India vs South Africa Highlights 1st Test, Day 3: Shami enters 200 club, India extend lead on eventful day in Centurion

Another wicket! Ngidi takes his fifth wicket -- his third fifer in Test cricket -- as Pant departs for eight. What a morning it's been for SA so far. Shami joins Shardul in the middle. India 296/7

WICKET! Ashwin departs too... Leading edge and a simple catch for Keshav Maharaj. Rabada strikes again as Ashwin departs for 4. India six down.

Rahane also departs as Ngidi takes his fourth of the innings. Two blows for India in the first few minutes of the 1st sesstion. A short delivery outside off and it picks Rahane's outside edge before going to De Kock. Rahane departs for 48 and Ashwin joins Pant in the middle. IND 291/5

Rabada oversteps again! A delivery later, Pant nicks one past gully for a boundary. India eyeing 300 now, and it could perhaps come quickly after Pant sticks to fearless brand of cricket.

First boundary of the day! Ngidi's delivery was outside the off stump but took Rahane's edge to race away towards gully. Pant is now at the other end, replacing Rahul in the middle.

Rabada strikes early! Rahul departs for 123 as India lose their fourth wicket. Rahul went for the pull shot and got a faint edge. Quinton de Kock was quick to pouch it safely. Rahul walks back with a commendable feat -- highest Test score by an Indian opener on the South African turf. Wasim Jaffer (116) was previously leading the list. India 278/4

Rahul has faced over 250 deliveries now. He nudges a short delivery off Ngidi for a quick single.

Ngidi is operating in 130s at the moment. Rahane defends the first five deliveries before driving one towards square leg for a single. First runs on the board for India.

The Indian pair is at the crease under bright sunshine. Let's get underway! Ngidi starts with the ball.

Bowling aggressively, bowling maidens and getting right lengths will help South Africa restrict India to a hefty total. But Rahul & Rahane will look to punish the opposition bowlers on loose deliveries and help India get past 400 today.

"There was a bit of spongy bounce on the opening day. But the short length bowled by SA bowlers helped IND batters adjust to the pace. The pitch is hardening up and it's important for SA bowlers to bowl fuller length today. It's gonna get harder as the game progresses. If they get 150 more, India are pretty much in control of the game," say Gavaskar & Pollock on the pitch after Day 2 washout.

From 2017, Centurion has produced 23 results in 23 matches. Only Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis have got a Test double century at the venue so far, with Rahul looking to join the SA greats in the elite panel.

"Rahane was in a different mindset in July. He was just looking to block the deliveries rather than looking to drive them, It all boils down to the mindset," says Sanjay Bangar on Star Sports.

- He is 32 runs short of surpassing Virat Kohli (153) to register the highest individual score by a batsman in a Test in Centurion. He presently stands fifth in the list behind Kohli, Shaun Marsh (148), GA Hick (141) and Jacob Oram (133).

- He needs 48 runs more to surpass Sachin Tendulkar (169) to register the highest score by an Indian batsman in a Test in South Africa.

- He is 13 runs behind Pakistan's Taufeeq Umar in becoming the highest scoring Asian opener in a Test in South Africa.

Rahul has scored 437 runs in nine innings this year including two hundreds. He's career-best 199 in the whites. Looking to build on his 122*, can Rahul finally get to his first double century in Test cricket? "Look obviously 6-7 months ago or a year ago I never thought I’d get to play Test cricket again, but yeah things have turned around quite quickly and I’m very very happy, grateful," Rahul had said before the Centurion Test.

"It's a mental challenge for South Africa today. India have got a fantastic bowling attack including Bumrah & Shami. Also, a lot of guys in the current SA setup haven't faced Ashwin," says Morne Morkel on Star Sports.

We are expecting a full day of cricket! Dravid spotted inspecting the wicket as always. India have lost a day's play but Rahul & Rahane will look to push the hosts on the backfoot. Play to start at 1:30 PM IST and will be extended by 30 minutes. Maximum overs will be 98. Can India enforce a result?

With 556 runs to his name, Rahane is among leading run-scorers for India in Boxing Day Tests, only behind Sachin Tendulkar (716 runs) on the list. Can he get to his 13th Test hundred today? Well, that would lead to a happy headache, especially when India have players like Shreyas Iyer and Hanuma Vihari on the bench.

Dinesh Karthik has also rallied behind Ajinkya Rahane's selection, explaining why he deserves a spot in the XI despite recent struggles. "I knew and I got a strong gut feeling that they will go with Rahane for two reasons. Firstly, he is an experienced player, he has been the vice-captain up until this series. Credit to Rahul Dravid and Virat Kohli for backing him..," said the wicketkeeper-batter on Cricbuzz.

South Africa will feel in the match too if they manage to wrap up the Indian innings quickly. But they will have to bowl a lot better than Sunday, when only Lungi Ngidi (3-45) was among the wickets. On the other hand, India will be eyeing a hefty first-innings total and potentially bat only once in the Test.

There are chances of cloudy conditions during the afternoon, but no possibility of rain throughout the day. Rahul and Rahane will look to continue from where they left on the opening day. Don't forget India have Rishabh Pant's controlled madness up next, followed by R Ashwin and Shardul Thakur.

KL Rahul, who rewrote the record books on the opening day, was "surprised" with his demeanour in challenging conditions. became only the second Indian opener to score a century in a Test in South Africa after Wasim Jaffer. "I have surprised myself with how calm I have been, my focus has always been to stay in the moment and react to the ball that is bowled. Really happy that I could finish the day on a good note," Rahul told bcci.tv in an interview. Can he script a few more batting records today?

A year ago on December 27, Rahane had hit his 12th Test century against Australia at the MCG. Can he repeat the same trick? The 33-year-old right-hander slumped after the Melbourne Test, managing to score just 478 runs in 23 innings at an average of 22.76. His highest was 67 against England on the Chennai wicket.

India need to buck the trend of throwing away good starts in the first hour of the day. We have seen this far too many times - both home and abroad. The confidence of the previous day has turned into a bit of overconfidence up front on a new day a lot frequently. South Africa bowlers will be fresh after getting one whole day's rest. Rahul and Rahane may want to be a little circumspect at first. 

KL Rahul has looked like a million bucks during his century. With a 100 at Lord's in August and now one in Centurion, Rahul has established himself as one of India's top openers. As well as he's played in this Test, this time around, Rahul has the chance to do something he hasn't done - score a double century. Rahul had once come perilously close to registering his maiden double against England, but agonisingly fell short of it by one run. The kind of form he is in, there's no reason why he can't get there today. 

And rightly so… When it comes to Boxing Day Test, Ajinkya Rahane turns into a beast. Last year, he scored a magnificent 115 against Australia a the MCG, and this time around, has looked in brilliant nick for his unbeaten 40 off 81 balls. With his career on the line, the former India vice-captain needs to get a big score here, especially with India in such a strong position.

At first, India would have fancied getting a total around 450 or even more on the board, but one entire day of rain could change things around for them. With India comfortably placed, it is likely that they will be in search of quick runs, which could signal some aggressive and attacking batting from the Indian team. With more rain expected on the final day, it will be interesting to watch the approach of both teams here onwards.

Well, well. We finally have some good news. The sun is out in Centurion and it is expected to get scorching hot as the day progresses… which means that after an entire day of waiting, there will at last be some cricket… nay, quality cricket being played between India and South Africa. Day 3 is bright and sunny, and we are expected to get a full day of cricket.

Hello and welcome! After yesterday's play ended up getting reduced to a damp squib, we are all set for an action-packed third day's play at the Centurion between India and South Africa. Thankfully, the rain gods have decided to stay away for today and most likely tomorrow - i.e. - Day 3 and 4, which means there will be no shortage of play for the time being. With Day 2 getting washed out without a ball being bowled, play will be extended everyday by half and hour. As India resume on 272/3, expect a more positive approach from their batters today.