Kolkata, more specifically Eden Gardens, have taken Harbhajan Singh to heart in the manner they did Mohammad Azharuddin earlier and Gundappa Vishwanath and BS Chandrasekhar before that. Dwelling on India's innings win against South Africa, Suresh Menon in Dreamcricket.com explains how crowd support is important in taking a bowler or batsman that extra yard.

Why does the Board insist on thrusting Test cricket down the throats of centres which would rather have one-day or Twenty20 matches? Test matches have been played on 20 grounds in India, so obviously a certain amount of give-and-take is necessary. The Board could lay down guidelines: poor crowds and you lose your status as a Test venue. This will help the spectators too since there might be an effort to bring down the often exorbitant price of tickets to pack in the crowds.

In most other sports, jersey numbers are useful for identifying players, but Herschelle Gibbs sporting '09' and Mark Boucher '9' on their backs, has GS Vivek in the Indian Express intrigued.

Since 2005, the South African opener has changed his jersey number every 12 months in sync with the year. For example he sported 05 in 2005, 06 in 2006, 07 in 2007, 08 in 2008 and 09 in 2009. The fact that he prefixed his numbers with ‘0’ was also because it clashed with those of other team mates, like Boucher now.

The Eden Gardens thriller reaffirms Pradeep Magazine's faith in India's experienced cricketers. Writing in Hindustan Times, he is of the opinion that, though a lot is expected from the young guns, when the chips are down it is the senior pros who put their hands up.

Much as we flaunt the "young India" as a tagline for our rise to the top, it is the old brigade which is keeping us alive and kicking. Be it Sehwag's brutal brilliance or Sachin Tendulkar's hunger and passion, which should put even a debutant to shame, this is a victory for "Old India" with VVS Laxman proving further that old is still gold. And despite the raw, exuberant energy which Harbhajan displays after ensnaring his victim, I am sure he won't take umbrage at being called belonging to the "old" rather than "new".

India may have retained their No. 1 ranking with the innings win at Eden Gardens but Stuart Hess believes there's a hollowness in the aftermath. He questions that while the Indians may have gone potty over their top status, are they entitled to being named the best side in the world?He presents his argument in iol.co.za.

On the other hand, South Africa have completed a thrilling pair of Tests in India without answering the questions Cricket South Africa was so concerned about when it decided to intervene by pushing former coach Mickey Arthur aside. Ken Borland offers his review in the Mail & Guardian Online.

Van Zyl made a name for himself as a highly successful coach with the Diamond Eagles, where he successfully melded a man-management style with threats of "koppe stamp" type sessions if he felt there was any slackness creeping in. He is also very thorough in his preparation and communication. It is an approach that could well work a treat with the current national team given that, like the Springboks, they are strongly player-driven.

Delightfully irreverent, bracingly honest, unexpectedly funny, Paul Harris seems incapable of the boring sound-byte that’s the staple of most cricketers. S Ram Mahesh finds out more in Sportstar.

Tell him it’s strange that he loves being in the spotlight for an unglamorous part, and he says, just a touch tartly, “I suppose I’m a bit eccentric.” Ah, finally evidence of a chip on the shoulder. “Not at all,” he says. “Maybe it’s a strategic chip on the shoulder. How’s that huh? Maybe it’s a strategy. Maybe a quarter piece of wood in the shoulder, but it’s more a strategy.

Jacques Kallis' future will be decided by his body, but for the moment he's in one piece and enjoying his cricket as much as ever. Writing for the Hindustan Times he also believed Harbhajan Singh made the right decision to sit out of the first two ODIs due to his sister's wedding.

In a syndicated column in the same newspaper, Sunil Gavaskar believes that India's win at the Eden Gardens showed that they do not need a turning pitch to win Tests. Also, the phobia about hard, bouncy pitches should be done away with forever now.

In his last 10 Test innings, JP Duminy has managed seven single-figure scores. His disappointing campaign in India prompts Tim Ellis in Cricket365.com to bring out a list of batsmen on the decline.

	Another classic Test at one of the great theatres of the game © AFP

An Eden Gardens thriller is the latest in a series of epic Tests that has had everyone enthralled – except for the administrators, writes Dileep Premachandran on his Guardian blog.

Gripping matches like this deserve the biggest stage and the unbelievable atmosphere at what is Indian cricket's theatre of dreams shamed the board officials who hadn't scheduled a Test here since December 2007 for a host of petty reasons. No one quibbles with one-day cricket and T20 being played in every corner of this antique land, but if Test cricket is to remain in rude health, Eden Gardens and Chepauk must get at least one Test a year. Playing in front of empty stands at Mohali and Nagpur merely mocks a great tradition. As a friend wrote to me: "Can you imagine England picking Grace Road above Lord's, or the Aussies Hobart over the MCG/SCG?"

In the Wisden Cricketer, editor John Stern is left wanting more after that Kolkata classic.

A two-Test series is neither here nor there. This rubber is just warming up but now it’s over. India and South Africa were playing for the Jaypee Infratech Trophy - you what? No they weren’t. They were playing for the glory. Was Harbhajan thinking Jaypee Infratech when he did his Cristiano Ronaldo bit on the boundary? It was all about the glory. More than that. There was the status of No.1 side in the world.

If Virender Sehwag's allround dominance at Eden Gardens was reminiscent of Wayne Rooney, then Sachin Tendulkar's restrained brilliance had shades of Paul Scholes, so thinks Sumit Mukherjee, who likens the Indian pair's effort to the Manchester United duo, in the Times of India.

It was almost as if India were playing with a single striker like Manchester United do so often with Wayne Rooney these days. Sehwag, like Rooney, was having a blast when in walked Tendulkar to a standing ovation from the crowd. The Master Blaster quickly assessed the situation and his partner’s mood and slipped into a role that made Paul Scholes a legend at Old Trafford.

It is difficult to say whether Tendulkar, a self-confessed Manchester United fan, was inspired by Scholes’ exploits, but his craftsmanship en route to his 47th Test hundred bore an uncanny resemblance to the United talisman’s style of play. It was a wonderful exhibition of controlled aggression with a sublime touch.

In his tour diary for Supercricket, Ken Borland admires two of the most dedicated fans of the Indian team - Sudhir Chaudhary and Dharamveer. Both are considered lucky omens by the Indians and that inspires Borland to achieve something similar with his own team, like when he shadow-practiced with Alviro Petersen's bat before the Kolkata Test.

Of course I would have died of embarrasment if I had actually jinxed someone who I am delighted has finally made his test debut. And, surely, becoming just the third player to score a hundred for South Africa on debut means he was actually helped by my intervention? I believe lucky omen status is only fair. Although, for the life of me, I can't imagine what I did wrong during tea time on Sunday ...

	Sachin Tendulkar has neither lost his mental powers nor the fierce will to succeed © AFP

Sachin Tendulkar's hundred - his 46th overall - in the second innings of the Nagpur Test, says Pradeep Magazine in the Hindustan Times, could have been remembered as one of his most meaningful knocks ever but this would also hurt him the most.

Consider the backdrop to his second innings arrival at the crease. He had looked in good nick in the first innings, till Steyn foxed him with a disguised outswinger, lulling him into repeating a drive, which Tendulkar had played successfully in the previous over. The consequences this time around were fatal for the batsman.

What was Tendulkar's response in the second innings? He just refused to take the bait and cut out the drive completely from his shot selection. He had done a similar thing in the 2004 Sydney Test, refusing to play one of his most productive strokes, which on that tour had led to his demise a few times. The amazing part is that despite imposing this severe restriction on himself, which curtailed his run-making ability, he went on to score a double hundred then.

Forget the past and the statistics. India needs VVS Laxman at No.3 because he's currently the best man in a crisis. Essentially, he is a batsman of adversity. Whatever be its shape or place or canvas: Australia anywhere or Pakistan in a foggy, muggy, moth-covered evening in Lahore, writes Sharda Ugra in India Today.

Laxman is one of those cricketers who always seems above the averages, beyond the numbers. He’s a stylist in strife: like one of those Impressionists who stuck their heads out of a train in a monstrous storm to check out the view while painting with one hand.

Indian captain M.S. Dhoni hadn’t an explanation for the absence of reverse swing. Perhaps there’s something in the fact that South Africa managed to reap its benefits only after the ball was changed. Whatever the case, India’s fast-bowlers will need to find a way of harnessing reverse swing in Kolkata; the inclusion of Sreesanth seems a step in that direction, writes S Ram Mahesh in the Hindu.

The biggest bowling disappointment, however, was Harbhajan. Simply put, it was an unacceptable performance from a spinner who is pursuing greatness. He allowed himself to be persuaded too easily into bowling a leg-stump line. He created problems when bowling with greater over-spin, but surprisingly didn’t do more of it. Nor did he try and get the batsman to drive against the turn often enough. Where Harris bowled 19 maiden overs, Harbhajan managed just one, indicative of the measure of comfort Kallis, Amla, and later A.B. de Villiers played him with.

No international body ever indulges in amateurish approach when it comes to players’ fitness, but Indian cricket adopts different parameters for the selection of senior players. This is one big reason for India losing at Nagpur by an innings, says Makarand Waingankar, also in the Hindu.

In his column in the Hindustan Times Mickey Arthur salutes the South African team for toppling India in Nagpur, praising Dale Steyn in particular - "Steyn led the South African attack as well as any number one rank bowler has ever done in the history of Test cricket." He also says the home side's middle-order "looked like the India of old — easily bullied and intimidated by the quick men." Another aspect that he criticises is the toothlessness of the Indian bowling, with Harbhajan Singh bearing the brunt.

Harbhajan, who has in my opinion be below his best for several years now, must be questioning his future. His bowling lacked the zip and sting that was so characteristic in the early years of his career. He must be honest with himself and the management and selectors must be honest too. There is no place for sentiment in Test cricket — reputation and history should count for very little when selecting your best XI.

India choosing four pace bowlers instead of beefing up the batting was always going to hand the initiative to South Africa, writes Dileep Premachandran in the Guardian.

This debacle was waiting to happen, though, from the moment the selectors chose a squad that defied belief. Rahul Dravid was already out, and VVS Laxman extremely doubtful, but instead of beefing up the batting, they selected four pace bowlers when there was no way more than two were going to play. As the doubts over Laxman grew, Rohit Sharma, whose mediocre domestic season hardly warranted the status of first reserve, was added to the squad. On the morning of the game, he injured himself, handing a Test debut to Bengal's Wriddhiman Saha, picked for his "pure" wicketkeeping skills. Saha shouldered arms to Steyn in the first innings, before ending his Darren Pattinson experience with a doughty 36.