Dale Steyn ripped through the West Indies top order to claim his 25th five-wicket haul in Test cricket and give South Africa an innings and 220-run victory on the fourth morning of the first Test on Saturday.
The win at Wanderers against India is a move in the right direction for the South Africa team, according to skipper Dean Elgar, who revealed that while there is room for improvement, the hosts won't be tinkering with their game plan heading into the final Test.
Ravichandran Ashwin can play the all-rounder's role in any condition, India skipper Virat Kohli said on Monday, impressed by the premier off-spinner's consistency with both bat and ball in recent years.
'Obviously it's disappointing to miss a hundred but I think 93 was a big contribution to the team. It was very important to give the momentum to the team and keep the team in the zone so that there's less pressure on the next batters.'
Images from the India v SA, second Test, day 1, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru.
Legendary South Africa batter Hashim Amla says more "collective experience" in the Indian side was one of the key factors in the visiting side's comfortable victory in the series-opener at Centurion.
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel scalped five wickets as India 'A' spinners shot out South Africa 'A' for 260 on Day 1 of the second and final unofficial 'Test' in Wayanad, Kerala, on Tuesday.
England cricket team coach Andy Flower has accused South Africa of being too big for their boots.
Skipper Rohit Sharma will look to feast on a Zimbabwe bowling attack in his bid to play an innings that is long overdue in a must-win game of the T20 World Cup match in Melbourne on Sunday.
The pacer injures ankle during warm-up session; Kyle Abbott has been called up as replacement
Mohammed Shami led India's fight-back with a career-best five-wicket haul as India snapped nine wickets for 53 runs to dismiss South Africa for 177 and avoid a humiliating whitewash in the three-match series.
Images from Day 3 of the third Test between South Africa and India, in Cape Town, on Thursday.
Rookie opener Sarel Erwee savoured a maiden century as South Africa dominated day one of the second Test against New Zealand in Christchurch to be 238 for three at the close on Friday.
For some teams, this will be the start of their quest for World Cup glory but for others, it will be the culmination of what has already been a long journey.
'I am sitting here with a smile on my face knowing there is one less very competitive, very talented guy that we don't have to deal with'
Australia were a different side when they crashed to their first T20 series loss to Bangladesh in August and are not expecting a repeat of their troubles when they face the south Asians in the World Cup, spinner Ashton Agar said.
'We ended up getting a result in four days is a testimony to the fact that we have become the side we have become today and strength of the squad was on full display.'
The Indian team's strategy is expected to undergo paradigm shift with some players getting a subtle yet stern message to lift their games as they face an embarrassing possibility of a clean sweep against South Africa in the third ODI, in Cape Town on Sunday.
Besides Agarwal, New Zealand spinner Ajaz Patel and Australian pacer Mitchell Starc were also short-listed for the award.
South Africa captain Dean Elgar has opened up about his behind the scene conversation with Kagiso Rabada that fired up the senior pacer to deliver a game-changing spell in the second Test against India.
South African batting consultant Justin Sammons hailed Dean Elgar's stubborn resistance against a fearsome Indian attack, saying the skipper's show with the bat will be key if the hosts have to win the Wanderers Test.
South Africa have slipped to number six in the world, behind fifth-placed Sri Lanka, and have a host of questions to answer, not least around a brittle top six and the balance of the side.
Jacques Kallis, Hashim Amla, Graeme Smith, AB de Villiers, Gary Kirsten, Herschelle Gibbs, Mark Boucher, Daryl Cullinan, and Faf Du Plessis are the other Proteas batsmen who have more than 4000 runs in Test cricket.
The Faf du Plessis-led side would be aiming to win their third match to stay alive in the 50-over tournament.
Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje are expected to spit fire on a track that will offer steep bounce as India's top-order gears up for its toughest test in adverse conditions against a top-notch South African side in the T20 World Cup on Sunday.
Images from the third One-Day International between South Africa and India, in Cape Town, on Sunday.
'I'm back at the hotel recovering'
Axar Patel showed his all-round prowess with an unbeaten 69 as India 'A' posted 417 for 8 against South Africa 'A' and swelled their lead to 157 runs on a rain-hit third day in the second and final unofficial 'Test' in Wayanad, Kerala, on Thursday.
Their confidence in tatters after being entangled in a spin web on a rank-turner in Jamtha, Nagpur, the South Africans seemed a bit relieved on Tuesday following a look at the Kotla strip, on which the fourth Test will be played.
While India and South Africa have identical points (120) against their name, India are placed second on the basis of decimal points.
'Even DK was finding it a little bit difficult at the start. The wicket played a huge role in this game. And as for that strategy, we can and we will be going with it in the next matches as well.'
While the batting looks in perfect shape, India's new-look pace department needs to come up with something special against the Proteas in Cuttack on Sunday.
IMAGES from the 4th T20I between India and South Africa played in Rajkot on Friday.
Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Monday announced a new partnership with dairy major Amul for the T20I series in India.
However, South Africa have lot of openers stacked on top (Bavuma, Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram, Rassie van der Dussen and Reeza Hendricks) with a light middle order which is still a huge concern.
The home side were in the game at 107 for three when left-arm spinner Maharaj (5-36) claimed the scalp of Kieran Powell (51), who tried to launch him to the midwicket boundary but picked out lone fielder Anrich Nortje.
With this thrilling win, Pakistan has taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.
Needing 392 runs to avoid the follow-on, after the South Africans posted a mammoth 542 in their first innings, the hosts were shot out for a meagre 204 in 66.3 overs in their first essay, conceding a huge lead of 338 runs.
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