Kolkata, Nov 16 (IANS) Despite being dismissed for 159 on day one after choosing to bat first, World Test Championship winners South Africa staged a remarkable comeback to defeat India by 30 runs in the first Test at Eden Gardens on Sunday. Chasing a modest target of 124, South Africa bowled out India for just 93 in 35 overs on Day 3.

The 30-run victory also marked South Africa’s first Test win in India in 15 years, as the visitors now lead the two-match series 1-0. Off-spinner Simon Harmer excelled with figures of 4-21, while the rest of the attack worked together to dismantle India’s batting line-up on a tricky pitch, where chasing anything above 100 was always going to be a challenging task.

In the chase of 124, India really missed Shubman Gill, who was ruled out due to neck surgery and had to be hospitalised. After captain Temba Bavuma’s resilient 55 not out, and his useful 44-run stand with Corbin Bosch, South Africa’s lead extended to 123. Harmer’s exceptional bowling, coupled with key wickets from Marco Jansen, Aiden Markram, and Keshav Maharaj, helped the Proteas surprise India and leave the crowd silent.

The post-lunch session began with Jurel’s smooth flicks and Sundar’s patience, helping India cut their target to under 100 runs. It also helped that South Africa were momentarily without Marco Jansen, who left the field after lunch but returned quickly.

There was a moment of drama when Corbin Bosch thought he had Jurel caught behind, only for the review to show the ball had missed the bat. Just as India looked settled, Harmer struck with his innocuous short ball, which Jurel went on the backfoot to pull but miscued to deep midwicket.

His dismissal was a result of South Africa’s relentless pressure, yielding only one run in 20 deliveries. The crowd’s disappointment was set to increase when South Africa believed they had Rishabh Pant caught at backward short leg off Keshav Maharaj. But the crowd cheered happily when the large screen showed not out, as replays revealed the ball had struck the fielder’s forearm.

However, Harmer struck again with another innocuous delivery, when Pant hit a firm straight shot that was caught by the off-spinner, dismissing the stand-in India captain for two. With Sundar being patient in his defensive batting, Ravindra Jadeja demonstrated proactiveness by taking a boundary off Jansen and Harmer each.

But a hush fell over Eden Gardens as Harmer produced some dip on a fuller ball to strike Jadeja on the boot and trap him lbw, with the dismissal also costing India a review. Aiden Markram’s handy off-spin gave South Africa another crucial breakthrough, finding Sundar’s outside edge and having him caught at first slip, with the all-rounder’s resistance ending at 31 off 92 balls.

Harmer struck again when his off-break spun past Kuldeep Yadav’s defensive shot and hit him on the back leg to trap him lbw. Kuldeep reviewed, but it was in vain as Harmer claimed his fourth wicket. Axar Patel had the crowd roaring with delight by slog-sweeping Maharaj for four, before clobbering him for two sixes.

Maharaj had the last laugh when Axar tried to slog-sweep on his slower delivery, but the bat turned at impact and the top-edge was caught by Bavuma running back from mid-wicket. On the very next ball, Maharaj had Mohammed Siraj edging to first slip, sparking jubilant scenes in the Proteas camp.

Brief Scores: South Africa 159 and 153 in 54 overs (Temba Bavuma 55 not out, Corbin Bosch 25; Ravindra Jadeja 4-50, Mohammed Siraj 2-2) beat India 189 and 93 in 35 overs (Washington Sundar 31, Axar Patel 26; Simon Harmer 4-21, Marco Jansen 2-15) by 30 runs

–IANS

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