Dale Steyn

Nagpur: South Africa seamers make early inroads to dismissed both Indian openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir early after India were asked to follow-on after being bowled out for 233 in their first innings on the third day of the second Test at Nagpur.

At stumps India were 66/2 with Murali Vijay (27*) and Sachin Tendulkar (15*) on crease. India still trailed South Africa by 259 runs.

Morne Morkel (1/21) and Dale Steyn (1/14) pick up a wicket apiece with Morkel sending back Gautam Gambhir (1) early rattling his stumps before first innings hero Steyn dismissed Virender Sehwag (14).
 
Earlier, Dale Steyn rattle the Indian batting line up picking up a career best 7/51 to dismissed India for 233 just after tea.

Resuming at 221/4 after tea India lost 6 wickets for just 12 runs 42 balls as a fiery Dale Steyn stamped his authority as the no.1 bowler in the world picking up the last five wickets as India suffered a dramatic collapse.

Dhoni (6) fall in the first over after tea to Harris (1/39) then debutant Badrinath (56) followed in the next over before Steyn clean up  Saha (0), Harbhajan (8), Khan (2) and Mishra (0) to leave India with a mammoth task of saving the Test.

Morning session and post lunch session

Virender Sehwag scored a brisk century while Subramaniam Badrinath made an unbeaten half century on debut to steady Indian innings at tea on the third day of the first cricket Test against South Africa here Monday.

Sehwag scored 109 off 139 balls with 15 fours before being dismissed by left-arm seamer Wayne Parnell. But that was the only wicket India lost in the second session.

India reached 221 for four at tea with Badrinath, making his Test debut, batting on 56 while Mahendra Singh Dhoni (6) was at the other end. India still trail by 337 runs.

Sehwag and Badrinath shared a 136-run stand to pull India out of trouble after South African pacers reduced the hosts to 56/3.

India added 102 runs in the session with Sehwag and Badrinath steadying the Indian innings. In the morning session, Dale Steyn (2-32) and Morne Morkel (1-31) had rattled the Indian top order, bowling with pace and extracting considerable bounce and movement from the wicket.

Sehwag and Badrinath did the repair job and were unseparated at lunch. The two continued to build on the innings in the second session.

Sehwag played in his inimitable style, stroking the ball with his gifted timing to reach his 18th Test ton.

Badrinath, with loads of first class experience, showed good technique to weather the storm. He played with calm assurance and was never rattled, not even when Steyn exchanged a few words with him.

Badrinath played 138 balls and stroked seven exquisitely timed fours.

Earlier, resuming at 25 without loss, India lost Gautam Gambhir in the second over of the morning and the very first ball the left-hander faced.

A beautiful angling delivery from Morkel caught Gambhir on the crease and the in-form batsman edged behind to wicket-keeper Mark Boucher.

The tall Morkel worked up ferocious pace, touching 145 kmph consistently. He was accurate with his line, probing the batsmen round the off-stump. Steyn, at the other end, troubled Sehwag and Murali Vijay, who replaced injured Rahul Dravid in the match, with his away going deliveries.

Sehwag, however, was never hesitant to free his arm whenever he got a chance.

Steyn finally got the better of Vijay, who was wrong in judging the delivery and left it but the ball nipped back sharply to crash into his stumps.

Steyn bowled a nagging line to Tendulkar, who played 16 balls for his seven, before edging one behind.