South Africa Crush India by 408 Runs in Guwahati, Seal Historic 2-0 Clean Sweep After 25 Years

The mammoth victory margin is now India’s heaviest defeat in Test history, surpassing the 342-run loss against Australia in Nagpur 2004. With this result, India have slumped to fifth place in the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 standings while South Africa have soared to the top.

Resuming Day 5 at 55/4, chasing an improbable 522, India were bundled out for only 113 in 54.2 overs. Off-spinner Simon Harmer finished with sensational figures of 6-38 – his second five-wicket haul of the series – and was rightly named Player of the Series. Marco Jansen, who ripped through India’s top order in the first innings with awkward bounce, was adjudged Player of the Match.

Captain Temba Bavuma, still unbeaten in nine Tests as leader, became only the second South African skipper after Cronje to win a Test series in India. “Not every day you come to India and walk away with a 2-0 win. We had dark days as a group, but the boys stood up brilliantly, an elated Bavuma said after the match.

Key Moments that defined the Guwahati Test

- Senuran Muthusamy (lower-order resistance) and Marco Jansen’s 140+ run partnership lifted South Africa from 247/6 to a commanding 489 in the first innings.

- Jansen and Kagiso Rabada exploited a rare grassy Indian pitch to bowl India out cheaply, giving the Proteas a 263-run lead.

- Instead of enforcing the follow-on, Bavuma chose to bat again and set a 522-run target, a decision that drew mild criticism but ultimately buried India under scoreboard pressure.

- Aiden Markram took a world-record equalling 8 catches in the match (joint-most by a fielder in Tests) while Harmer and Keshav Maharaj ran riot on a turning Day 5 track.

Post-match reactions

Marco Jansen (Player of the Match): “Winning in India is special. We stuck to our plans and the results followed.

Simon Harmer (Player of the Series): “Ten years ago I left India with tough memories. Today I leave with a five-for and a series win against a very good Indian team – it feels surreal.

Rishabh Pant (India captain): “Disappointing, but credit to South Africa – they dominated from Day 1. We weren’t clinical enough and it cost us the series. We’ll learn and come back stronger.

India’s darkest home summer in decades

- First home whitewash since New Zealand’s 3-0 drubbing in 2024

- Only the third instance of India losing a home Test series 0-2

- Biggest ever Test defeat on home soil

South Africa’s resurgence in Asian conditions continues – they now have won their last three away Test series in Asia (2-0 vs Bangladesh 2024, 2-0 vs India 2025) after drawing 1-1 in Pakistan earlier this year.

For Indian cricket, alarm bells are ringing louder than ever. Questions over team selection, pitch preparation philosophy, and technique against quality spin and bounce on Indian tracks will dominate discussions ahead of the upcoming tour of Australia.

But today belongs entirely to Temba Bavuma’s fearless Proteas – the first South African team in a quarter-century to conquer fortress India with a clean sweep.