5 Highest Test partnerships by Indians in South Africa
Thus far, India have played 20 Tests on South African soil and won three. Their best performance, series-wise, was the 1-1 draw in 2010/11. Historically, only Australia and England have managed to win Test series in South Africa. The major issue facing all other teams has been the irrepressible presence of the Proteas pace attack on their very own seam-friendly pitches.
Also Read: Highest Test partnerships by Indians in Australia
In this segment, let us relive and acknowledge the five most prolific partnerships notched by Indian batsmen in South Africa. Notwithstanding the traditional struggles of their highly-rated batting lineup in the region, some of their icons have still managed to put in creditable performances from time to time. Here are five of those.
#5 Sachin Tendulkar & MS Dhoni - 172 at Centurion (2010)
There were plenty of expectations when MS Dhoni's top-ranked Indian Test team arrived in the Rainbow Nation to lock horns with Graeme Smith's remarkably consistent South African lineup in the 2010/11 series.
However, the tour began on a calamitous note for the visitors as their iconic batting unit was blown away for a mere 136 in the very first innings of the series. The Proteas amassed 620 before declaring and consigning their opponents to an inescapable situation.
When all seemed to be lost for India, Tendulkar and Dhoni salvaged some pride by putting on 172 runs for the seventh wicket. While the maestro remained unbeaten on 111, the wicket-keeper batsman was dismissed for a well-made 106-ball 90. While they could not quite make South Africa bat again, their fightback set the tone for the rest of the series.