Bengaluru, Nov. 9 -- Under the fading Bengaluru sun, with tension thick enough to cut through, Connor Esterhuizen stood tall - calm, daring, and utterly destructive - as South Africa A pulled off a heist for the ages, chasing 417 to beat India A by five wickets in the second unofficial Test at the Centre of Excellence Ground 1 here today.
This was no ordinary chase. This was grit meeting belief. When Temba Bavuma and Marques Ackerman departed in quick succession, the motley fans sensed the familiar Indian crescendo - Mohammed Siraj steaming in, Kuldeep Yadav hunting for drift, and the scoreboard tilting toward the hosts.
But in walked Esterhuizen, a young man unburdened by reputation, with the swagger of someone who had nothing to lose an...