Kuldeep’s mastery makes it an even contest on Day 1

AT first glance, the bare basics of the scoreboard - South Africa 247/6 in 81.5 overs - tells you something about the day's play.

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN

The visitors batted first, some of them got starts but failed to convert and the Indian bowlers picked up wickets at regular intervals to restrict the visitors on a good first day deck for batting. It was, in a nutshell, an even day's play with both sides carrying enough happiness as well as regret.

But on days like Saturday, when Guwahati became the 30th venue to host Test cricket in the country, the scoreboard doesn't even begin to tell the story of how the action unfolded. On an unhurried day of red-ball cricket where batters were rewarded for their patience and punished for impatience, one spinner stood tall to ensure the hosts had their noses in front when bad light intervened. India have so often seen their spinners run through opposition teams in these parts for well over a decade. So this is all supposed to be normal but there's still some getting used to Kuldeep Yadav's bewitching genius at work.