Close South Africa 566 for 8 (Pollock 113*, Kallis 110) lead India by 334 runs
Scorecard A rollicking century from Shaun Pollock dove-tailed beautifully with a superb Jacques Kallis hundred as South Africa embarrassed India on the third day of this unofficial Test. When rain curtailed play 40 minutes before time, South Africa were 334 runs in front. Only a two-day blessing from the rain-gods can save India now. The runs didn't just flow today, they poured, especially after the lunch break. Pollock had said before the game that the South Africans considered this to be an unofficial match. He might be having second thoughts tonight after a sparkling innings that brought the Sunday picnickers to their feet. Pollock celebrated his hundred by clobbering a Sachin Tendulkar full-toss over midwicket. Harbhajan Singh then saw one disappear over square leg. After an initial rain delay ten minutes after tea, Pollock had come out blazing. He cut Ashish Nehra past point for four and clouted him over backward square leg for a huge six. Sharing the limelight with him was Kallis, who had stroked his way to a magnificent hundred earlier in the afternoon. Until he yorked himself for 110, playing all over a Kumble full-toss, he had scarcely put a foot wrong. He played some superb shots through midwicket and was quickly into the cut each time he was afforded some width. Kallis's celebrations as he acknowledged the cheers from the crowd for what would have been his tenth Test hundred made a mockery of the assumption that South Africa aren't taking this match very seriously. Gerald Majola, are you listening? The Indian spinners were taken to the cleaners and then hung out to dry. Pollock was especially severe on Kumble, cutting him past point for a boundary and then carting him over midwicket and straight down the ground for huge sixes. Even Makhaya Ntini didn't spare Kumble, one wild slash racing to the third-man boundary. Harbhajan cut an even sorrier figure. Pollock eased him past cover for four before paddle-sweeping him down to square leg. The next delivery was then smashed over cover for four more. Ntini went after Harbhajan too and a huge six over long-on had the crowd on their feet. The quicks fared little better and Javagal Srinath was pulled over midwicket for four by Ntini. Sundays should ideally be spent picking strawberries or pottering around in the park – perhaps nursing a cool beer if you're not the outdoor type. India certainly showed the indolence but the only thing they picked up this afternoon was the well-beaten ball – belted to all corners of the ground. Their only respite in the afternoon session came through the dismissals of Mark Boucher and Nicky Boje. Boucher was bowled by Nehra for 19, the ball keeping very low as he went for the pull shot. Boje struck a beautiful straight six off Harbhajan but was out stumped going for a repeat. Earlier, aided and abetted by some abysmal Indian bowling and fielding, South Africa powered their way to a position of total dominance by lunch. They added 98 runs in the session, losing the wicket of Lance Klusener in the process. It took Dravid almost an hour to realise that the new ball was there for the taking. In the interim, Kallis and Klusener made merry, smashing full-tosses to the fence and working wayward full deliveries off the pads with minimal effort. Nehra was the worst culprit and Kallis tucked in with some superb strokes through midwicket and square of the wicket. Klusener was all at sea early on against the legspin of Tendulkar but the medium-pacers were meat and drink to him. It was his non-existent footwork that was his undoing as Srinath struck India's only high note of the morning. After fluently driving the previous delivery back down the ground, Klusener, on 33, wafted at one outside his off stump to give VVS Laxman at second slip some catching practice. He had enjoyed a reprieve moments eaerlier, when Nehra fluffed a return from Venkatesh Prasad with Klusener well short of his ground going for a third run. Dravid's field settings were uninspired and incredibly defensive, with nine men on the fence at one stage. If Indian supporters took a leaf out of the Chelsea book and chanted, "what a load of rubbish", no-one would blame them…

Teams
India 1 Shiv Sunder Das, 2 Connor Williams, 3 VVS Laxman, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Rahul Dravid (capt), 6 Deep Dasgupta (wk), 7 Anil Kumble, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Javagal Srinath, 10 Venkatesh Prasad, 11 Ashish Nehra.

South Africa 1 Gary Kirsten, 2 Herschelle Gibbs, 3 Jacques Kallis, 4 Neil McKenzie, 5 Jacques Rudolph, 6 Lance Klusener, 7 Shaun Pollock (capt), 8 Mark Boucher (wk), 9 Nicky Boje, 10 Nantie Hayward, 11 Makhaya Ntini.

Dileep Premachandran is assistant editor of Wisden.com, India.

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