Boland's four-for leaves South Africa 97/5 as rain bites again in Gqeberha
Rain once again dictated terms at St George's Park, but when play was finally possible, Australia's seamers — led by Scott Boland — pressed home their advantage to leave South Africa 97 for 5 at the close of a heavily curtailed second day of the second Test in Gqeberha.
After just 12.2 overs were possible on the opening day, the second morning began on a similarly damp note. Only after a sustained period of brightness and multiple pitch inspections did play get underway at 3.45pm local time — six hours after the scheduled start.
Boland picks up where he left off
Australia were without Josh Hazlewood, who did not take the field due to illness, but Boland — who had taken two wickets in two balls on the opening day — was at his accurate best from the outset. Pat Cummins, operating from the other end, kept Temba Bavuma and Marques Ackerman tied up.
Debutant Ackerman, 30, became Boland's third victim when a loose push found the outside edge. Boland then continued his wobble-seam brilliance, getting one to nip back into Bavuma, who was on 18 at the time, striking him on the front pad — but the South African captain survived.
Matthew Breetzke, batting at five for the first time in his short career, was patiently leaving deliveries until Mitchell Starc's third delivery of the morning. Chasing a ball angled away, he too fell in single digits.
Bavuma stands firm
In contrast to his teammates, Bavuma looked assured with his footwork, confidently presenting his defence and leaving deliveries outside his range without apparent trouble. Between his vigil, he kept finding the odd boundary, using the pace to punch them both on the front and back foot. In a rare stroke of aggression, a Cummins bumper directed at his head was hooked for six — the ball having to be fetched by a steward from the adjacent road.
On occasion, Bavuma also kept pushing his partners for quick singles and doubles to cut extended periods of silence. He finished the day unbeaten on 41 from 108 deliveries.
Rickelton's resistance ends in late drama
With no Hazlewood available, Beau Webster assumed the duties of the fourth seamer. Ryan Rickelton, who got off the mark straightaway, played the ideal partner to Bavuma — leaving deliveries well but refusing to fall into a rut, punching two fours in one Cummins over.
As the shadows lengthened, the wicketkeeper stood up to the stumps for Webster. With a leg-slip in place, Cummins looked to strangle the left-hander on the leg-side. The move almost worked when Rickelton glanced one to Marnus Labuschagne at that position, but the fielder lost sight of the ball, copping a hit on the chest. Three balls later, a backfoot punch from Rickelton brought up the fifty of the partnership.
Even towards the end of the day, Australia's seamers kept probing outside the off-stump, and the pressure finally told. In a rare, late lapse with just two overs left, Rickelton edged behind — but keeper Alex Carey surprisingly did not go for the catch, which was instead turned into a blinder by Matt Renshaw at first slip, plucked late with one hand. Rickelton hung his head back in disappointment as he walked back, another South Africa batter sucked into a false stroke by Australia's naggingly tight channels.
Background: Boland's blitz on a washed-out opening day
The pattern of Australian dominance had been set on a rain-ruined opening day, when Boland ripped out Aiden Markram and David Bedingham in the same over to leave the hosts 20 for 2, with only 12.2 overs bowled before drizzle gave way to heavier rain. Both sides had opted for extra pace for the fixture, with Nathan Lyon and Keshav Maharaj stood down and Simon Harmer the only specialist spinner in the match.
Brief scores: South Africa 97/5 (Temba Bavuma 41*, Ryan Rickelton 31; Scott Boland 4-31, Mitchell Starc 1-27) vs Australia.