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India vs South Africa, 1st Test: Twitterati praise Hardik Pandya's matured all-round performance

Hardik Pandya's 93-run knock off 95 balls is also the fourth highest by an Indian in his maiden innings in South Africa.

India vs South Africa, 1st Test: Twitterati praise Hardik Pandya's matured all-round performance Courtesy: Twitter (@BCCI)

New Delhi: All-rounder Hardik Pandya has made a name for himself and his performance in India's first Test against South Africa has further added to his popularity and skill-set, taking it beyond the limited-overs arena.

After bowling out the Proteas for 286 on a grassy Newlands pitch on the first day of the match, the visitors lost their top order in quickly and were seven down before the 100-mark, in danger of being bowled out for less than 150. But the 24-year old Pandya had other plans while stitching a 99-run partnership with Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

The Baroda dasher proved his mettle and maturity by hitting an aggressive counter-attacking 93-run knock off 95 balls that helped India cut down on SA's first-innings lead. His knock included 14 fours and a six.

Pandya came in to bat at a stage when India were losing wickets in a hurry. But his partnership with Bhuvneshwar (25) helped India cross the 200-mark in conditions that offered pacers help in the air as well as off the pitch.

Pandya's score is also the fourth highest by an Indian on maiden innings in South Africa. The seam-up allrounder then came back to take two wickets in South Africa's second innings before close of play on the second day.

The Twitterati couldn't help but applaud Pandya's effort as he almost single-handedly kept India in the match after a top-order batting failure

India were bowled out for 209 runs, which gave the hosts a lead of 77 runs. Most of the Indian batsmen struggled to come to terms with the seam movement on the Newlands track and were caught behind the stumps, as the South Africans managed to take wickets at regular intervals.

Apart from Pandya, Bhuvneshwar showed his grit to let the all-rounder play his natural game. South Africa ended the second day on 65/2 and are leading India by 142 runs.

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