Day 3 of the second Test in Guwahati belonged entirely to South Africa, courtesy of the all-round brilliance of Marco Jansen. India began the day well at 51 for 0, with Yashasvi Jaiswal bringing up the first fifty by an Indian batter in the series. But once the ball started to grip and bounce in the second hour, South Africa started to dominate.
Jansen triggered India's collapse with short-pitched bowling as India collapsed from 95 for 1 to 122 for 7. He finished with a stunning six-for, the most bouncer-induced wickets ever recorded in a single innings in India. Simon Harmer and Keshav Maharaj capitalised on the pressure, bagging important wickets, but it was Jansen's spell that broke India's backbone. Though Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav stitched a 52-run stand, India were eventually bowled out for 201, handing South Africa a massive 288-run lead. By stumps, Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton extended the lead to 314, taking South Africa to 26 for 0.
Yashasvi Jaiswal smashed a much-needed 58 off 97 balls as his knock not only ended a streak of six low scores against the Proteas but also became the first fifty by an Indian batter in this series. Jaiswal, who had aggregated just 62 runs across his previous six innings versus South Africa, nearly matched that tally in one outing. The left-hander anchored a 65-run opening stand with KL Rahul, giving India a good start. His innings also recorded his 20th 50-plus score before turning 24, placing him in elite company with Sachin Tendulkar.