggressive approach, notching up multiple boundaries in the area between deep and backward square leg. By the time Virat Kohli walked in to bat, Nortje had lost all his rhythm and confidence and looked like a bowling machine who was there to just ruffle up the batters.
He ended up conceding 60 runs in just 13 overs at an economy over 4.6, often letting India off the hook just when there was pressure being built up. With Maharaj too having a bad day at the office, the headless yet aggressive approach of Nortje ended up hurting South Africa. Perhaps on a pitch that offered enough seam movement, Lungi Ngidi might just have been a better option. But then again, it is pretty harsh to diss Nortje who is making his Test debut in extremely challenging circumstances. For both himself and South Africa’s sake, let’s hope that he comes up with a clearer, well-thought out approach on Day 2.Â
