Dean Elgar displayed his understated brilliance with a counter-offensive hundred that not only neutralised KL Rahul's ton but also put South Africa in complete command on the second day of the opening Test against India in Centurion on Wednesday.
Playing his 85th and penultimate Test, left-handed Elgar (140 batting, 211 balls), not exactly known for his elegant stroke-play, stacked up his 14th Test hundred and also took South Africa to 256 for 5 at stumps to offset India's first innings total of 245.
With debutant David Bedingham (56 off 87 balls), who hit a fluent half-century that included two massive pulled sixes, Elgar added 131 runs for the fourth wicket as India now will have to play a catching game.
The conditions remained bowling-friendly as clouds hovered over throughout the second day, but it was Mohammed Shami's absence and ineptitude of Shardul Thakur (0/57 in 12 overs) and the inability of debutant Prasidh Krishna (1/61 in 15 overs) that hurt India dearly as they neither found the right line nor the length on the day.
Jasprit Bumrah (2/48 in 16 overs), in his comeback Test, gave his all and Mohammed Siraj (2/63 in 15 overs) was fully honest in his effort but two couldn't have done the job which required all four to sing from the same hymn sheet.
Ravichandran Ashwin (0/19 in 8 overs) kept things tight but this isn't the pitch where one can expect him to run through the opposition.
On the day, Indian bowlers were hammered for 37 boundaries and two sixes.
In a country with megastars in batting like Jacques Kallis and AB de Villiers, Elgar's era was the one where Proteas cricket was on the decline.
Elgar was never an alpha male but someone who has been a glue for this Test team over the past decade.
Elgar is not a patch on Brian Lara, David Gower or for that matter even Kumar Sangakkara, but there is that Shivnarine Chanderpaul like grit. He knows how to get his job done.
Elgar nicely blended defence with a plethora of pulls and tucks off his legs and ferocious cuts. He left a few deliveries during the first 30 minutes and missed a few before Shardul and Prasidh played into his hands.
By the time, Siraj castled Bedingham and Prasidh got his first Test victim in Kyle Verreynne, India had lost the initiative.
