Virender Sehwag was the first wicket to go, though not before he had smacked two sixes in the opening over. His early onslaught ended when he was trapped lbw by Ntini for 17.
Former captain Rahul Dravid and Wasim Jaffer batted cautiously before both fell in the space of six runs, the former the first to go when he was surprised by a Morkel short ball that he could only fend to AB de Villiers in the slips.
The same fielder was also involved two overs later when all-rounder Jacques Kallis found the edge of Jaffer's bat.
A 55-run stand for the fourth wicket briefly halted South Africa's momentum and took India past their first innings total of 76, their second lowest ever on home soil.
However, a lazy prod outside his off stump ended VVS Laxman fluent innings of 35 and provided Morkel with his second wicket of the day.
Sourav Ganguly stood on the burning deck nearly four hours for a fine 87. Ganguly added 110 with Mahendra Singh Dhoni.But once Dale Steyn, wicketless until then, returned to tempt him into a drive from round the wicket, the match was only ever going to have one outcome. Ganguly stood his ground, and replays suggested the noise that alerted Tony Hill might have been bat striking ground, but the South Africans were convinced that there had been a big deflection. Dhoni reached his half-century from 122 balls soon after, but with Smith calling on his big guns, the resistance was swiftly ended. It was Makhaya Ntini who saw off Dhoni, pitching one perfectly in the off-stump corridor to induce the expansive drive. Smith made no mistake at slip. Paul Harris claimed his first wicket of the match, bowling Anil Kumble with a delivery that went straight between the India skipper's bat and pad.
Sreesanth slogged two fours and a six to briefly give the home fans something to cheer about until he was the last man to fall, leaving Irfan Pathan stranded on 43 not out.
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