Key events
Day two report
Stumps: South Africa 27-1 (trail Australia by 363)
James Wallace
That is indeed stumps for the day. South Africa have it all to do at 27-1 and trailing Australia by 363 runs heading into day three. They’ll welcome the early finish as it looked like they had some weary bodies in the field towards the end of their fielding stint and the ball was nibbling about under lights courtesy of Starc and Hazlewood when they came out with the bat. Losing only Ryan Rickelton in that mini session was actually a decent bit of damage limitation from the home side. They can come back refreshed tomorrow and set about Australia’s first innings total with renewed purpose.
The same goes for me. Thanks for your company today, Rob Smyth and I will be back tomorrow to bring you the action from day three in Durban. Goodbye!
Bad light stops play at 4.26pm local time – South Africa 27-1
Gah, that might be it for the day you know. The umpires decide the light is too bad to continue and I can’t see that it is going to get any better. Nice scenes as the players head from the field and to a man shake Matt Renshaw’s hand, the day most definitely belongs to him.
8th over: South Africa 25-1 (Markram 15, Bedingham 10) Floodlights beaming through the late afternoon gloom, Durban suddenly doing its best to resemble a Brontë landscape in January. In wuthers Hazlewood, Markram glides past point to pick a couple off the over. Captain Pat is coming on for a burst.
7th over: South Africa 23-1 (Markram 13, Bedingham 10) Markram loves playing against Australia in Test cricket. He has three tons and an average in the mid sixties against them. His knock in the WTC final at Lord’s last year was one for the ages.
He’s at the non striker’s end as Starc works over Bedingham for five balls but the batter is up to the task and then some, the sixth ball is pinged through midwicket like a skimmed pebble for four.
6th over: South Africa 19-1 (Markram 13, Bedingham 6) Aidan Markram plays a quite beautiful cover drive off Hazlewood. Poetry in motion made all the better by the fact it is getting very gloomy in Durban now, optimum conditions for the Aussie pace attack.
5th over: South Africa 15-1 (Markram 9, Bedingham 6) It’s all happening. Bedingham edges Starc just short of third slip but shrugs it off to drive down the ground for four next ball. Starc then hits back with the next ball by ripping one past the outside edge. I make that 2-1 to the bowler but Bedingham is still there and battling.
4th over: South Africa 11-1 (Markram 9, Bedingham 2) Hazlewood is bang on the money under darkening Durban clouds. Just a single to Bedingham off an inside edge.
3rd over: South Africa 10-1 (Markram 9, Bedingham 1) A huge appeal as Starc thinks he has pinned Markram in front but a meaty inside edge saves the batter. Australia didn’t spot the tickle but Umpire Gaffaney did, the Aussies burn a review sending it upstairs. Shot! Markram gets on the front foot and drives Starc for a pristine cover drive for four. Starc stays full and Markram punches down the ground for four more. Enthralling Test cricket.
2nd over: South Africa 2-1 (Markram 1, Bedingham 1) It was a scrambled brain shot from Rickelton and South Africa are on the ropes early, those punishing overs in the field may well show their full toll in this passage of play. David Bedingham is the new man, he’s off the mark with a clip to leg and Markram does the same to get himself going too. Eeesht! Bedingham is beaten by the final ball of the over. Do not adjust your set.
WICKET! Ryan Rickelton c Webster b Hazlewood 0 (South Africa 0-1)
Rickelton drives out in front without due care and attention and he pays the price! The edge flies to Webster at third slip and Australia have the early strike!
1st over: South Africa 0-0 (Markram 0, Rickelton 0) Starc starts with a probing maiden, full and some shape away. There are three slips and a gully waiting for the edge.
Here comes Mitchell Starc to Aiden Markram. Buckle up kids.
Australia will be dead chuffed/stoked to have made 390 after being 124-6. They will now unleash the dogs of war – namely Starc, Hazlewood and Cummins with cloud cover building over Kingsmead. Gulp.
WICKET! Matt Renshaw c Markram b Harmer 190 (Australia 390 all out)
Take a bow Matt Renshaw. No double century this time but what a knock it has been from him, he rescued his side and has now put them in command. He edges Harmer to Markram at slip off the second ball of the session and walks off, saluting each corner of the ground with his bat as he goes.
The players head out to the field after the tea break. The sun is just about burning through the cloud so we should get a decent amount of play. Simon Harmer is going to start to Matt Renshaw…
Tea time reading:
That’s Tea. Matt Renshaw heads to the sheds for the tea interval unbeaten on 190 in Durban. It’s been a punishing extended session for South Africa, Australia have added 113 runs for just the loss of Nathan Lyon. When he finally went thanks to a stone dead lbw courtesy of Jansen the visitors score was 364-9. Josh Hazlewood has since joined Renshaw and looked completely untroubled. You wonder what the toll will be on the Proteas batting line up when they eventually get their turn.
137th over: Australia 390-9 (Renshaw 190, Hazlewood 5)
136th over: Australia 389-9 (Renshaw 189, Hazlewood 5) The light is fading a little in Durban as the afternoon cloud begins to roll in, hopefully we aren’t curtailed as early as yesterday. Renshaw collects a single off Harmer, one more over before tea.
135th over: Australia 388-9 (Renshaw 188, Hazlewood 5) Renshaw is closing in on a Test double ton, a flick to leg for a single takes him to twelve away. Hazlewood is looking more than able to hang around, the final partnership is already at 24 runs. South Africa looking very weary now.
134th over: Australia 387-9 (Renshaw 187, Hazlewood 5) Harmer replaces Nortje and is driven for four by Renshaw, that takes him to 186 and his highest Test score. The tv camera zooms in on some people having a mid afternoon doze in the crowd. Not me, now way. I’ve just had my fourth coffee of the day, am going to hit peak caffeine buzz… during the tea interval. Oh.
133rd over: Australia 382-9 (Renshaw 182, Hazlewood 5) Jansen is pulled away into the deep three times by Renshaw but the batter opts not to take a single off any of them. He does off the fourth ball to leave Hazlewood needing to survive two balls…he does more than survive! The big fella moves to leg and gives himself room to bunt through the off side for four. The final ball is blocked into the off side too. What were you worried about?
132nd over: Australia 377-9 (Renshaw 181, Hazlewood 1) Shot! Renshaw hits Nortje flat and hard on the pull for four! He was on that like the proverbial pigeon on a potato based snack. An outside edge then flies wide of the second slip to let Renshaw take the single he needs off the final ball to keep strike.
131st over: Australia 372-9 (Renshaw 176, Hazlewood 1) Hazlewood gets off the mark with a poke to backward point. Renshaw then leaves the number 11 two balls from Jansen to negotiate. A bouncer is ducked and a yorker dug out. On we go.
130th over: Australia 370-9 (Renshaw 175, Hazlewood 0) Renshaw negotiates five brutish Nortje balls and then uppercuts the final delivery of the over for SIX. Nailed the stroke but it does mean Hazlewood is on strike to Jansen at the start of the next.
129th over: Australia 364-9 (Renshaw 169, Hazlewood 0) Jansen clips Hazlewood’s lid with a short one and there’s a brief delay for a concussion test but he’s all good to continue. Renshaw will be on strike to Nortje.
WICKET! Nathan Lyon lbw b Jansen 27 (South Africa 364-9)
Jansen gets the breakthrough! A full yorker smashes into Lyon’s shin bang in front of all three. Lyon reviews as he walks off and barely gives the screen a second glance. The partnership has changed the match and tilted the Test in Australia’s favour – 134 off 286 balls. Renshaw might give it some now with Josh Hazlewood coming to the crease.
128th over: Australia 362-8 (Renshaw 168, Lyon 26) Nortje is blunted by Renshaw who unfurls an over of textbook back foot defence. He ain’t giving this away easily (he was born in Yorkshire, has anyone mentioned that?) A maiden.
127th over: Australia 362-8 (Renshaw 168, Lyon 26) Lyon rocks back and swivels a pull for four off Jansen. Yeh, the pitch is flat.
126th over: Australia 358-8 (Renshaw 168, Lyon 22) Nortje pushes the speed needle to 90mph but it is gun barrel straight. Lyon collects a single with a clip off the hip to fine leg. Marco Jansen is coming on from the other end, I don’t want to labour the point… but South Africa could really do with breaking this partnership.
125th over: Australia 357-8 (Renshaw 168, Lyon 21) Renshaw drives Maharaj for four, over pitched and languidly pushed down the ground. Now then, Nortje is being thrown the ball for the next over with a breakthrough more than desperately needed.
124th over: Australia 353-8 (Renshaw 164, Lyon 21) Another over, another Resnhaw single. C’mon South Africa, someone needs to do sammink!
123rd over: Australia 352-8 (Renshaw 163, Lyon 21) Another single to Renshaw, the Aussies happy to tick along and put more miles and more thoughts into weary legs and minds.
122nd over: Australia 351-8 (Renshaw 162, Lyon 21) Renshaw collects a single off Markram, it’s all too easy out there for the Aussies. I know he hasn’t played a Test for three years but I’d be whispering some insults in Anrich Nortje’s lugholes and getting him riled up in an attempt to break this partnership and polish off this Aussie batting effort.
121st over: Australia 350-8 (Renshaw 161, Lyon 21) Maharaj is rasped to the cover boundary by Renshaw but then responds with an absolute peach that pitches and turns past the outside edge. Nathan Lyon plays and misses but he’ll have noted where that one pitched.
120th over: Australia 345-8 (Renshaw 156, Lyon 21) Aidan Markram into the attack, the crowd think he has the breakthrough but Renshaw’s drive to Bavuma at cover was drilled into the turf first. Mark Nicholas arrives for his latest commentary stint, his honey-soaked vowels never fail to take this Englishman back to the halcyon days of cricket on Ch4. Listen closely and you can almost hear that wobble board at the start of Mambo No.5.
119th over: Australia 344-8 (Renshaw 155, Lyon 21) Maharaj replaces Harmer and his first delivery is reverse-swept by Renshaw fine for four, that takes him to 150! He removes his helmet and soaks up the adulation from the Aussies in the crowd and from Lyon in the middle. This knock is taking on more significance with each over. Another reverse, another four. South Africa are hurting and Matt Renshaw is the man inflicting the pain.
118th over: Australia 335-8 (Renshaw 146, Lyon 21) Bavuma hauls in a sweetly timed flick off the pads by Renshaw and saves a couple of runs, in fact it is a reaaaally long single. Lyon then plays a doozy of an on drive down the ground for four. That was on the up too. Hold the pose Garry!
117th over: Australia 330-8 (Renshaw 145, Lyon 17) Renshaw punches Harmer to long on to bring up the 100 partnership from 218 balls. For the ninth wicket. Ouch.
116th over: Australia 329-8 (Renshaw 144, Lyon 17) Kagiso Rabada is shown smiling in the South Africa dugout, the indications are that he’ll be back for the second Test. The camera pans from him to a slightly forlorn looking Anrich Nortje on the boundary edge, he definitely thought he’d be in an ice bath by now.
Close! Lyon gloves Mulder down the leg side but it flies just past the keeper and away for four more. Damaging, damaging, lemon damaging.
To add insult to injury, the PA in the stadium gives a burst of the Backstreet Boys – Tell me why!!
115th over: Australia 324-8 (Renshaw 143, Lyon 13) Harmer is pinged through cover by Renshaw, weary stuff from South Africa now under the beating Durban sun.
