Got Ashwin's wicket because of skipper du Plessis' idea: Vernon Philander

South African pacer Vernon Philander rattled the Indian batting by picking 6 wickets in the second innings on day 4. He broke the critical and almost set partnership between Indian skipper Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. He later removed all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin who combined with Bhuvneshwar Kumar for a promising 49-run stand.

After the washout on day 3, Indian bowlers ran through the South African batting order to give the visitors an opportunity to win a Test in South Africa. India needed 208 runs to win the Test. Mohammed Shami first picked the important wicket of Hashim Amla and then sent nightwatchman Kagiso Rabada back to the pavilion.

Playing his first game, Jasprit Bumrah was no respite for the hosts as he removed Protea skipper du Plessis with a bouncer. Bhuvneshwar Kumar ran through with the South African tail as they were bundled for 130 runs in their second innings. AB de Villiers was the last man to depart for South Africa but he added a vital 35 runs.

The pitch was assisting the quick bowlers and South Africans were 1 bowler less as Dale Steyn was out with an ankle injury which he picked up while bowling in the first innings.

Credit the skipper for Ashwin’s wicket: Philander

Vernon broke the stand between Ashwin and Kumar who were looking all set and were playing Morkel and Rabada without any troubles. Philander credited his skipper for the vital wicket of the Indian off-spinner who was proving to be stubborn at the crease. When things were not working, du Plessis asked the wicketkeeper to stand up to the stumps which paid off instantly as Ashwin nicked one off Philander into Quinton de Kock’s gloves.

“You have to be open to those suggestions, but I’ll have to give this one to ‘Faffie’ (Faf du Plessis),” said Philander. He said that Ashwin was batting out of the crease at that time. “Ashwin, at the time, was batting quite far out of his crease, and the wicket was a touch on the slow side, and the ball was a bit older. I also felt that by pushing him back we could get all three dismissals into play,” said Philander who was adjourned Man of the Match for his 6 wickets in the 2nd innings.

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