Day 4: South Africa need 384 runs to win, India 9 wickets away
Visakhapatnam: Rohit Sharma smashed another hundred and a plethora of records as India set an improbable 395-run target for South Africa in first Test which is headed for an exciting final day.
Revelling in his new role, Rohit effortlessly walked his way into the record books as he scored 127 off 149 balls, following his 176, to become the first ever batsman in the history of Test cricket to score two hundreds in his opening 'debut'.
In a debatable decision, India batted late into the final session on day four before declaring their second innings at 323 for four in 67 overs, giving themselves 45 minutes on day four and the whole of day five to bowl out South Africa.
In the end only 30 minutes of play was possible due to bad light after South Africa came out to bat.
At stumps, South Africa were 11 for one with Ravindra Jadeja trapping first innings centurion Dean Elgar in front of the stumps. The visitors need another 384 runs for victory.
The pitch remains slow but is offering turn with the odd ball rearing up from the spots created. Ravichandran Ashwin, who took seven wickets in the first innings along with Jadeja, hold the key on the final day.
With the stodgy Elgar removed, the only other factor could be Quinton de Kock, who has often proved to be a thorn in India's flesh.
Considering their spirited effort with the bat in the first innings, South Africa would be backing themselves to bat out the 90 odd overs on the final day.
The day once again belonged to Rohit, who played yet another sublime knock at a brisk pace after the hosts bowled out South Africa for 431 almost one hour into morning session, earning a 71-run lead.
Rohit also broke the record of most sixes in a game with 13 maximums, surpassing Pakistan great Wasim Akram who smashed 12 in a match against Zimbabwe in 1996.
Rohit smashed six sixes in first innings and seven in the second, including a hat-trick of sixes off spinner Dane Piedt in the 56th over when India were looking for quick runs.
His 169-run stand for the second wicket with Cheteswar Pujara (81 off 148) set the tone for India's second innings before Ravindra Jadeja (40 off 32), Virat Kohli (31 not out off 25) and Ajinkya Rahane (27 not out off 17) played their part. Considering the scenario, Jadeja had come out to bat ahead of Kohli.
With 175 for one at tea, India had extended their lead to 246 runs, scoring runs 140 runs in the session in 34 overs.
While stylish right-hander played in his usual fashion and kept the scoreboard ticking, Pujara found the going tough in the initial part of his innings which he scored eight runs off the first 62 balls faced.
However, after the first drinks break of the session, he went on the offensive especially against the spinners. He stepped out to the spinners more often than not and other times he kept them guessing.
Thinking Pujara will dance down the wicket again, Piedt dropped one short and Pujara stayed back to pull it over deep mid-wicket for a rare six. Before that, he collected four boundaries off Maharaj to push up the scoring rate.
The luck was also on Pujara's side as Kagiso Rabada found the outside edge of his bat in the same over but on both occasions the ball landed between first slip and wicketkeeper before running to the boundary.
Rohit too was fortunate when Senuran Muthusamy caught him at long-on but after the review showed that he touched the boundary rope while releasing the ball for a legitimate catch on the second attempt.
Pujara, who hit 13 fours and two sixes, survived a close DRS call on the last ball before the break.
South Africa, resuming the day at 385 for eight, batted for 13.2 overs in the morning scoring valuable 46 runs courtesy debutant Muthusamy, who remained unbeaten on 33 off 106, and Rabada, who hit three welcome boundaries in his 15-run cameo.
India batted for close to an hour in the session and were 35 for one at lunch in 14 overs with Rohit-Pujara, extending their lead to 106 runs.
Maharaj dismissed first innings double centurion Mayank Agarwal (7) with a classical left-arm spinner delivery, which turned and bounce enough to take the edge for a simple catch at first slip.
The hosts would have been better placed if they did not allow South African tail to get some handy runs in the first hour of play. The 10th wicket stand between Muthusamy and Rabada fetched 35 runs.
Ravichandran Ashwin, who picked up his 27th five-wicket haul on Friday, added two more to his tally to end with the innings with 349 Test scalps.
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Cold conditions prevail in north India; temperatures sub-zero in several parts of J-K
New Delhi (PTI): Cold conditions prevailed across north India on Sunday, with the Amarnath yatra base camp being the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir at minus 4.3 degrees Celsius and parts of Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan reporting minimum temperatures between three and seven degrees Celsius.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said cold wave conditions were "very likely" to prevail in isolated pockets over Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha on Monday and Tuesday.
In Delhi, the minimum temperature was recorded at eight degrees, up from 6.8 degrees a day ago and yet 1.6 notches below normal.
The maximum temperature was 24.7 degrees Celsius, 0.1 notch below normal, while the relative humidity was 92 per cent in the morning.
For Monday, the weather department forecast a minimum of 10 degrees Celsius and a maximum of 25 degrees Celsius, with mist expected.
Pollution levels in Delhi remained in the "very poor" category on Sunday, prolonging the spell of toxic air that has hung over its residents for several weeks now. The city logged a 24-hour average AQI of 308.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board, an AQI between 0 and 50 is classified "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor" and 401 and 500 "severe".
Further in the north, the night temperatures in Kashmir rose by several degrees but stayed below the freezing point, officials said.
The Pahalgam resort in south Kashmir, which serves as the base camp for the annual Amarnath yatra, was the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir as the minimum settled at a low of minus 4.3 degrees Celsius.
The minimum temperature in Srinagar -- the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir -- settled at minus 0.9 degrees Celsius, a rise of 3.2 degrees compared to the previous night.
The gateway town to the valley, Qazigund, recorded a low of minus one degree Celsius, while the minimum settled at minus 0.8 degree Celsius in north Kashmir's Kupwara, and 1.1 degrees Celsius in south Kashmir's Kokernag, according to officials.
The meteorological department said the weather would remain generally cloudy but dry on Sunday, and a brief spell of light snowfall at isolated places in the higher reaches of north and central Kashmir is likely on December 8.
In Himachal Pradesh, The IMD predicted dense fog in parts of the state until Wednesday.
A yellow alert for dense fog was also issued in parts of the reservoir area of the Bhakra dam in Bilaspur district and over some parts of the Balh valley in Mandi district during early morning till Monday.
In Punjab, Faridkot remained the coldest place, with the minimum temperature settling at 4.4 degrees Celsius, while in Haryana, Narnaul saw the lowest temperature at 4.6 degrees Celsius, according to the local meteorological department.
Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, recorded a minimum temperature of 8.2 degrees Celsius.
In Punjab, Bathinda and Gurdaspur recorded a minimum temperature of 4.6 degrees Celsius, while Ferozepur recorded 6 degrees, Amritsar 6.1 degrees, Ludhiana 6.8 degrees, and Patiala 8.9 degrees.
In Haryana, Bhiwani recorded a low of six degrees, Hisar 6.2 degrees, Sirsa 6.6 degrees, Karnal seven degrees, Rohtak 7.8 degrees, and Ambala 9.8 degrees.
Rajasthan, similarly, reeled under intense cold, the Meteorological Centre here said.
Fatehpur in the Sikar district continued to record the lowest minimum temperature, albeit at 3.5 degrees Celsius, slightly up from 2.3 degrees a day ago.
According to the weather department, Lunkaransar (Bikaner) recorded a low of 5 degrees Celsius, followed by Dausa at 6 degrees, Churu at 6.3 degrees, Vanasthali (Tonk) at 6.4 degrees and Jhunjhunu at 7.2 degrees Celsius on Sunday morning.
The department said a fresh but weak western disturbance is likely to cause partly cloudy skies in some parts of the state over the next few days.
Under its influence, the minimum temperature is expected to rise by two to three degrees Celsius, providing relief from the cold wave, it said.
Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, eight districts recorded minimum temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius, the IMD said, noting a cold wave in parts of the state.
Gumla recorded the lowest temperature in the state at 3.5 degrees Celsius — up from three degrees Celsius — while Khunti logged five degrees Celsius, the IMD weather bulletin stated.
The minimum temperature in Jharkhand's capital, Ranchi, was 7.5 degrees Celsius, while Daltonganj recorded 6.5 degrees and Jamshedpur recorded 9.6 degrees Celsius.
Deputy Director of the Ranchi Meteorological Centre, Abhishek Anand, said, "North-westerly winds prevailing in the lower tropospheric levels over Jharkhand have caused the drop in mercury."
"Dry weather conditions are likely to prevail across the state over the next five days. The minimum temperature may rise by 2–3 degrees Celsius during the next 72 hours," he added.
In West Bengal, the mercury dipped below the 10-degree mark for the first time this winter in the state's plains with Sriniketan in Birbhum districts recording a minimum temperature of 9.8 degrees Celsius on Sunday, the IMD said.
Its forecast for West Bengal suggested dry weather across all districts of West Bengal for the next week, with shallow to moderate fog likely in the northern districts.
Darjeeling was the coldest in the hills at 6.2 degrees Celsius, while the other Himalayan tourist town of Kalimpong was warmer at 10.5 degrees Celsius.
The other places which recorded low night temperatures are Alipurduar (11 degrees), Kalyani (11.4 degrees), Purulia (11.4 degrees) and Panagarh (11.9 degrees).
Kolkata recorded a minimum temperature of 15.2 degrees Celsius, the IMD said, forecasting mist in the morning on Monday.
IMD further predicted dense fog conditions in isolated pockets of Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, and Tripura between December 8 and 12.
It was also "very likely" in parts of west Madhya Pradesh on Monday and in Odisha until Tuesday.
In west India, a gradual fall by two to three degrees over the next three-four days is expected, and no significant change is anticipated thereafter, the IMD said.
