The first test between India and South Africa was exactly the exciting encounter everyone speculated. Despite one entire day being washed by rain, the match just concluded within 4 days with the Proteas winning by 72 runs.
Indian pacers were right on their money and the South African line up was cleaned up for just 130 in the second innings. The batsmen had a modest total of 207 to chase but the batsmen let down the team. While bowlers take handsome ratings the batsmen remain at the bottom.
Here are the ratings of Indian players after the first test lost to South Africa.
1. Murali Vijay
2/10 Expectations from him were high but he failed in both the innings. 14 runs is what he could manage from both the innings and he is one of the culprits of the loss.
2. Shikhar Dhawan
2/7 His recovery brought good news to India but not his batting. Poor shot selection got the better of him in both the innings. He scored just 16 in the first innings and again scored 16 in the second innings.
3. Cheteshwar Pujara
3/10 Pujara has a good record in South Africa but that did not reflect in the first test. He tried hard in the first innings and showed good concentration. But got out for just 26 from 92 balls. In the second innings he could manage just 4.
4. Virat Kohli
3/10 This was one rare match where Kohli did not lead from the front. Virat Kohli failed as a batsman as well as a captain. Playing Rohit instead of Rahane was a bad decision. Even with the bat he scored just 5 in the first innings and 28 in the second. Poor shot selection is what he endorsed in the first game.
5. Rohit Sharma
2/10 With 11 in the first innings and 10 in the second he surely did not justify his selection ahead of Rahane. Rohit showed miserably poor and irresponsible shot selection in the second innings.
6. Wriddhiman Saha
4/10 Saha was good with the gloves. He got 10 dismissals in the match which is a record. But with the bat he was just miserable. Saha managed just 8 runs in two innings and in the first innings he went for a duck.
7. Hardik Pandya
6/10 A brave knock of 93 in the first innings ensured that India goes past 200. He also picked two wickets in the second innings and assisted the mainstream pacers well. But his shot selection in the second innings was way too poor and he got out irresponsibly for just 1.
8. RaviChandran Ashwin
4/10 He picked up two wickets in the first innings. Also played a decent knock of 37 in the second innings even though he bowled just one over. He had a decent match and can’t blame him much.
9. Bhuvneshwar Kumar
7/10 Bhuvi was just amazing the way he bowled in the first innings. He fetched appreciation from all over the world. In the second innings too he got a wicket. Overall he was impressive. He also made decent contributions with the bat.
10. Jasprit Bumrah
Image Source: India TV
5/10 Dream debut for Bumrah it was. He picked up 4 wickets in the match. He picked up Ab De Villiers in both the innings. He picked 3 wickets in the second innings and bowled beautifully.
11. Mohammad Shami
5/10 Shami bowled fiery pace in the second innings and picked up 3 wickets. In the first innings he could manage only 1 wicket.
