SA close to first series win in India since 2000

Guwahati, day four of the fifth test

South Africa 489 (Muthusamy 109, Kuldeep 4-115) &amp, 260-5d (Stubbs 94, Jadeja 4-62)

India 201 (Jaiswal 58, Jansen 6-48) &amp, 27-2 (Jaiswal 13, Harmer 1-1)

To win, India needs 522 runs.

After defeating the hosts 27-2 in the chase of 549 on day four in Guwahati, South Africa are on the verge of clinching their first Test series victory there for 25 years.

India must bat all day to prevent a second whitewash in three home Test series after being squandered for 201 in their opening innings.

They hadn’t lost a Test series on home soil since 12 years prior to last October’s 3-0 defeat by New Zealand.

By a score of 30 runs, South Africa won the two-test series opener in Kolkata.

South Africa resumed its 26-0 defeat to reach 77-3, losing three wickets for 18 runs in a 13-over spell, before Tristan Stubbs took the lead.

He led South Africa’s overnight lead of 314 to extend to 94, shared a century partnership with Tony de Zorzi, and added 82 with Wiaan Mulder.

When South Africa declared, he missed out on a third Test century when he was bowled by spinner Ravindra Jadeja’s slower ball (4-2-42) during a slower ball.

In reply, India lost two wickets within the final ten overs, with Marco Jansen and Simon Harmer bowling KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal.