Watch: Kagiso Rabada bowled a peach of a delivery to get Virat Kohli out on the first day of the Boxing Day Test between South Africa and India in Centurion yesterday (December 26).
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South Africa won the toss and elected to field in overcast conditions and they were rewarded early on. India lost three quick wickets, two of them to debutant Nandre Burger.
Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer then stitched a counter-attacking 68-run partnership for the fourth wicket before Kagiso Rabada came into his own in the post-lunch session.
Rabada, who boasts of a phenomenal record at the Super Sport Park, cleaned up Iyer with an incoming length ball in the 27th over. Four overs later, he produced a near-perfect delivery that the well-set Kohli had no answer to.
Angling in towards off stump at a good length, the ball swung late and bounced high to catch the outside edge of Kohli’s bat before settling into wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne’s gloves. This was only the third time that Rabada had dismissed Kohli in Tests in South Africa.
Having hit five boundaries, Kohli was out for 38 before KL Rahul took over and guided India to a competitive score by the time stumps was called. Rahul remained unbeaten on 70 as India ended the day on 208-8.
Rabada picked hi 14th Test five-for and his first one against India as he finished day one with figures of 17-3-44-5.
