South Africa fight back as India slump to 138/4 at lunch; Gill retires hurt
Kolkata (PTI): South Africa’s spinners clawed their way back into the contest with a stirring fightback in the second hour, as India slipped from a position of control to reach 138 for 4 at lunch on day two of the opening Test at the Eden Gardens, here on Saturday.
Resuming at 37 for 1, India appeared solid through a resolute stand between KL Rahul and Washington Sundar, who survived a demanding first hour against pacer Marco Jansen’s hostility and left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj’s probing accuracy.
The pair added 57 for the second wicket, raising their fifty stand off 152 balls, compact in defence and composed against the odd ball that kicked or turned.
The visitors, defending a paltry first innings 159, found a way back through the sustained pressure from Maharaj and off-spinner Simon Harmer, who combined for control, bite and key breakthroughs to drag their side firmly into the contest.
The complexion of the session flipped dramatically after the drinks break, courtesy veteran off-spinner Simon Harmer, who opened the floodgates in a defining 35th over.
First, Harmer removed a well-set Sundar for 29 off 82 balls (2x4, 1x6) with a classical off-spinner’s dismissal -- drifting the ball in and turning it away from the left-hander to draw the outside edge, pouched by Aiden Markram at slip.
Three balls later, Shubman Gill retired hurt for a three-ball four following a slog-sweeping Harmer for a boundary.
The India captain appeared to suffer a whiplash in the follow-through, clutching the nape of his neck before walking off grimacing. The BCCI is yet to issue an update on the severity of his injury.
Maharaj, bowling a marathon 16-over spell, then struck to remove Rahul, who had just tried to up the tempo.
The opener, overnight 13, reached 4000 Test runs in the morning but fell for 39 off 119 balls (4x4, 1x6), guiding one softly to Markram at slip as the ball turned and stayed low. The third umpire confirmed the catch.
Just as India hoped to steady through Rishabh Pant's counterpunch -- the left-hander smashing Maharaj for a straight six, another over long-on and unfurling a reverse sweep on his way to 27 off 24 balls (2x4, 2x6) -- rookie pacer Corbin Bosch delivered a crucial strike moments before lunch.
Pant fell to a well-directed bouncer from Corbin Bosch, giving South Africa a bonus wicket to close the session.
At the break, India were officially 138/4, but effectively five down with Gill's return not clear. Ravindra Jadeja also completed 4000 runs in Test cricket. He is only fifth cricketer in Test history with a double of 4000 runs and 300 plus wickets.
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Jai Bhim: Slogan that energised Dalits was first given at this central Maharashtra village
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (PTI): 'Jai Bhim': These two words have come to symbolise the awakening and empowerment of the Dalit community in independent India, but not many people know how it originated.
The slogan, which also encapsulates the immense reverence in which Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar is held, was first raised at the Makranpur Parishad, a conference organised at Makranpur village in Kannad teshil of today's Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district in Maharashtra.
Ambedkar, the chief architect of India's Constitution, died on December 6, 1956.
Bhausaheb More, the first president of the Scheduled Castes Federation of Marathwada, organised the first Makranpur Parishad on December 30, 1938.
Dr Ambedkar spoke at the conference and asked the people not to support the princely state of Hyderabad under which much of central Maharashtra then fell, said Assistant Commissioner of Police Pravin More, Bhausaheb's son.
"When Bhausaheb stood up to speak, he said every community has its own deity and they greet each other using the name of that deity. Dr Ambedkar showed us the path of progress, and he is like God to us. So henceforth, we should say 'Jai Bhim' while meeting each other. The people responded enthusiastically. A resolution accepting 'Jai Bhim' as the community's slogan was also passed," More told PTI.
"My father came in contact with Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in his early years. Bhausaheb was aware of the atrocities the Nizam state committed on Dalits. He told Ambedkar about these atrocities, including the pressure to convert. Dr Ambedkar was strongly against these atrocities, and he decided to attend the 1938 conference," he said.
As Ambedkar was against the princely states, he was banned from giving speeches in the Hyderabad state but was allowed to travel through its territories. The Shivna river formed the border between Hyderabad and British India. Makranpur was chosen as the venue for the first conference because it was on the banks of Shivna but lay in the British territory, ACP More said.
The stage made of bricks, from where Dr Ambedkar addressed the conference, still stands. The conference is organised on December 30 every year to carry forward Ambedkar's thought, and the tradition was not discontinued even in 1972 when Maharashtra experienced one of the worst droughts in it history.
"My grandmother pledged her jewellery for the conference expenses. People from Khandesh, Vidarbha and Marathwada attended it. Despite a ban imposed by the Nizam's police, Ambedkar's followers crossed the river to attend the event," said ACP More.
"This is the 87th year of Makranpur Parishad. We have deliberately retained the venue as it helps spread Ambedkar's thought in rural areas," he added.
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