India is unbeatable on this ground but can expect South
Africa despite the competition.India have never lost a Test match at the Wanderers. They have two
wins and three draws here, and one of those draws – in January 1997 – could have been a win had rain not
intervened on the final day.

India spent a large chunk of 2021 breaching fortresses
around the world. They now begin 2022 at a venue that’s been something of an
away fortress for them.

It’s hard to say if it’s just a statistical oddity or if
something deeper is at work, but in either case, this will be a slightly
different Wanderers Test. Never before have India gone into one as favourites,
but they do so now, while already 1-0 up in the series. They’re expected to
win, and to wrap up their first-ever series victory in South Africa.

But South Africa are still the
home side, and while India were magnificent in Centurion, they also won a
crucial toss that allowed them to bat on the only day of the Test match on
which you’d rather have been a batter than a bowler. South Africa bowled poorly
on that first day, particularly in the first session, but this was also partly
down to rustiness. Lungi Ngidi, for example, came into the Test match without
any red-ball cricket since June and any serious cricket since October, but was
a vastly improved force from the second session on, finishing with match
figures of 8 for 102.

The gap between these two sides
in South African conditions, then, may not be as big as it appeared last week.

 

Will keep an eye on Rahane and Pujara