South Africa seized firm control of the second Test in Guwahati on Monday, taking a 288-run first-innings lead after dismantling India for 201. Left-arm pacer Marco Jansen ran with equal intensity as with the bat, with a fiery spell of 6 for 48.
Jansen's barrage of short deliveries proved too much for the Indian middle order, reducing the hosts from a relatively stable 95 for 1 to just 122 for 7 in the second session.
India began the day with hopes of a fightback, and opener Yashasvi Jaiswal provided a solid start, top-scoring with 58. Jaiswal attacked the spinners initially, registering his first half-century of the series, but a stunning catch by Jansen off spinner Simon Harmer, triggered a melftdown.
KL Rahul had earlier fallen for 22, edging Keshav Maharaj to slip, while B Sai Sudharsan gifted his wicket on 15 by pulling a half-tracker from Harmer straight to mid-wicket.
The middle order crumbled under Jansen’s back of the lentgh short-ball tactics. Dhruv Jurel fell for a duck attempting to pull a wide bouncer, while Rishabh Pant managed only seven before edging behind. Nitish Kumar Reddy and Ravindra Jadeja were undone by sharp, rising deliveries that they could only fend to the slip cordon.
Jansen's spell of 4 wickets for 18 runs on either side of the tea break effectively ended India's chances of posting a competitive total.
A 72-run partnership for the eighth wicket between Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav briefly delayed the inevitable. The pair batted for nearly 35 overs, with Sundar scoring a patient 48 and Kuldeep occupying the crease for 134 balls for his 19.
However, Harmer broke the stand by removing Sundar, and Jansen returned with the second new ball to clean up the tail, dismissing Kuldeep and Jasprit Bumrah to complete his six-wicket haul.
South Africa's openers Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton navigated the final overs of the day safely, further solidifying their team's position. With a lead of over 300 runs and two days remaining, the visitors are poised to secure their first Test series victory in India since 2000.
By stumps on Day 3, South Africa had extended their overall lead to 314, reaching 26 for 0 in their second innings without enforcing the follow-on.