Johannesburg, Jan 4 (IANS): Pacer Shardul Thakur registered best bowling figures in an innings by an Indian in Tests against South Africa with a seven-wicket haul on Day 2 of the second Test match at The Wanderers Stadium, here on Tuesday.

The spectacular bowling figures of 7/61 by Shardul are now the best by an Indian bowler against South Africa in cricket's longest format. He broke Ravichandran Ashwin's record of 7/66, which the off-spinner had claimed in Nagpur in 2015.

Another spinner Harbhajan Singh, who recently retired from all forms of cricket, held the record for the best figures by an Indian in South Africa when he took 7/120 in Cape Town in 2011.

The 30-year-old Thakur also became the first Indian pacer to pick seven wickets in an innings in South Africa. Javagal Srinath held the record for the best figures by an Indian fast bowler in South Africa when he took six wickets for 76 runs in Port Elizabeth in November 2001.

The pacer dismissed Dean Elgar, Keegan Petersen, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, and Temba Bavuma, Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi, respectively, on his way to registering the best figures by an Indian bowler against South Africa.

The 7/61 of Shardul is also the joint second-best figures by any visiting pace bowler in South Africa in the last 100 years.

Only England's Andrew Caddick, who took 7/46 at Durban in December 1999, has better figures. Thakur is tied with Matthew Hoggard, who took seven wickets for 61 runs in 2005.