Guwahati, Nov 24 (NationPress) South Africa has continued to assert their authority in the ongoing second Test, leaving India at 174/7 after 67 overs at the lunch break on day three at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Monday. With India trailing South Africa by 315 runs, the eighth-wicket partnership between Washington Sundar, who is unbeaten on 33, and Kuldeep Yadav, who remains not out on 14, has provided some resistance with a noteworthy stand of 52 runs.

Marco Jansen's fierce spell of short-pitched bowling dismantled India's middle order, as he took out Rishabh Pant, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Ravindra Jadeja, leaving the home side in deep trouble. Despite Sundar and Kuldeep facing a total of 141 balls together, the immediate concern for India is to avoid the follow-on, which is just 116 runs away.

India's aspirations for a comeback were swiftly dashed after the tea break when Rishabh Pant, seen as a potential aggressor against the Proteas, fell for merely seven. Pant attempted to counterattack Jansen but instead edged a delivery to the keeper, wasting a review in the process.

Jansen then intensified India's woes with his height, extracting steep bounce that resulted in Nitish Kumar Reddy fending a rising delivery, brilliantly caught by a diving fielder at gully. Reddy's dismissal for 10 left India in a precarious position.

Upon coming in at number eight, Washington Sundar faced Jansen's relentless short deliveries, with the last one deflecting off Ravindra Jadeja's shoulder and resulting in an edge to second slip, dismissing Jadeja for six and sending South Africa into celebration while leaving India in despair.

Sundar began to find his rhythm by hitting Jansen for four and later smacking Simon Harmer for a six. India had a narrow escape when Harmer's lbw appeal against Kuldeep was reviewed, revealing that the ball had brushed Kuldeep's glove before being caught at short leg.

Both Kuldeep and Sundar showed admirable defense and application, which had been lacking in their teammates, frustrating the South African bowlers. Kuldeep particularly appeared confident against spin, indicating that the pitch was not as challenging as it seemed. As the ball aged, batting became progressively easier for both players until lunch was called.

Ravi Shastri, during commentary, criticized India's batting performance while Sundar and Kuldeep emphasized that the challenges faced were primarily due to the quality of South African bowling and poor shot selection rather than pitch conditions. With the match slipping away, only a miraculous turnaround could now change the course of events for India.

Brief Scores: South Africa 489 in 151.1 overs (Senuran Muthusamy 109; Kuldeep Yadav 4-115) leads India 174/7 in 67 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 58, Washington Sundar 33 not out; Marco Jansen 4-43, Simon Harmer 2-61) by 315 runs.