Follow UsTest cricket returned to Kolkata after six years, and it was deemed to be a special occasion. The crowd turned up in numbers too, with each of the three days witnessing over 40,000 fans at the stadium, cheering their hearts out for the home team.
Yet to the 1 lakh-plus spectators that attended the contest across the three days, team India dished out one of their most embarrassing home performances in history as they ended up falling 30 runs short chasing 124 to get absolutely steamrolled at the Eden Gardens.
That makes it 4 defeats in the last 6 home Tests now for the team coached by Gautam Gambhir, with the 2-0 series win against West Indies proving to be an exception rather than the norm.
As it turned out, it was yet another Test in which the Indian side got humiliated on a rank turner. On this occasion, however, the humiliation was a bit extra as the home side fielded not one, not two, not even three but four specialist spinners. Yet it was the Simon Harmer show in Kolkata as South Africa won their first Test in India in 15 years to take an unassailable 1-0 lead in the two-Test series.
When play began on day three, South Africa were ahead by just 63 runs with only three wickets in hand. But that’s when skipper Temba Bavuma and Corbin Bosch ended up having a match-defining partnership, adding 44 runs for the eighth wicket. The partnership stretched the lead beyond 100 and skipper Bavuma’s incredible effort (55*) ensured that the Proteas nearly doubled their lead in the first session itself, setting India 124 to chase.
India began the chase effectively 0/1 with skipper Shubman Gill ruled out, and they were on the back foot from the very first minute as Marco Jansen removed Yashasvi Jaiswal in the very first over. Jansen then removed Rahul cheaply too as India were effectively 1 for 3 chasing 124.
From this point onwards, it was the Harmer show as the off-spinner (14-4-21-4) bowled one of the craftiest spells by an overseas spinner in Indian conditions this century, to completely bamboozle the home batters. Keshav Maharaj struggled all innings, but he came to the fore at the right time, taking the last two wickets to wrap up the innings and hand India an embarrassing 30-run defeat in a modest chase of 124.
This result means that India’s days of invincibility at home in Tests are long gone. After losing just 3 out of 46 Tests between 2013 and 2023, they have now lost a whopping 5 of their 13 home Tests since the start of 2024. 4 of these losses have come in their last 6 home Tests, with the last two being defeats in sub-150 chases.