India cruised to a comprehensive 203-run victory in the first Test of the three-match series against South Africa on Sunday in Visakhapatnam. The hosts bowled the Proteas out on 191 on the fifth day after their middle-order collapsed within the first session of the day.
Senuran Muthusamy and tailender Dane Piedt put on a brave effort to rescue the Test, but Mohammed Shami bailed India out as he finished the innings with a five-wicket haul, taking the final two wickets to ensure India take a 1-0 lead in the series.
Indian captain Virat Kohli interacted with Sanjay Manjrekar in the post-match presentation where he said that a strong score in the first innings was the key to India's success, adding that it was an all-round effort which earned India the victory.
"I think the wicket played really good for the first three days. We lost one session so it was going to be a bit tougher. But once you have 500 on the board, it's difficult for the opposition," Virat said.
"Mayank and Rohit played brilliantly. Pujara too in the second innings. It was a hard grind though because of the weather and the pitch slowing down."
The pitch throughout the game was reasonably slow and the duo of Ashwin and Jadeja made life difficult for the Proteas batsmen, but the Indian captain insisted that the pacers were equally important in the game and that their positive attitude plays a huge role.
"It's all about the attitude. If fast bowlers step out thinking, 'spinners are going to do the job', then it's not going to happen. But fast bowlers have been brilliant in India as well. They might prefer shorter spells but it's all about wanting to do for the team. Jaddu and Ash again really really good. Ash in the first innings especially, given the conditions," Virat said.
Mohammed Shami ended up with another five-wicket haul in Test matches as he led India to victory and Virat Kohli was appreciative of his performances in the second innings.
"Shami has been a wicket-taker for us in the second innings for quite some time now. All the guys lived up to their strengths. Batting heroes were obvious. But bowlers had it tougher in this game," said the Indian skipper.
