Hats off ‘KG’: One of Rabada’s greatest spells rocks India in Centurion

The first chants of “Kay-Gee, Kay-Gee, Kay-Gee” poured down from spectators in the left half of the SuperSport Park grandstand as South Africa’s premier fast bowler made his way back to his fielding position a few metres in front of them. 

They had just seen Rabada remove Virat Kohli, the Indian batter who more than anyone else in the touring squad is desperate to claim his team’s first Test series victory on these shores. Rabada had delivered a peach of a ball to get him, as one has to with Kohli. 

It was a thing of stunning fast bowling beauty. Angled in towards the right-hand batter, the trajectory then shifted just enough after the ball had kissed the surface, the outside edge was located as Kohli sought to defend. Into Kyle Verreynne’s gloves the ball nestled. 

Ecstasy for Rabada’s teammates. Joy in the stands. “Kay-Gee, Kay-Gee, Kay-Gee,” they roared. 

Naturally there’ll be those who’ll see figures of 5/44 from 17 overs and quibble. Bouncy pitch, heavy cloud cover, grass on the pitch, and Rabada always bowls well at this ground.

They’d be right on all those counts. He now has 55 wickets in seven-and-a-half Tests here at an average of 16.54 — but it’s one thing to have all those elements in your favour, it’s another to use them in the manner Rabada did on Boxing Day's day one of the first of two Tests. 

By comparison look at the Proteas’ other fast bowlers. The conditions didn’t change for them, the way they executed, however, was a millions of miles away from the quality produced by Rabada.

That post-lunch spell in particular was mesmerising. Consider the situation. India, put into bat by Temba Bavuma, had reached 91/3 at lunch, a terrific recovery from 24/3, engineered by the great Kohli, who along with his partner at the time, Shreyas Iyer, had both been dropped before the interval. 

South Africa’s bowling was generally sloppy in the second half of the morning session, with far too many straight deliveries, which Kohli and Iyer were happy to flick off their toes to the leg-side boundary. Kohli, too, had recognised the difficulty of batting in those conditions and was seeking to apply pressure on the hosts by taking quick singles. 

Up in the change room, Proteas head coach, Shukri Conrad cut a frustrated figure, his mood not helped by Bavuma having to leave the game after picking up a left hamstring strain while in pursuit of a Kohli drive, from a delivery that was over-pitched. 

South Africa needed a response after the interval. Rabada provided it. 

It was a spell akin to the great ones he’s produced in his career. The second innings ‘five-for’ in Perth in 2016; St George’s Park in 2018, where his 11 wickets, helped square that dramatic series and drove Australia towards sandpaper. Also the Cape Town Test two years ago against these same opponents when he claimed seven wickets in the match to set up that series win and the first innings performance that put his name on the Lord’s honours board in 2022.

Rabada had the ball on a string, swinging it away, but when he wanted to, as with the dismissal of Iyer, darting it back into the right-hander and knocking back the off and middle stumps. Kohli’s will be a long-cherished wicket, for such was the quality of the delivery.

Then came chanting. The wicket of Ravi Ashwin followed and, after a 30-minute breather, that of Shardul Thakur — the fifth of the innings, which was the 14th time Rabada has achieved that landmark. 

Inevitably, this led to the ‘imagine if’ chatter, online, in the stands and undoubtedly around the Boxing Day braais.

‘Imagine if South Africa played more Tests?’ ‘Imagine if this was a three-Test series?’ ‘Imagine how many KG could get if South Africa could catch better?’ ‘Imagine if India had already been bowled out as they should have before the rain arrived?’ 

Rabada has given the Proteas control, but India are by no means out of this contest.

Bavuma said before the Test he felt that the quality of India’s bowling matched that of the home team. What Rabada did on Tuesday, Jasprit Bumrah could very well do on Wednesday.

KL Rahul’s unbeaten 70, an innings of courage and skill, propelled them to 208/8, and with the pitch likely to get harder to bat on because of the uneven bounce, it’s a total that may already be worth about 60 runs more than that.