In December 2010, India travelled to South Africa after four years, for three Tests, a T20I and five ODIs. With the 2011 ODI World Cup breathing down the neck, the focus on ODIs was understandable.
Earlier in 2010, South Africans had travelled to India for an intense Test series. This one was expected to be no different, as India had consolidated their position as the top-ranked Test side, with South Africa and England challenging their supremacy.
Unlike their previous tours, India did not play local sides for any practice games. Their struggle with adaptation was clearly visible when they were sent in to bat at Centurion under overcast conditions.
While the South African pacers found some assistance from the conditions, they were also helped by baffling stroke-making and application by the Indian batters, who folded for 136. The next day was bright and sunny, not ideal for bowling as the wicket had eased out.
Graeme Smith (62) and Alviro Peterson (77) shared a 111-run opening stand before Hashim Amla (140), Jacques Kallis (201*) and A.B. de Villiers (129) slammed hundreds. Amla and Kallis added 230 for the third wicket, while de Villiers and Kallis added 224 for the fourth wicket at run-a-ball.
Kallis had already established himself as one of the greats of the sport. He was playing his 143rd Test match, and already had 37 centuries, but he had not managed to breach the 200-mark. Shutting the buzz about his lack of double tons, he finally got there, and much to the joy of his teammates. At a strike of almost 75, it was the fastest century of his career.
But even that was overshadowed by de Villiers, who slammed the fastest Test hundred by a South African (off 75 balls), making the Indian bowlers appear like school cricketers. South Africa declared at 620/4.
India put up a brave show in the second innings. Gautam Gambhir (80) and Virender Sehwag (63) added 137 for the first wicket, scoring at over four and a half an over. Rahul Dravid supported with a patient 43. Sachin Tendulkar (111*) and M.S. Dhoni (90) added 172 for the seventh wicket.
In the process, Tendulkar became the first batter to register 50 Test centuries, which received all the rich mileage it deserved – not just for the milestone but also the quality of the knock. Dale Steyn’s contest against Tendulkar was among the highlights of the series. The Little Master even went on to triumph it, which made the then top-ranked Test bowler comment: 'I had given up trying to get him out once he’d reached about 40. I was just attacking the other guy.'
The Indian innings folded on the fifth day at 459. Tendulkar ran out of partners, remained unbeaten and could not prevent an innings defeat. Steyn and Morne Morkel both picked seven wickets in the Test.
After the Centurion humiliation, the Indians were greeted with a lush green pitch at Durban for the Boxing Day Test. Worse, they lost the in-form Gambhir to an injury. If that was not bad enough, Dhoni lost his 12th toss in 13 Test matches and was asked to bat.
Steyn (6-50) blew away the Indian batting as only V.V.S. Laxman provided some resistance, with 38. A total of 205 looked below par, but as usual, Zaheer Khan getting Graeme Smith early opened up the contest.
While Zaheer got three main batters, enjoying the extra bounce on offer, Harbhajan Singh cleaned up the tail as the South African innings lasted little more than three hours and were bowled out for 131.
Sehwag started aggressively as usual, but India lost half their side with 93 on the board. Laxman’s defiance kept India afloat. Batting for over four and a half hours, Laxman fell four runs short of what would have been his first century in South Africa.
Laxman ended his career in 2012 with 17 Test hundreds. However, not many in the illustrious list would rank as high as this 96. Earlier that season, his 73 not out against Australia was another gem that helped India clean sweep Australia at home.
Chasing 303, the South African innings folded for 215, with Zaheer and Sreesanth picking three wickets each. One lasting memory remains the dismissal of Kallis. A bouncer from Sreesanth, directed at the body, jagged into Kallis, found his glove and lobbed to gully.
With the series levelled 1-1, the teams moved to Cape Town for the deciding New Year Test. Finally, 2011 brought some luck for Dhoni with the toss. He asked South Africa to bat under overcast conditions. Sreesanth got five wickets, but Kallis (161) helped South Africa to 362.
Part two of Tendulkar vs Steyn turned out to be even more thrilling. Steyn swung the red ball at a great pace, but Tendulkar was ready to counter that with his skills and discipline. Both emerged winners as Steyn got a five-for and Tendulkar 146, his last Test century.
At 37, Tendulkar was still dominating attack at will and remained one of the top-ranked batters in Tests and ODIs.
Gambhir got 93, while and Harbhajan’s late blitz of 40 ensured India a two-run lead.
Harbhajan then starred with the ball and claimed seven wickets, but Kallis’ unbeaten 109 ensured India had to chase 340 in the fourth innings. The Indians stonewalled their way to a draw, scoring 166/3 in 82 overs as the series ended in a draw.
This remains the only time India drew a Test series in South Africa. The other six (1992/93, 1996/97, 2001/02, 2006/07, 2013/14 and 2017/18) have ended in defeats.
The one-off T20I at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium was more of a carnival than a cricket match. There was glitz and Bollywood glamour in the form of a Shah Rukh Khan performance. A record capacity crowd of 50,000 and the political bigwigs in South Africa assembled to celebrate 150 years of the arrival of indentured labour from India and the career of Makhaya Ntini.
Cricket was not too important that day. India won the match by 21 runs, a result set up by Rohit Sharma’s 34-ball 53 and Suresh Raina’s 23-ball 41. Playing his last international game, Ntini went wicketless, going for 46 off his four overs.
That remains the only international cricket match the venue hosted.
The ODIs
With just a month to go for the World Cup, the ODIs were going to be important. Considering the vast difference between the South African conditions and the ones in the subcontinent, the preparations were far from ideal. From a challenge point of view, Indians could not have had a tougher opponent than South Africa.
The arena shifted to Kingsmead, Durban. Fifties from Amla (50), de Villiers (76) and J.P. Duminy (73) powered South Africa to 289. Virat Kohli (54) was the lone half-centurion for India as they were bowled out for 154 in the 36th over, with Lonwabo Tsotsobe getting four wickets.
The second ODI at Johannesburg saw Tendulkar play his 444th match in this format and drew level with Sanath Jayasuriya.
Electing to bat, India managed just 190, courtesy an 83-run stand between Dhoni (38) and Yuvraj Singh (53). Tsotsobe got four more wickets. In what seemed like a one-sided affair, South Africa raced to 120/3 in the 25th over. Most televisions must have turned off back in India as it was well past midnight, but the firm believers in South Africa’s ability to collapse at anything stayed awake.
South Africa needed 70 in 154 balls with seven wickets in hand, but they managed only 68 from the next 104 and lost all seven wickets. They were bowled out for 189 in 43 overs. Munaf Patel starred with 4-29 in India’s one-run win.
Meanwhile, Tendulkar joined the casualty list after injuring his hamstring. After Sehwag, Gambhir and Praveen Kumar, Tendulkar too got ruled out of the tour. With the World Cup a few weeks away, India did not risk their stars.
Despite that, India took the lead in Cape Town. Zaheer (3-43) and Harbhajan (2-23) restricted South Africa to 220. India were in a spot of bother before Raina (37) and a Yusuf Pathan (59 in 50) changed the tides. Zaheer (14) and Harbhajan (23*) sealed it.
South Africa equalised in the rain-affected fourth ODI, at Port Elizabeth. Amla (64) and Duminy (71*) took them to 265/7 in 50 overs. India were battling a quality pace attack and rain, but Kohli kept them in the hunt with a brilliant 92-ball 87 not out. But with wickets falling at the other end, the D/L equation kept getting beyond reach, and they fell 48 short after 32.5 overs.
India asked South Africa to bat in the decider at Centurion. Amla’s 116 not out powered South Africa to 250/9 in 46 overs. India, set a revised total of 268 from 46 overs, were 119/8 in the 23rd over before Yusuf (105 off 70) played an innings of a lifetime. The South African bowlers were hammered around the ground. With 49 required off 65, Yusuf gave it away. Zaheer (24) tred his bit, but it was not enough to avert a 33-run defeat. India still had 34 balls remaining.
South Africa won the ODIs 3-2. A few weeks later, they were the only side to beat India in the 2011 ODI World Cup. They did suffer from their moments of choke too – first in a group match against England and later in the quarter-final against New Zealand. Meanwhile, India scripted history by becoming the first team to win a World Cup at home.
1st Test: India 136 and 459 lost to South Africa 620/4 decl. by an innings and 25 runs. Player of the Match: Jacques Kallis.
2nd Test: India 205 and 228 beat South Africa 131 and 215 by 87 runs. Player of the Match: V.V.S. Laxman.
3rd Test: South Africa 362 and 341 drew with India 364 and 166/3. Player of the Match: Jacques Kallis.
Test series drawn 1-1. Player of the Series: Jacques Kallis.
India won the one-off T20I. Player of the Match: Rohit Sharma.
South Africa won the ODI series 3-2. Player of the Series: Morne Morkel.