The second Test between South Africa and Australia at St George’s Park began under heavy weather constraints, with persistent rain limiting play to just 12.2 overs on the opening day. While the local Eastern Cape region welcomed the much-needed rainfall due to ongoing drought conditions dating back to 2015, the weather ensured a frustrating start for cricket fans. Unless you’re an Eastern Caper unsure of where your next litre of water might come from, but there was no happy ending. Some more convincingly than others, and was discovering how difficult Test cricket is, he had faced 12 balls.
Team selections for both sides reflected the conditions, as Australia and South Africa each opted to bench their frontline spinners in favor of additional pace. Became a tale of two batters, then a tale about a cult fast bowler, it started as a tale of two spurned spinners.
Nathan Lyon, who has played in almost every red-ball Test for 13 years barring injury, was omitted in a decision echoing Australia’s 2013 Ashes adjustments. When Australia went all pace, it happened to Lyon in the first two matches of the 2013 Ashes – when Ashton Agar was preferred – and in their last two-day night Tests. Except when he has been injured, has Lyon been left-out of a red-ball Test, but not for 13 years.
Meanwhile, South Africa replaced Keshav Maharaj with an extra seamer, marking a rare departure from the norm, despite Simon Harmer remaining in the squad. Like Lyon, Maharaj has been stood down to accommodate an extra quick; against Pakistan in Centurion in December 2024. Even so, until the toss on Sunday it was taken as read that Maharaj was South Africa’s first-choice spinner. But Harmer is the only specialist slow poisoner playing in this match.
Play was delayed by two hours as rain fell before the toss. Once proceedings finally commenced, Aiden Markram showed composure against Mitchell Starc, finding the boundary twice before the weather forced another interruption. Debutant Marques Ackerman struggled to find his rhythm, facing 12 balls and narrowly avoiding becoming the 395th player to register a duck on Test debut. All of 394 men have been dismissed for a duck on debut. On debut, handled Josh Hazlewood the same way, marques Ackerman. Who drove surely and crisply and sent the ball scything through the wet covers for four, starc resumed to Markram. Three deliveries later Ackerman squirted Hazlewood through the cordon for a single. His run had barely been inked into the scorebook when the rain returned and play was interrupted again. Which proved unlucky for Markram – it zagged towards him, took the inside edge and rattled the stumps deathly, he also sent down the 13th. Whatever must Ackerman have been thinking at the non-striker’s end.
When play resumed after a 43-minute break, Scott Boland took control for Australia. When it resumed 43 minutes later, Australia limited the damage from the first dozen deliveries to two singles. The rest were sniping thunderbolts from the whipping arm of Scott Boland.
He struck in his first over, flattening Markram’s middle stump with a delivery that nipped back sharply. Boland quickly claimed his second wicket when David Bedingham edged an away-swinger to wicketkeeper Alex Carey. The bowler nearly secured a hat-trick, but South African captain Temba Bavuma managed to deflect a dangerous inswinger at the last moment. And South Africa were inserted, temba Bavuma and Pat Cummins tossed on schedule. Another inswinger was on its way to trapping South Africa’s captain bang in front when he managed to lay a sliver of bat on the damned thing.
By the time rain forced the players off the field for the final time, South Africa stood at 20/2. Boland finished the shortened day with impressive figures of 2-5 from his three overs. With an 80% chance of rain forecasted for Monday morning, further delays remain likely, though skies are predicted to clear by Tuesday, leaving both teams to wonder if they can force a result in a match effectively reduced to three days. Does anyone remember how to win a three-day game. Boland, the frightener-in-chief, had figures of 3-2-5-2.
