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Tests in South Africa are the ultimate examination for an Indian batter.
The simplest way to understand it is this: England and New Zealand are known for offering swing to fast bowlers and Australia is famous for the seam movement and the extra bounce for pacers and spinners. South Africa gives you all of it, together.
There's spin too but it's minimal. This means for Indians, used to being on the front foot, it becomes more about understanding the bounce and getting on top of it, leaving more balls, and putting a bigger price on their wicket.
Many have fumbled in this examination over the years. Ravi Shastri and Shikhar Dhawan don't have even one 50-plus score in the country after three Tests each. Vriender Sehwag, MS Dhoni, and Cheteshwar Pujara all average less than 30.
However, some have been decently successful too. So, before India take on South Africa in the two-Test series starting on Boxing Day, we'll look at India's three top run-scorers in the Rainbow Country in Tests:
#3 Rahul Dravid
India's head coach for the series, Rahul Dravid, is the current third-highest Test run-scorer in South Africa. In 11 matches (22 innings) here between 1996 and 2001, he scored 624 runs including two half-centuries and a ton, at 29.71.
It was under his captaincy that India won the first-ever Test in South Africa (they have won only four) on the 2006-07 tour.
Before that, it was mostly famous draws, one of which witnessed Dravid score 148 (362) in Johannesburg during the 1997 tour. It was his first Test century and the best score in South Africa. He batted for 541 minutes, which is still the highest for an Indian in South Africa - the perfect marker for what was to come from the 'wall'.
Dravid followed it up with another sublime 81 in the second innings. His other half-century, an 87 in Gqeberha in 2001, also came in a draw.
#2 Virat Kohli
While Dravid took India to their first-ever Test win in South Africa, Kohli led them to the last two (in 2018 and 2022). That 2022 series was the last of his revolutionary career as India's Test captain and it ended in a 2-1 series loss.
Still, the right-handed batter's legacy is as solid as ever in South Africa. Kohli is the only Indian to average more than 50 here (minimum five innings) and is the second-highest run-scorer with 719 runs, three fifties and two 100s after seven matches.
Kohli scored a magnificent 119 (257) in his first innings here in 2007. ESPNCricinfo reported that he left alone 61 of the 181 balls he took to get to the three figures, but still went at a strike rate of 66, a testament to his aggressive skill.
South Africa's bowling coach Shaun Pollock called it a "responsible" knock, saying it reminded him of how Sachin Tendulkar used to stand out because of that quality.
In 2018, his then-toughest assignment as Test captain, Kohli scored 153 (379), more of a Dravidesque knock and a display of batting with the tail, but it came in a losing cause.
His best half-century, a 79 (201) in a low-scoring Cape Town Test in 2022, which was a masterful show of discipline, also came in a losing cause.
#1 Sachin Tendulkar
Like he's in most countries and against most opponents, Tendulkar is the benchmark for Indian batters in South Africa. In 15 matches here, he scored 1161 runs with as many as five centuries and three fifties at an average of 46.44.
Those five tons came in regular intervals too. In his second Test in South Africa, in Johannesburg in 1992, he scored 111 (373) to draw the game. He scored a 169 in Cape Town in Cape Town, a 155 in Bloemfontein in 2001, an unbeaten 11 in Centurion in 2010, and a 146 in Cape Town in his final Test here in 2011.
The final 146 involved a battle-for-the-ages with Dale Steyn, videos of which are available on YouTube. But his record once again shows the consistency and longevity of the greatest-ever in the most difficult conditions against different generations of high-quality Proteas bowling attacks.
It'll take a miracle for Kohli to surpass Tendulkar's Test legacy in this series and a lot of magic even if has to do it on the coming tours.
