NEW DELHI: South Africa captain Temba Bavuma said his side had “gone through dark days” as the Proteas sealed a historic 408-run victory over India in Guwahati on Wednesday, completing a 2-0 victory and registering their first Test series win on Indian soil in 25 years. The emphatic win also handed India their biggest ever home Test defeat in terms of runs, deepening their struggle in the longest format.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SIGN UP NOW!Spinner Simon Harmer was the mastermind behind India’s collapse on the final day, returning excellent figures of 6/37 to finish with nine wickets in the match. Chasing an improbable 549, India were bowled out for 140 despite a gutsy 54 from Ravindra Jadeja, who held out until he was bowled by Keshav Maharaj. Mohammed Siraj was the last to fall and Marco Jansen took a flying catch in the deep.
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For Bavuma, victory meant both personal and collective redemption.“It’s tremendous,” the South Africa captain said after the match. “For me personally, I’ve been out for a few months with an injury. It’s not every day you come to India and leave with a 2-0 series win. We’ve had some dark days as a group and that’s a credit to the boys.”Bavuma said a renewed clarity of preparation and thinking contributed to the turnaround.
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“There’s been a big shift in what we want to do. Anyone in their day can win a game for a team – that’s the belief now. Everyone wants to be the man for their team. We didn’t score big hundreds but 4-5 guys kept contributing. We’re in a really good space as a team.”He called Harmer’s influence crucial: “Simon has the experience of playing here in 2015; he complements Keshav so well. A bit more guile, a bit more flight. It’s hard to take the ball out of their hands. Simon has been the man for us in this series.”India’s defeat capped a worrying trend of five losses in the last seven home Tests. After a three-day relegation in Kolkata, the hosts were once again outclassed on a pitch that offered much more help to South Africa’s spinners.Earlier in the match, Senuran Muthusamy’s maiden Test century (109) and Jansen’s all-round brilliance – 93 with the bat and 6/48 in the first innings – put South Africa in a dominant position from which they never relinquished their grip.
