Follow-on Steyn on India

Feb. 8: South African speed merchants Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel served up the exact ingredients the pampered Indian batting order dislikes. Swift through the air, a probing length and disconcerting bounce from a three-quarter length were mixed in the right proportions to leave India in disarray in the first Test here on Monday.
Following-on after being bowled out for 233, India lost openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir before Murali Vijay and batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar saw the day through to 55 without further damage. India are in arrears by 259 runs with eight wickets in hand.
After another Sehwag special had helped keep the match competitive till in an astonishing post-tea spell, Steyn blew the Indian middle order away to set up a 325-run lead. It was an aggressive spell of fast bowling by Steyn who in 22 balls sent back five batsmen for three runs as India collapsed from 221/4 to 233.
Graeme Smith had no hesitation in enforcing the follow-on, the first time India has been in the humiliating position in five years. The ball was changed after 55 overs and the hardness of the new ball did wonders as Steyn finished with career best figures of 7/51.
India would have been staring at a bigger embarrassment had Sehwag and S. Badrinath not put on a fighting 136-run stand for the fourth wicket (144m, 197b). There was no one else to show a stomach for a battle beyond the duo. Sehwag (109, 139b, 15x4) who registered his 18th Test hundred, was quickly off the blocks while the other batsmen struggled against pace and movement.
The start was poor when Morkel got the outside edge of Gambhir’s bat. Vijay was set up beautifully by a string of outswingers by Steyn before he got one to swing back. The batsman offered no stroke only to hear the death rattle. Tendulkar was forced to play when Steyn pitched one perfectly up. At 56/3 it looked all South Africa. After 83 matches and 6,189 runs first-class runs, Badrinath had earned the right. The situation was not new to the 29-year-old but the quality of bowling and the stage did unnerve him.

SCOREBOARD
South Africa
1st innings 558/6 decl.

india 1st innings (overnight 25/0)
G. Gambhir c Boucher b Morkel 12, V. Sehwag c Duminy b Parnell 109, M. Vijay b Steyn 4, S. Tendulkar c Boucher b Steyn 7, S. Badrinath c Prince b Steyn 56, M.S. Dhoni c Kallis b Harris 6, W. Saha b Steyn 0, Harbhajan Singh lbw b Steyn 8, Z. Khan b Steyn 2, A. Mishra b Steyn 0, I. Sharma n.o 0.
Extras (b-14, lb-6, w-5, nb-4) 29
Total (in 64.4 overs) 233
FoW: 1-31, 2-40, 3-56, 4-192, 5-221, 6-221, 7-222, 8-226, 9-228, 10-233
Bowling: Steyn 16.4-6-51-7, Morkel 15-4-58-1, Harris 17-2-39-1, Parnell 7-1-31-1, Kallis 6-0-14-0, Duminy 3-0-20-0.

india 2nd innings

G. Gambhir b Morkel 1, V. Sehwag c Smith b Steyn 16, M. Vijay batting 27, S. Tendulkar batting 15
Extras (b-2, w-5) 7
Total (in 23 overs) 66/2
FoW: 1-1, 2-24.
Bowling: Steyn 4-0-14-1, Morkel 6-2-21-1, Parnell 2-0-12-0, Harris 7-3-12-0, Kallis 4-2-5-0.