Guwahati, Nov 26: South Africa strengthened their grip to win the second Test as off-spinner Simon Harmer struck thrice, leaving India reeling at 90/5 in 47 overs at tea on day five’s play at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.

Chasing a historic 2-0 series sweep, South Africa took three wickets in the session and now sit just five away from victory with two sessions remaining. B Sai Sudharsan has faced 138 balls for 14 runs and has been engaging in a blockathon.

Ravindra Jadeja (23 not out) has also contributed to a fightback against the Proteas, but India’s chances of survival remain slim in terms of saving the game. However, the session belonged to South Africa and Harmer, who delivered a masterclass in flight, guile, and subtle variations to become the leading wicket-taker in the series.

In the morning, Sudharsan was dismissed by Marco Jansen but narrowly escaped when replays showed the fast bowler had overstepped, while Kuldeep Yadav had a reprieve when Aiden Markram dropped his catch at first slip.

Kuldeep’s nightwatchman duty ended at five when Harmer’s straighter delivery went through the gate to rattle the middle-stump. Three balls later, Harmer took another wicket when Dhruv Jurel looked to defend but got an outside edge and was caught by slip for two.

Rishabh Pant briefly lifted the hosts with his counterattack – hammering Keshav Maharaj for four, before dancing down the pitch to launch him for a towering six. But in an attempt to defend a slower delivery from Harmer, Pant was dismissed for 13 when extra bounce on the ball took the shoulder edge of the bat and lobbed to slip.

Harmer could have taken his fourth wicket if Markram hadn’t dropped a difficult catch of Sudharsan, who went on to be the third Indian batter to face over a hundred balls in this series, as another session dominated by South Africa drew to a close.

Brief Scores: South Africa 489 and 260/5d in 78.3 overs (Tristan Stubbs 94; Ravindra Jadeja 4/62) lead India 201 and 90/5 in 47 overs (Ravindra Jadeja 23 not out, B Sai Sudharsan 14 not out; Simon Harmer 4-23, Marco Jansen 1-16) by 459 runs

Guwahati, Nov 25: India found moments of success through Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, but South Africa continued to command proceedings on Day 4 of the second Test, courtesy of a brilliant 94 by Tristan Stubbs as the youngster’s knocked helped the team stretch their lead to over 500 runs and eventually declaring at 260/5 to set India a target of 549 runs.

The day began with the visitors resuming at 26/0, and openers Ryan Rickelton and Aiden Markram looking assured as they raised the score to 58 before India’s spinners made their impact. Rickelton, who benefited from early luck, was dismissed for 35 while attempting an aggressive shot, handing Jadeja his first breakthrough. The left-arm spinner struck again soon after, removing Markram for 29 with a sharp turn that troubled the batters throughout the morning.

Washington Sundar complemented Jadeja superbly, bowling a disciplined spell with subtle variations in pace that kept South Africa’s scoring in check. His persistence paid off when he removed captain Temba Bavuma, who flicked a simple catch to leg slip. Despite a few missed run-out opportunities, India looked energetic in the field and kept the visitors’ progress steady rather than free-flowing.

At 107/3 by tea, the session appeared evenly balanced as Tony de Zorzi and Tristan Stubbs steadied the innings, combining caution with calculated aggression. Both batters found regular boundaries and shifted momentum again in South Africa’s favour heading into the second session.

De Zorzi and Stubbs batted with purpose, sweeping, cutting, and rotating strike as if playing on a surface entirely different from the one tormenting India. Every boundary struck through the gaps felt like a reminder: South Africa were not just surviving, they were progressing. Zorzi’s sweeps scythed through the leg side with authority, while Stubbs absorbed pressure before unleashing strokes that drained India’s early energy.

After tea, Jadeja trapped de Zorzi lbw just shy of a half-century. Yet even that wicket felt like a pause rather than a shift. Stubbs marched on to his fifty, unhurried and unbothered, as Wiaan Mulder joined him to push the lead past 500 with quiet confidence.

With four sessions remaining in the match, the Proteas showed no inclination to declare early, adding 113 runs in the second session for the loss of just one wicket. India even turned to part-timer Yashasvi Jaiswal for an over, but South Africa’s control remained unchallenged.

At lunch, South Africa had moved to 220/4 in 70 overs, firmly on top as India faced a huge scare.

As Stubbs approached a century, the Proteas continued their batting innings after lunch, despite many expecting a declaration. The young player entered the nervous nineties, and South Africa watched to see if he could reach 100 before the declaration. However, as soon as he was dismissed, Bavuma indicated the batters to come back in, thereby closing their innings at 260/5 and setting the hosts a massive 549-run target.

While a win looks difficult here, Team India will look to bat throughout the remainder of Day 4 and on Wednesday, the final day of the game, to draw the match. South Africa, meanwhile, will aim to bowl out the hosts again to add a historic victory under their belt, while also gaining some crucial World Test Championship points.

Brief Scores: South Africa 489 and 260/5d in 78.3 overs (Tristan Stubbs 94, Tony de Zorzi 49; Ravindra Jadeja 4/62) lead India 201 all out in 83.5 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 58, Washington Sundar 48; Marco Jansen 6-48, Simon Harmer 3-64) by 548 runs.

New Delhi, Nov 24: Former India captain Anil Kumble believes that Liam Livingstone’s high price was likely a factor in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s decision to release him into the IPL 2026 auction pool.

Livingstone played for RCB in their title-winning IPL 2025 season after being bought for Rs. 8.75 crore at last year’s mega auction. However, he had an underwhelming time – scoring 112 runs in eight innings with a strike rate of 133.33, including one half-century, and taking two wickets in nine overs with an economy rate of 8.44.

It would be interesting to see if RCB or any other team ropes him in for the IPL 2026 auction, to be held in Abu Dhabi, on December 16. “Releases are always tough calls. Liam Livingstone is someone I enjoyed working with closely, and he was extremely good for Punjab in IPL 2022, probably his best IPL season. He can change the game single-handedly in just a few overs with his powerful batting.”

“What makes him special is his bowling flexibility; he bowls leg spin to right-handers and off spin to left-handers, plus he’s a good fielder, making him a complete package. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a great IPL season for RCB last year and also missed out on selection for England.”

“Otherwise, I’m sure other franchises would be interested in him. His high price tag was likely a factor in the release. RCB also needs to find backup options, both an overseas fast bowler and an Indian fast bowler to support their main bowling attack of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood. This need for bowling depth might be another reason behind this tough call,” said Kumble, a former RCB skipper, on JioStar.

Saba Karim, former India wicketkeeper-batter and national selector, questioned RCB’s decision to release young batter Swastik Chikara. “It’s a splendid position for RCB to be finally being called as the defending champions. Talking about their auction plans, they can still buy back Liam Livingstone in the mini-auction if he doesn’t go for too high a price.”

“I’m also surprised they didn’t retain Swastik Chikara, who was an excellent buy last season after his prolific performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. I was actually expecting him to get a game, but he didn’t play a single match and now, hasn’t been retained. If RCB wants to strengthen their batting lineup, there are several Indian uncapped batsmen they can target in the auction to build their squad depth for the upcoming season,” he added.