After Goan Holiday, Virat Kohli Primed to Spoil SA’s Away Record

A long series, a short holiday & a chance of making a bit of history. Is Virat’s ready to spoil the Proteas party?

Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma arrive at the Mumbai airport on Sunday. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

• India lead the four-match Test series 1-0 after the first two Tests.
• South Africa have won 10 away Test series out of the 14 they played in the last 9 years.
• South Africa have not lost a Test series away from home since 2006.
  
• The 5 times South Africa have played a Test series in India, the hosts have won 2 times, the Proteas’ once and 2 have resulted in draws.

An enviable nine-year overseas record of 10 Test series wins in 14 tours by South Africa is under serious threat when the Proteas take the field against India for the Nagpur Test starting Wednesday.

Virat Kohli’s home team lead the four-match series 1-0 after the second fixture was abandoned due to rain on Wednesday. With a full week between matches, some team members returned home to rejuvenate for the final leg of the series while the young skipper enjoyed a short break in Goa with his actress girlfriend Anushka Sharma.

Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma arrive at the Mumbai airport on Sunday. (Photo: Yogen Shah)

South Africa’s Away Run

After the 0-2 reversal against Sri Lanka in 2006, South Africa have not lost a Test series away from home and the list includes two wins over mighty Australia in 2008-09 and 2012-13, other than victories in one rubber each over England (2008), West Indies 2010), New Zealand (2011-12), Pakistan (2007-08), Sri Lanka (2014), Bangladesh (2007-8) and Zimbabwe (2007-08).

All their overseas success aside, South Africa have not won a series in India the two times they visited since 2006. In 2007-08 (Three-Test series) and 2009-10 (Two-game contest), the scoreline read 1-1.

Test skippers Virat Kohli and Hashim Amla after the second Test in Bengaluru. (Photo: PTI)

South Africa’s Indian Run

South Africa had won only one Test series in five visits to India, in 1999-00 under Hansie Cronje before the match-fix saga blew up.

The Proteas lost in 1996-97 (1-2 in the three-Test series) and 2004-05 (0-1 in the two-Test encounter) before holding India to draws in 2007-08 and 2009-10.

If India surge to a win here on what promises to be a spin-aiding track, South Africa will be confined to their third series defeat in six Test rubbers on the Indian soil.