On the first day of the second Test between South Africa and India at the Newlands in Cape Town, a record-breaking 23 wickets fell. Unexpectedly, the South African Traffic Police decided to join in on the fun.
As the game between the two teams heated up, an unexpectedly funny opinion from an unlikely source surfaced. South Africa’s Traffic Police made fun of the disorganized events on social media by sharing pictures that made it appear like a bowlers’ day out. In a similar spirit, the Traffic SA hopped on board and sent a humorous tweet.
On their ‘X’ account, they posted, “Cape Town, Newlands: Extremely Busy Between the Pitch Area and the Dressing Rooms.”
The humorous tweet alluded to a metaphorical traffic gridlock brought on by the players’ constant parade from the field to the locker rooms. The timing of this humorous tweet suggests that it is a covert jab at the Indian batting squad, which collapsed spectacularly, losing their last six wickets in just 11 balls and failing to score any runs. KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, and Prasidh Krishna were among the many people that perished in this tornado of collapse.
Cape Town – Newlands: Extremely Busy between the pitch area and the dressing rooms #SAvIND
— TrafficSA (@TrafficSA) January 3, 2024
In the 128-year history of the South Africa vs. India Test match, the most wickets were taken in a single day.
Cricket lovers were quick to voice their thoughts about the unexpected development, but no one saw the South African authorities as being lighthearted about it. It appears that the purpose of the traffic police was to add some humor and lightheartedness to an otherwise astounding day for cricket fans.
Dean Elgar, the acting captain of South Africa, won the toss and decided to bat first earlier yesterday. But Mohammed Siraj, who claimed six wickets, wreaked havoc, and Jasprit Bumrah and Mukesh Kumar also helped to restrict South Africa to a meager total. Unbelievably, Elgar followed Australia’s Jack Barrett in setting an unwelcome milestone back in 1890 when he became just the second batter in 128 years to be out twice on the same day of his final Test match.
After the tea break, Team India managed a respectable reply, scoring 153–4. They did, however, incur the wrath of the bowlers as they collapsed late and lost their last six wickets without scoring any more runs. India’s lead was cut to just 98 runs thanks to three wickets apiece from South African bowlers Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, and Nandre Burger.
As of this writing, South Africa has amassed a 30-run lead in their second innings after scoring 127/7 after 27 overs of play. At the crease right now are Aiden Markram (73*) and Kagiso Rabada, with Markram playing partner. Seeing how much lead the hosts can gather to establish a goal and take a sniff later in the day would be interesting to watch. However, by winning the final match and preventing South Africa from setting any meaningful goals ahead, India will attempt to tie the Test series.