Australia closed the second day on 330-4 against South Africa in the third and deciding Test at YesPlay Newlands in Cape Town on Wednesday, with half-centuries from Matt Renshaw, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis and Alex Carey pushing the visitors into control.
Holding a lead of just one and still six wickets in hand, Australia will look to build further pressure on day three. Carey (51*) remains at the crease alongside Inglis, who finished the day unbeaten on 85.
Marco Jansen strikes before tea
The Australian batters dominated an absorbing second day. Marco Jansen (14-4-37-2) gave the hosts their best spell of the day, removing Renshaw (74) and Green (65) with a fiery burst of 2-3 in five overs.
Australia were 185-4 at that stage. Carey and Inglis then came together shortly before tea and added 145 unbeaten runs, leaving the Proteas needing something special to avoid conceding a significant first-innings advantage.
Proteas bowling coach Piet Botha admitted his attack had struggled to apply enough pressure. “The bowling was six out of 10, no lateral movement so it was always going to be about effort and I can’t fault the effort, it was there the whole day,” he said. “We just didn’t create enough pressure through maidens and good lengths.”
Renshaw credited the batters’ discipline. “It was just sticking to our processes. We knew they would come hard at us but it was just about building partnerships,” said the opener at the close of play.
Australia’s opening stand and the Proteas’ reply
Australia began the day after dismissing South Africa for 329 shortly before the close on day one. Renshaw and Travis Head (41) added 58 for the first wicket.
Simon Harmer (27-4-84-2) then struck in his first over, claiming the wickets of Head and Marnus Labuschagne (0). That was the only success the home side enjoyed before lunch, with the visitors going to the interval on 90-2.
After lunch, Renshaw and Green continued to add runs, putting on 126 from 191 deliveries before Jansen was brought back into the attack.
Renshaw explained the partnership’s dynamic. “I get along with Cam really well off the field and that helps. It was obviously different stages, I was in for about an hour and a half before Cam came in so I was at a different mindset and tempo, he was fresh and buzzing around so it was about me being the calmer head out there.”
The two wickets before tea gave the hosts a glimmer of hope, but Inglis and Carey batted superbly to neutralise the Proteas attack. Botha joked about the conditions. “We got blown away when the clouds came over yesterday and I was hoping for some clouds today.”
The unbeaten stand of 145 from 232 deliveries leaves Temba Bavuma facing a difficult task. His side had rebounded well in the series with an innings victory in Gqeberha, but they now face the prospect of conceding the series in Cape Town.
Renshaw was full of praise for Inglis. “He has a lot of different options, he can hit down the ground, over mid-wicket, he’s a good player of spin so he doesn’t give them anywhere really to bowl.”
Kagiso Rabada (18-1-81-0) started brightly with the new ball and, despite a failed lbw review, had little else to show for his efforts. Botha revealed that Rabada had left the field with stomach cramps. “Well he’s got some stomach cramps, so he came off the field and I am not sure whether it is related to last week,” he said.
Proteas batters lay foundations, then collapse
Pat Cummins surprisingly asked South Africa to bat first after winning the toss on Tuesday. The decision initially looked poor for Australia, as Aiden Markram (78) and Marques Ackerman (95) enjoyed the sunny conditions, adding 140 without loss in the morning session.
Botha reflected on the missed opportunity. “We spoke about it, we felt we could have capitalised on the opening stand but there were a couple of shots that we shouldn’t have played and we should’ve got more runs the way the wicket played today.”
Australia fought back after lunch, claiming four wickets and restricting the hosts to just 81 runs. The breakthrough came through spin, as Nathan Lyon (23-1-71-2) had Ackerman stumped just five runs short of a maiden Test century. The 158-run opening stand was a new South African record at Newlands against Australia.
Markram followed soon after. He had been dropped on 39 by Head off the bowling of Mitchell Starc (16.3-2-72-6) shortly before lunch, but he attempted to pull Josh Hazlewood (15-3-59-1) and skied the ball to Starc in the long-on region.
Bavuma lasted just three balls, bowled by Lyon. Cooper Connolly (9-0-41-1) then accounted for Matthew Breetzke (2), trapping him in front with his left-arm spin.
Ryan Rickelton (42) and David Bedingham (50) took the hosts to tea on 221 for four.
Starc spearheads evening collapse
The evening session belonged to Australia, and Starc in particular. Shortly after the tea break, he dismissed Bedingham, who was caught by Hazlewood at fine leg, before Wiaan Mulder edged behind to Carey for two.
Rickelton and Jansen (52) briefly halted the slide with a 95-run stand for the seventh wicket. The new ball, however, caused chaos.
Starc, bowling with excellent left-arm pace, claimed four wickets in the space of six deliveries to end the innings shortly before the close. Rickelton was trapped plumb in front, and two balls later Jansen was bowled. In the next over, Starc clean bowled Gerald Coetzee (0) with his first delivery, then trapped Kagiso Rabada (0) lbw with the third ball of the over.
Squads
South Africa: Aiden Markram, Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Temba Bavuma (capt), Matthew Breetzke, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Simon Harmer, Gerald Coetzee, Kagiso Rabada.
Australia: Travis Head, Matthew Renshaw, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey (wk), Cooper Connolly, Pat Cummins (capt), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.