Stats - Shardul Thakur scripts history with best Test haul by an Indian against South Africa

7 for 61 Shardul Thakur's bowling figures in Johannesburg, the best for India in Test cricket against South Africa. R Ashwin's 7 for 66 in Nagpur in 2015 were the previous best bowling figures for India against South Africa.

3 Thakur's bowling figures are the third-best in Test matches between India and South Africa. Lance Klusener bagged eight wickets in 1996 at the Eden Gardens, while Dale Steyn had 7 for 51 in Nagpur in 2010.

1 Number of visiting pacers in South Africa with better figures than Thakur in the last 100 years. Andy Caddick had 7 for 46 in Durban in 1999, while Matthew Hoggard also had figures of 7 for 61 in Johannesburg in 2005. Thakur also has the joint-second best figures by a visiting bowler in South Africa since their readmission.

17.5 Overs bowled by Thakur for his seven-wicket haul, the second-fewest by an Indian pacer in a Test innings. Irfan Pathan bowled just 15.2 overs for his seven wickets against Zimbabwe in 2005. Only six of the previous 46 seven-plus wicket hauls for India came at a quicker rate than Thakur.

3 Instances of Indian pacers returning better bowling figures in away Tests than Thakur's 7 for 61. Kapil Dev took eight wickets each in an innings in Lahore, 1983 and Adelaide, 1985 while Irfan Pathan took 7 for 59 against Zimbabwe in 2005 in Harare. Thakur's bowling figures are overall the sixth-best in away Tests for India and also the second-best for an Indian pacer in any Test innings since 2000, behind Pathan's effort against Zimbabwe in 2005.

7 Number of pacers before Thakur to bag a seven-wicket haul while coming in as the second change or later. The last of the previous seven such pace bowlers was Neil Wagner against West Indies at the Basin Reserve in 2017. No Indian pace bowler before Thakur had more than five wickets in a Test innings while coming in as second change or later.