Bowlers led India's fightback on the second day of the third and final Test against South Africa at the Wanderers, Johannesburg on Thursday. South Africa resumed the day on 6 for one but were quickly sent on the back foot by a disciplined Indian bowling. Bhuvneshwar Kumar set the tone by dismissing Dean Elgar cheaply and following which the Proteas kept on losing wickets at regular wickets as the pitch provided a lot of assistance to the Indian pace battery with seam movements and bounce. Jasprit Bumrah starred with the ball as he picked up his maiden Test five-wicket haul which helped his team restrict South Africa to 194. In reply, India ended the day on 49 for one as they lost opener Parthiv Patel to a magnificent Vernon Philander delivery. Murali Vijay and KL Rahul remained unbeaten on 13 and 16 respectively. Day three will prove important for the Indian camp in terms of scoring runs as they will aim to put up a competitive total on board for the Faf du Plessis-led team.
Highlights between India vs South Africa, 3rd Test Day 2, straight from the New Wanderers Stadium
21:15 IST: Thank you for joining us for the live blog. Do tune back in for Day three of the final Test.
21:02 IST: And this is stumps! India 49/1, lead South Africa by 42 runs. India will be happy with their all-round performance on day two.
21:00 IST: Four! Morkel bowls full on leg-stump and Rahul flicks it for a boundary.
20:55 IST: Four! Full delivery from Ngidi and Rahul slaps him straight down the ground for a boundary.
20:48 IST: Huge shout for Vijay LBW from Ngidi but the umpire wasn't interested as the ball rapped him well above the knee roll.
20:45 IST: Ngidi bowls on the pad and Rahul just guides it for a single.
20:44 IST: Lungi Ngidi comes into the bowling attack.
20:40 IST: Four! Back of a length delivery, Murali Vijay trying to defend, edges the ball and splits the slip cordon and the gully for a boundray.
20:39 IST: 16 overs left in the second day's play.
20:34 IST: Morkel concedes just two runs in his first over.
20:31 IST: Morne Morkel is introduced in the bowling attack.
20:30 IST: Score update:
20:22 IST: Four! Nice juicy full delivery from Rabada, KL Rahul leans forward and slaps it through covers for a boundary.
20:15 IST: Rahul is being cautious in his approach against Philander. He is watching the ball very closely.
20:07 IST: KL Rahul is the new man in.
20:06 IST: OUT! Philander gets the first breakthrough, cramps up Parthiv for space as the Indian edges the ball which ricochets from his thigh pad and Aiden Markram at gully, plunges forward and takes a blinder.
19:59 IST: Four! Philander strays on the pad and Parthiv glances the ball through fine leg. India lead by 1 run.
19:58 IST: Support coming in from Dale Steyn.
19:53 IST: Four! Kagiso Rabada catches Parthiv off-guard with a bouncer as he edged the ball over Hashim Amla at first slip for a lucky boundary. Shaky start for India.
19:50 IST: A maiden over from Philander to start with.
19:48 IST: The lights have been switched on at the Wanderers.
19:47 IST: Welcome back India's second innings. Parthiv Patel and Murali Vijay are opening the batting for India while Vernon Philander has been given the ball.
19:37 IST: South Africa 194 all-out, lead India (187) by seven runs on day two.
19:35 IST: OUT! Bumrah bowls a short down the leg side, Ngidi pulls and edges it to Parthiv behind the stumps. Bumrah gets his maiden Test five-wicket haul.
19:34 IST: Lungi Ngidi is the new man in.
19:33 IST: OUT! Bumrah gets his fourth. Bowls a full toss and traps Phehlukwayo in front of the wickets. South Africa 194/9.
19:25 IST: Four! Magnificent from Phehlukwayo. Leans forward and caresses Shami on the up through the covers and beats Kohli at mid-off. Picture perfect!
19:19 IST: Four! Full from Bumrah and Morkel slams it straight down the ground, Proteas dressing room applaud as they are delighted. South Africa lead by two runs.
19:18 IST: Four! Bumrah bowls on the pads and Morkel flicks it on the leg-side to collect a boundary. South Africa three runs away from leading India.
19:16 IST: Four! Full and outside off from Shami, Phehlukwayo drives it with authority to get off the mark in style.
19:13 IST: Morne Morkel is the new man in.
19:12 IST: OUT! Short delivery from Shami, Philander pulls but top edges the ball to Bumrah at fine leg. South Africa trail India by 12 runs.
19:07 IST: Four! Bumrah bowls short of a length delivery, Philander plays late and pokes at the ball as it flies past the fielders at slip. Bumrah is not impressed.
19:01 IST: Andile Phehlukwayo is the new man in.
19:00 IST: OUT! Amla shuffles across the stumps and flicks Bumrah in air over deep mid-wicket and Hardik Pandya takes a comfortable catch. South Africa seven down, trail India by 18 runs.
18:53 IST: Four! Philander is looking in good form. Bit of width outside off, Philander rocks back and punches the ball through the point region for a boundary.
18:44 IST: Four! Short and wide from Bhuvneshwar and Philander crunches it through the off-side for a boundary.
18:36 IST: Two runs off the Bhuvneshwar over.
18:31 IST: Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowling the first over of the post-tea session and Hashim Amla is on strike.
18:30 IST: Welcome back to the last session of the day. Will India bowl South Africa out or will Proteas frustrate the Indian bowlers further.
18:10 IST: And this is tea! South Africa 143/6, trail India by 44 runs. This session -- 62 runs scored and 3 wickets lost.
18:00 IST: South Africa 139/6, trail India by 48 runs.
17:55 IST: Indian bowlers are creating chances but Philander and Amla are defying them.
17:45 IST: And perseverance pays. Hashim Amla scores his 37th Test half-fifty.
17:39 IST: Four! Short delivery from Bumrah, Philander gets into position and pulls Bumrah for a boundary. Gets off the mark in style.
17:36 IST: Vernon Philander is the new man in.
17:35 IST: OUT! This is turning out to be a good session for the Indian bowlers. Bumrah gets his second victim in form of de Kock, in-swinging ball from Bumrah, de Kock played for the drive and inside edged it to Parthiv behind the stumps. South Africa six down.
17:33 IST: Loud appeal for de Kock LBW as the ball clipped his pads and rolled away for boundary. Kohli discusses with Shami and opts for the review. Ball tracker shows the ball missing the stumps by miles. India lost a review, poor review from India.
17:30 IST: Four! Shami bowls outside off stump and de Kock looks to cut, gets it on the bottom of the bat, the ball escapes gully and the ball rolls away for a boundary.
17:20 IST: Four! Amla welcomes Shami back to the crease with a back-foot punch through the point region. He has reached 48*.
17:15 IST: India have well in the post-lunch session. Lot of in-swinging deliveries and moving away deliveries. However, Hashim Amla stands tall and is defying the bowlers.
17:08 IST: Quinton de Kock is the new man in.
17:07 IST! CASTLED! Bumrah bowls a scrambled delivery, du Plessis decides to leave the ball and it balls knocks the off-stump.
17:02 IST: NOT OUT!! Huge LBW appeal from Bhuvneshwar and Ian Gould raises his finger. But Amla takes the DRS and ball tracker shows the ball missing the stumps completely. How frustrating can it get for the Indian camp.
17:00 IST: Four! Full on the pads from Bhuvneshwar and Amla gets it away for a boundary. Brilliant from the batsmen.
16:54 IST: Four! Short and wide delivery from Bumrah, du Plessis edges the ball over gully. Du Plessis is not looking comfortable in the middle. May be too much seam movement.
16:52 IST: Bumrah is introduced in the attack.
16:50 IST: No respite for the South African batsmen as Bhuvneshwar and Ishant are disciplined with their bowling.
16:42 IST: Captain Faf du Plessis is the new man in.
16:40 IST: Cleaned up! Top delivery to dimiss top batsman. A brilliant pitched up delivery from Bhuvneshwar, which came in and beat de Villiers totally as the stumps are all over the ground. Big, big wicket for India.
16:28 IST: Huge shout for LBW from Bhuvneshwar as Amla gets rapped on the pads, umpire turns down the appeal. Bhuvneshwar is convinced and goes for the DRS. Replay shows ball clipping the top of the stumps. India retain the review as Amla survives yet again. India are frustrated at the moment.
16:25 IST: SAFE! An outswinger from Bhuvneshwar, de Villiers poked at the ball, edged and fell just short of KL Rahul at second slip.
16:14 IST: Huge shout for de Villiers LBW but the umpire turns down the appeal. Kohli did not opt for DRS as he wasn't sure but coach Shastri raises his finger from the dressing room. DRS says three reds and India aren't happy.
16:11 IST: Ishant Sharma to start with the ball and Amla is on strike. Leg slip in place for Amla.
16:10 IST: Welcome back to the second session of the day.
15:30 IST: And it is LUNCH! 75 runs have been scored and two wickets are lost in the morning session. South Africa, 81/3 trail India by 106 runs, will be satisfied with the way things have transpired.
15:29 IST: Just one run from the Hardik Pandya over.
15:27 IST: AB de Villiers is the new man in. Hardik Pandya comes in the attack.
15:26 IST: OUT! Short of a length delivery from Ishant, the ball moves a bit, takes the edge and Rahane holds on the ball at fourth slip. Ishant gets his first wicket of the day. A standing ovation for Rabada as he left the Indian bowlers frustrated.
15:22 IST: Four! Back-to-back boundaries for Amla off Ishant. This time goes over square leg.
15:21 IST: Four! Amla goes across the stumps and flicks Ishant for a boundary on the leg-side, seemed like Steve Smith.
15:15 IST: Four! Bhuvneshwar goes full looking for swing, but over pitched the delivery as Amla drives him gracefully.
15:10 IST: Four! Full delivery from Bhuvneshwar, Rabada goes for the drive and edges it past the gully for a boundary.
15:08 IST: Amla shuffles across the stumps and gets rapped on the pads, a loud appeal for LBW by Ishant and other players but Aleem Dar turns down the appeal. Kohli opt for the DRS. Ball tracking shows the impact is outside off and just hitting the bails. So, the height saved Amla. Umpire's call it is on hitting. Amla survives.
15:04 IST: Four! Rabada comes down the pitch and lofts Bhuvneshwar over covers for a well-timed boundary. Amla-Rabada partnership reach the 45-run mark.
15:01 IST: Four! Rabada on the move. Bumrah bowls on the pads and Rabada guides him through deep mid-wicket, South Africa dressing room applaud.
14:57 IST: Amla and Rabada continue to defy the Indian bowlers in the morning session.
14:49 IST: FOUR! Full delivery outside off and freed his arms and slammed Shami through backward point. Rabada getting into the groove.
14:43 IST: FOUR! Back of a length delivery, Amla, on the back foot, punched Bumrah through deep backward point.
14:40 IST: FOUR! Short delivery from Bumrah, Amla gets into position and pulls, only to top edge over the keeper for a boundary.
14:30 IST: Drinks! Rabada has been brilliant out in the middle. Beaten on numerous occasions, but hasn't affected him one bit. Played close to the body and inside the line, and didn't push out at ones he doesn't need to play. Has frustrated the Indians after the fall of Elgar who was set up beautifully by Bhuvneshwar before getting the nick.
14:26 IST: Wide and a four! Short and going down the leg side. Parthiv, behind the stumps, plunges to his right to collect the ball but the ball flies past him. Poor bowling from Shami. Ill-directed and well down leg.
14:25 IST: Double bowling change for India. Mohammed Shami is introduced in the attack.
14:20 IST: Jasprit Bumrah is introduced in the attack.
14:10 IST: Bhuvneshwar and Ishant are bowling beautifully. The ball seaming away late, extra bounce, everything on point.
14:00 IST: Hashim Amla is the new man in.
13:59 IST: WICKET! Finally Bhuvneshwar gets the edge and Elgar is gone. Bhuvneshwar bowls on the stumps and since the ball was moving around a lot, Elgar manages to edge it back to Parthiv. Good diving low catch to his left by the wicket-keeper. He set him up very well and then got the nick after beating him so many times.
13:50 IST: Bhuvneshwar is setting Elgar up by regularly bowling the good length ball. He wants Elgar to edge the ball as the ball is seaming away nicely. Elgar is struggling against the fast off-breaks from round the wicket.
13:46 IST: Rabada nudges Ishant through the mid-wicket region to collect two runs and gets off the mark on the 19th ball.
13:44 IST: Beaten! Ishant is on fire. Pitches the ball around leg stump as Rabada, squared off in defense, gets beaten.
13:42 IST: Beaten! Bhuvneshwar getting into a nice rhythm. Pitches the ball around off stump as it moves away late beating Elgar's outside edge.
13:35 IST: Ishant Sharma comes into the attack. Kagiso Rabada nudges a ball on the on-side and South Africa get the first run of the day, umpire signals leg-bye.
13:34 IST: Bhuvneshwar starts off with a maiden over.
13:32 IST: Bhuvneshwar Kumar opening the bowling for India; Dean Elgar is on strike.
13:30 IST: Play resumes on Day two. South Africa 6/1 (Elgar 6*, Rabada 0*) trail India (187) by 181 runs
13:15 IST: Pitch Report: "Looks a fairly lively surface. There are quite a few cracks near the short of a good length area which provides a lot of drastic deviation. This could be a pattern and get more pronounced as the game progresses. The lengths will be the key because hitting the stumps will be the ideal length. Doesn't mean half volleys but surely need to bowl fuller. The older ball could be a touch easier to bat relatively but at no stage in this game will batting be actually easy," says Shaun Pollock.
13:08 IST: It will be a big day for the Indian bowlers as they will aim to bring back their team back in the contest.
13:00 IST: Hello and welcome to the live blog of Day two of the third Test from Johannesburg.
Pujara, known for his dogged approach, consumed as many as 54 balls to get off the mark in the morning session and in the company of Kohli defied the odds, to take the team to 45/1 at the lunch break.
Kohli, on the other hand looked fluent with his trademark drives, bringing up his 16th Test half century in the second session.
But the happiness was short-lived as the 29-year-old Kohli, who was dropped on scores of 11 and 32, couldn't ride his luck for the third time when he drove a Lungi Ngidi delivery away from the body and edged it to third slip where Ab de Villiers made no mistake this time.
De Villiers had earlier dropped Kohli off Morne Morkel when the India skipper was batting on 32 while Vernon Philander dropped one early in the first session when Kohli was on 11.
Kohli's fall brought in his deputy Rahane (9), who had a lucky escape when Philander overstepped and had him caught behind.
But the Mumbai batsman soon fell to Morkel even as the review showed that the ball would have kissed his leg stick.
India crawled to 114/4 at tea with Pujara and Parthiv (2) heading to the break undivided.
The Saurashtra batsman continued to dig deep, reaching his 17th Test fifty off 179 deliveries but was immediately dismissed caught behind by Quinton de Kock off Phehlukwayo.
Towards the end, Bhuvneshwar provided some meat to the Indian total, scoring a 49-ball 30 even as the lower order comprising Parthiv, Hardik Pandya (0), Mohammed Shami (8) and Ishant Sharma (0) fell like nine pins.
(With inputs from IANS)