Tendulkar and Dhoni hold up South Africa

South Africa took such a significant stride towards victory during the first session that it seemed as though their 1-0 lead would be secure before tea on the fourth day at SuperSport Park. However, they faced resistance: first from Sachin Tendulkar, whose concentration did not waver as his middle-order mates departed meekly, and then from MS Dhoni, whose belligerent approach brought rewards on a sparsely-populated outfield.

After taking four wickets before lunch, including the prized scalps of Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, South Africa were wicketless in the second session. They took the new ball as soon as it became available after 80 overs but India's run-rate only increased as the shiny Kookaburra raced off Dhoni and Tendulkar's bats. Their partnership for the seventh wicket was worth 117 and they had reduced the deficit to 90. For the first time in the Test, India had an iota of hope, especially with the unpredictable weather in Centurion. But even if Tendulkar reaches his 50th Test century and Dhoni also remains unbeaten at stumps, South Africa will still be one wicket away from regaining immediate control of the game.

When Dhoni walked out with Tendulkar after lunch, with India six down and trailing by 207, it seemed a question of when and not if South Africa would win on the fourth day. The desperateness of the situation allowed Dhoni to play aggressively and he did so, driving Lonwabo Tsotsobe past mid-off and through cover in the first over after the break - the 79th of the innings.

Seeking a quick end to the match, Smith gave the new ball to Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, urging them to take the wicket that would expose India's tail. It did not happen. Tendulkar's was calmness and good judgment personified, while Dhoni attacked, sometimes merely pushing the ball with enviable timing through the off side, sometimes lashing drives and cuts with high back-lift and fierce follow-through. Both approaches yielded boundaries, and he began to catch up with Tendulkar.

Mokel, who tormented India with pace and bounce on the opening day, leaked 13 in his second over with the new ball. Tendulkar cut him fiercely, and Dhoni pulled and drove through cover. There were a glut of boundaries in the first hour after lunch, three of which Dhoni took off consecutive deliveries from Jacques Kallis, leaving the bowler chuntering at the end of the over.

Paul Harris got the odd ball to jump, turn and trouble Tendulkar, but he was largely ineffective, considering he was operating on a fourth-day surface. As the deficit decreased towards 100, Dhoni tempered his aggression, while Tendulkar continued batting resolutely, his cutting and driving off the back foot being the stand-out feature of the innings.

South Africa will attempt to regroup during tea, and take the wicket that will restore the dominance they've enjoyed for 11 sessions.

That 11th session of dominance contained four Indian wickets, the last of which was Suresh Raina, brittle as ever, hanging his bat outside off stump in the final over before lunch to edge Kallis to slip. His dismissal had reduced India to 277 for 6, and it was the perfect end to a session in which South Africa had performed with patience.

Dravid and the nightwatchman Ishant Sharma had played carefully and their partnership lasted 48 minutes, holding up South Africa. Morkel thought he had broken the resistance when he stooped during his follow through to catch a leading edge off Ishant, but umpire Ian Gould asked the third umpire to check if Morkel had overstepped. He had. The frustration didn't last long, however, as Steyn had Ishant caught at short leg. The ball travelled quickly to Amla, who took a sharp catch to his left.

During his composed innings, Dravid went past 12,000 Test runs but India needed much more from him than 43. Morkel accounted for him by angling one into him before seaming it away, grazing the outside edge of Dravid's tentative push. Laxman stayed scoreless for eight balls but used the opportunity against Harris to treat the spectators to two sublime shots - a cover drive and a wristy flick. He wasn't as comfortable against pace, though, often playing from his crease, and eventually edged a full ball to gully, giving Tsotsobe his first wicket of the match.

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Morkel and Steyn exact a carefully planned revenge

Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel must remember Kolkata 2010 the same way the United States remembers Vietnam. That's where they thought they had a chance to defeat an opposition that looked beatable, and that's where they misjudged badly. They were wounded from all fronts, their morale was broken and in the end, they lost the battle.

After their victory in Nagpur a week earlier, South Africa had an ideal opportunity to win the series in the subcontinent. That never happened. They collapsed to 296 on a turning track at Eden Gardens and conceded a massive 643/6 to lose by an innings and 57 runs. Dale Steyn bowled thirty overs and Morne Morkel 26, both conceding 115 runs apiece. Virender Sehwag, in particular, treated the pair as though they were nothing more than cheap rag dolls. Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman followed, although in less manic fashion, and then MS Dhoni joined the party. Steyn and Morkel were left hurting. On Thursday, at SuperSport Park in Centurion, they exacted a carefully planned revenge.

"It's the most important thing not to forget your aggression," Morkel said after the first day when a mixture of that attacking instinct and ingenious strategy helped South Africa seize the advantage.

The match was being billed as a contest between South Africa's bowlers and India's batsmen, in particular the openers on both sides, and it did not disappoint. Steyn versus Sehwag was considered the heavyweight fight but it lasted just three balls. The first two were regulation Steyn balls, shaping away outside off and Sehwag dutifully left them. In his next over, Steyn began with a similar delivery, moving away just a touch. Sehwag could not resist.

He didn't care that Hashim Amla was positioned at short third-man for in case he gave in to the temptation. The urge to hit on the up was too tempting and Sehwag went for it. In doing so, he scooped it off the outside edge to Amla giving South Africa immediate reward, even though they were prepared to wait. "We knew we would have to stay calm and patient and that he would give it away," Morkel said.

The middleweight clash lasted a few more rounds. Morkel was unrelenting as he banged in short balls by the half-dozen to Gautam Gambhir, but mixed them up well. He topped 151 kph at times and sent the ball whizzing around Gambhir's ears in the first over. In the second over he bowled to Gambhir the real crux of the strategy emerged. Two short balls, followed up by a fuller one, and then another. When Morkel, elegant as a giraffe, reached down to save four off his own bowling from the second fuller ball, it was as though he was prophesising his own victory.

He almost had his man in the next over when a nasty bouncer took something on the way through to Mark Boucher. Umpire Steve Davis thought it shaved something other than the glove. Morkel did not relent and gave Gambhir no scoring opportunities as the pattern of short, short, full continued. Gambhir survived Morkel's first spell but just as he was relaxing, Morkel returned from the other end and continued the same trend. Two more short balls, and then Gambhir perished to the follow-up. He was too late on the full ball and the outside edge was comfortably taken by Paul Harris at first slip.

The way Steyn and Morkel varied their lengths was crucial to their success. "They weren't sure whether to go forward or back," Morkel said. Steyn used the seam movement in exemplary fashion, particularly as he got the ball to go away from Rahul Dravid and in to Gambhir. Morkel's height allowed him to extract the spongy bounce but he managed to mix the short balls with a range of deliveries that landed on a good length and ones that were full enough to tease the batsmen's toes. It was that assortment that got Dravid out as he was hit on the pads by a delivery that stayed lower than expected.

Steyn came out spitting venom after tea. The over he bowled to Tendulkar immediately after the break covered an entire spectrum. It contained a delivery that moved away, one that straightened, one that moved in, a bouncer and an over-pitched ball. In the next over, Steyn left Laxman aghast by getting right through him and pegging back his middle stump. He also got rid of Tendulkar, who was looking strong in the battle against Lonwabo Tsotsobe, with a ball that straightened.

South Africa's opening bowlers, who have been labelled the most fearsome in world cricket, out-thought the Indians with their follow-up balls. The straighter or fuller deliveries were proving to be the wicket-taking ones but they didn't forget that the ball India have always been vulnerable against on tour was the short one.

The pair has always been revered because of their styles complementing each other and Morkel said they aimed to exploit the variety to their advantage. "Myself and Dale are different bowlers. I'm six foot five but he is a bit shorter. I need to use my strength which is my bounce. I don't get a lot of swing and shape off the wicket, but Dale does."

While they were dismantling the Indian line-up, some luck also went their way. Suresh Raina, who was considered a target for short balls, ended up edging a length delivery from Jacques Kallis to third slip. After his dismissal a recovery seemed imminent. Even the South African bowlers expected it. "They have a quality top six or seven and we were lucky that Harbhajan was run out today," Morkel said. Harbhajan appeared confident before he was caught short of his crease by an underarm throw from Mark Boucher.

South Africa will be aware that is still plenty of movement left in the pitch, but an Indian attack without Zaheer Khan is a far less scary prospect than one with him. Morkel has some advice for his batsmen when they get they turn out tomorrow. "You need to leave well. It nips about but it's a touch slow." First, South Africa have one more wicket to claim but they must sense that the end is close with a debutant and a captain struggling for form at the crease. Then the revenge will be complete.

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