South Africa captain Graeme Smith hailed his team’s all-round performance after they beat India within three days in the second Test on Saturday.
The tourists won by an innings and 90 runs to hand India their fourth heaviest defeat on home soil to go 1-0 up in the three-Test series.
AB de Villiers scored a maiden double hundred and Jacques Kallis slammed his 30th Test century after spearhead Dale Steyn led India’s first-innings rout of 76 with a five-wicket haul.
Steyn took three more in the second along with Makhaya Ntini, who finished with six wickets in the match.
”Jacques’s 30th hundred was terrific for South Africa. AB’s first double hundred fantastic for him being such a young guy,” Smith told the official broadcasters. ”From there on, you know, it was a terrific team performance. Everyone showed their mettle.”
South Africa are chasing an Asian treble after successes in Pakistan and Bangladesh in recent months.
”As a captain this is the first time I feel I have a bowling attack that can be successful in the subcontinent,” Smith told a news conference. ”I think all the batters are comfortable in their roles and have performed well right through Pakistan until now.
”We’ve been really focused around this series and things we want to achieve.
”We have worked towards this day for a long time. It’s the start of a big season for us, first big tour. Fantastic to be 1-0 up.”
The opening Test ended in a high-scoring draw in Chennai last week and the final match starts in Kanpur on April 11.
”It’s always difficult to come back after being bundled out for 76,” India captain Anil Kumble told reporters.
India’s biggest defeat at home was by an innings and 336 runs against West Indies in 1958/59. — Reuters