Chennai, Jan 7:  India's Test off spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is hoping the ongoing second Test between South Africa and England gets a "grandstand finish" after being in the balance at lunch on the fifth day at Newlands in Cape Town.

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"South Africa are 4 down now, however I think and hope this test gets to a grand stand finish," Ashwin said in a tweet.

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Set a target of 468, South Africa were 170/4 at lunch on Day 5, still 268 runs behind and realistically looking to salvage a draw.

Opener Pieter Malan, who got a hundred on Test debut, continued his good work with the bat as he went into the break on 83 from 273 balls.

The Proteas lost skipper Faf du Plessis (19) and Rassie van der Dussen was around to give Malan company on 1.

The hosts began their fightback at the overnight score of 126 for 2. Nightwatchman Keshav Maharaj (2) was removed early by James Anderson, trapped in front.

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Earlier, England had scored 269 in the first innings with South Africa managing 223 in reply as Anderson snared five wickets, his 28th five wicket haul.

England piled on the runs as they declared on 391/8 in their second essay to set South Africa an improbable target.
 

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Saurabh Sharma
Saurabh Sharma is the Editorial Head of Cricketnmore Hindi and a passionate cricket journalist with over 14 years of experience in sports media. He began his journalism career with Navbharat Times, part of the Times of India Group, before moving to television media with Sadhna News. In 2014, he joined Cricketnmore and currently serves as the editor of the platform.
Known for his deep understanding of cricket statistics and unique storytelling approach, Saurabh specializes in cricket news, match analysis, records, and feature stories. Along with editorial responsibilities, he also works as a show producer for popular cricket video series such as Cricket Tales, Cricket Flashback, and Cricket Trivia. Read More
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