In the eleventh over of South Africa’s second innings, Mukesh Kumar forced Elgar to edge a straight ball to Virat Kohli at first slip. The former captain of India was seen indicating to the Indian dressing room after taking the catch, bending down to thank Elgar for an incredible Test career.
Taking place at Newlands, Cape Town, on Wednesday, January 3, the first day of the second Test between South Africa and India proved to be an exciting match, with 23 wickets falling during the day. Having won the toss and been chosen to bat first, South Africa was dismissed for just 55 runs, with Mohammed Siraj recording his best Test statistics (6/15).
India lost their final six wickets and were bowled out for 153 in response, unable to score any runs. In the midst of all the drama on the first day of play, there was a touching moment on the field when great Indian batsman Virat Kohli requested all the other players to kneel down to Dean Elgar after Elgar was removed during the last Test of his career.
While Rohit Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, and other Indian players patted him on the back and shook hands, Virat Kohli even approached the South African skipper and gave him a heartfelt hug.
Elgar, who is playing his 86th Test match for South Africa, received a thunderous cheer from the entire stadium. Members of the Indian support staff, including head coach Rahul Dravid, respected Elgar as he made his final stroll back to the pavilion.
View the incident by clicking this link:
Mutual respect takes center stage as #TeamIndia players bid a fitting farewell to the South African captain! 👏🏻🙌🏻
Thank you for the memories, #DeanElgar! 🤌🏻
Tune-in to Day 2 of #SAvIND 2nd Test
Tomorrow, 12:30 PM | Star Sports Network#Cricket pic.twitter.com/7Hy5Zezc7u— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 3, 2024
#MukeshKumar‘s nibbler gets #DeanElgar on his final test!
Will #TeamIndia keep racking up wickets before the day’s play?
Tune in to #SAvIND 2nd Test
LIVE NOW | Star Sports Network#Cricket pic.twitter.com/qftk1SpI8D— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 3, 2024
Dean Elgar was South Africa’s eighth-highest run scorer at the end of his career.
Elgar achieved an impressive average of 37.92 in 86 Tests, with 5347 runs (8th best for SA), 14 hundreds and 23 fifties. He amassed 1012 runs at an average of 40.48 from 15 Tests against India, including two hundred and four fifties.
With the exception of the current Test, the 36-year-old has captained his country in 17 Tests thus far. Of those, he has won nine, lost seven, and drawn one. At the crease, Aiden Markram (36*) and David Bedingham (7*) helped South Africa end Day 1 on 62/3, trailing India by 36 runs.
India
