Amla, Kallis tons put SAfrica in command

S S Ramaswamy
Nagpur, Feb 6 (PTI) The experienced Jacques Kallis and
Hashim Amla struck unbeaten centuries as South Africa
recovered from two early jolts to take control of the first
cricket Test against India here on Saturday.
Kallis (159 not out) notched up his 34th Test century and
found an able ally in Amla (115 not out) as the duo put on a
marathon 285-run partnership to steer the visitors to a
comfortable 291 for two at close on the opening day.
It was a remarkable recovery for the South Africans, who
were reeling at a precarious six for two within the first half
an hour of the contest with pace spearhead Zaheer Khan
claiming both the wickets.
But that turned out to be the only moments of success for
the injury-hit Indians as South Africans not only fought their
way back but were in a position of strength on what appeared
to be a good batting track at the Vidarbha Cricket Association
Stadium.
The 34-year-old Kallis paced his innings brilliantly as
he mixed caution with aggression, while his younger partner
Amla played the sheet anchor's role to perfection en route to
his eighth century.
India went into the game with two debutants in S Badrinath
and Wriddhiman Saha after last-minute injury setbacks to Rohit
Sharma, who was incidentally a cover for VVS Laxman. MORE PTI