DURBAN — Jacques Kallis inched closer to scoring a century in his final Test after guiding South Africa to 299 for five before rain and bad light brought a premature end to the third day of the second Test against India Saturday. Kallis, who is playing his final Test before retiring, faced 224 balls for his unbeaten 78 in what could be his last Test innings. He took the Proteas to within 35 of India's first innings score. The 38-year-old notched up his 87th half-century in Tests and will resume day four with nightwatchman Dale Steyn (zero not out). South Africa lost JP Duminy (28) just before the close, one of four wickets for Indian spinner Ravindra Jadeja (four for 87). All-rounder Kallis was the junior partner in an excellent fourth-wicket stand of 127 with AB de Villiers (74) that got South Africa out of trouble earlier in the day. De Villiers, who bagged a century to help save the first Test in Johannesburg and has amassed at least 50 in each of his last 10 Test matches, looked fluent again as he scored all around the ground before edging to Virat Kohli at first slip off the bowling of Jadeja. The South African vice captain said it was a privilege to spend so much time at the crease with Kallis. The pair steadied the innings after a mini-collapse in the morning session when the hosts lost three wickets for 10 runs. The home side had started the day well, Graeme Smith (47) and Alviro Petersen (62) moving the side briskly from its overnight score of 82 and adding 21 runs before the former was excellently caught by Shikhar Dhawan running towards the boundary at cover off the bowling of Jadeja. Hashim Amla had a wretched time in the drawn first Test in Johannesburg, out twice leaving deliveries that crashed on to his stumps, and he failed with the bat again Saturday. This time he played a shot but the result was the same, the excellent Mohammed Shami getting the ball to move away slightly and clip the off-stump and dismiss him for three. That brought Kallis to the crease and India, showing great sportsmanship, gave the veteran all-rounder a guard of honor as he walked to the middle, with Australian umpires Steve Davis and Rod Tucker joining in. But perhaps the emotion of the moment led to Petersen losing his concentration as he was out the very next delivery, gloving the ball to Murali Vijay at slip off the bowling of Jadeja. JP Duminy became Jadeja's fourth victim when he was trapped leg before wicket in the penultimate over before the umpires took the players off the field as rain began to fall. — Reuters
Scorecard India (1st innings) 334 South Africa (1st innings) Smith c Dhawan b Jadeja 47 Petersen c Vijay b Jadeja 62 Amla b Mohammed Shami 03 Kallis not out 78 De Villiers c Kohli b Jadeja 74 Duminy lbw b Jadeja 28 Steyn not out 00 Extras (lb6, w1) 07 Total (for 5, 104.5 overs) 299 Falls: 1-103 (Smith), 2-113 (Amla), 3-113 (Petersen), 4-240 (De Villiers), 5-298 (Duminy). Bowling: Zaheer Khan 16-2-46-0 (1w), Mohammed Shami 19-2-62-1, I. Sharma 23-7-76-0, Jadeja 37-9-87-4, R. Sharma 9.5-1-22-0. To bat: F. du Plessis, R. Peterson, V. Philander, M. Morkel.
