South Africa vs India 2018: 2nd Test, Day 4, 5 things we learnt from the day

A sizzling spell from Lungi Ngidi had India on all fours by end of a terrific day's play at Centurion in the second Test. Chasing 287 for victory, India lost Murali Vijay and Lokesh Rahul early, with the latter falling to a forgettable shot off Ngidi. The debutant seamer then prized out the big scalp of Virat Kohli to send India reeling.

Earlier, Mohammad Shami ripped through the middle-order after AB de Villiers and Dean Elgar put on a century partnership and gave India a sniff at stealing a win. But a gritty Faf du Plessis and a determined Vernon Philander defied India's bowlers and helped them set 287, a score that hasn't yet been chased down at this venue.

#5 AB de Villiers is a Superman

Spurred on by a flatter surface, de Villiers kickstarted his day 4 in style

AB de Villiers seemed to be batting on a different planet as compared to Dean Elgar. The left-handed opener, known for his resilience and resolve more than shot-making abilities, had an ugly outing despite making a half-century, while de Villiers oblivious to Elgar's hardships, played as easy as you like it. He had immense time against both spinners and pace bowlers and milked them for boundaries, if not rotating the strike, a tactic that had Kohli pondering deep and hard.

Eventually, he turned to Mohammad Shami and de Villiers dispatched him for four through the third man with a neat glide. However, the next time he attempted that shot against Shami, the ball found extra bounce and an edge was found on its way to Parthiv Patel. But his spectacular knock had put South Africa in the driving seat.

#4 Mohammad Shami's field day

Mohammad Shami found reverse swing and extra bounce, both of which troubled batsmen

Shami had little rhythm in his run-up in the first innings, looked shoddy and below par before turning the heat up in the second half of the innings. That fire seeped into the second innings and he got rid of the biggest fish in the opposition camp, Abraham Benjamin de Villiers, before working over ugly Elgar with a short-pitched delivery.

Perhaps his best battle of the day was with Quinton de Kock. The wicket-keeper batsman, woefully out of form in the past few Tests he has played, edged all three of his first three balls through the slip cordon but as luck would have it, all three went for four (one away from first slip, one between keeper and slip, one away from a newly stationed second slip).

Off the fourth ball he faced, De Kock tried to work on the off-side again and the extra bounce induced another edge and Parthiv Patel snapped it up to end his eventful stay, albeit for four balls, at the crease.

#3 Du Plessis takes South Africa to safety

Du Plessis employed the sweep quite often against Ashwin

The South African skipper was at his blockathon best after De Villiers' dismissal and kept the Indians, in particular, Ashwin, at bay with his stunning tenacity and resolve. He barely put a foot wrong as India attempted to break the partnership between him and Philander, which troubled the visitors.

The skipper played out 141 balls, one less than in the first innings, and toiled to a valuable 48, a few less than the first time, but much more valuable runs. It helped South Africa to set a daunting target, one which hasn't yet been chased down at the Centurion.

#2 India lose three in quick succession

Vijay was undone by low bounce

Chasing 250+ was never going to be easy at Centurion. Add a fearsome four-prong attack and a pitch with uneven bounce and you have a recipe for a collapse. Murali Vijay and Lokesh Rahul appeared solid in the early few overs before Kagiso Rabada, handed the new ball by his skipper, justified the call with a ball that kept low and took Vijay's inside edge onto the stumps.

Rahul was next, playing a nothing shot off Lungi Ngidi's first ball and gifting a catch to point. At 16/2, it was all up to the Indian skipper, the hero of the first innings, to resuscitate India. But there were no heroics from him as Ngidi, who nearly trapped him LBW in the first innings, found success. He nipped one back into Kohli, who missed the flick and was plumb in front, with a review walking off with him.

#1 A litmus test for Cheteshwar Pujara on day 5

Pujara does not have a good record in these conditions

A huge test of character awaits India's no.3 on day 5 after the tourists are in danger of losing the series at Centurion in the second Test. At 35/3 and a daunting target in front of them, it will be the no.3 batsman, Pujara, who needs to churn out a Johannesburg 2013 like knock for the Indians.

Aside from that big hundred on a flat surface, though, Pujara's overseas record in South Africa, New Zealand, England and Australia is pretty average. 13 of his 14 hundreds have come within the Asian sub-continent with 10 in India and 3 in Sri Lanka. Despite his resilience and resolve, Pujara hasn't quite set the scorecard on fire in these conditions. Day 5 at Centurion will be an ideal opportunity to turn that record around.