Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/Melbourne: South Africa suffered a “hammering” at the hands of rampant top-ranked Australia on Thursday, losing the second Test by 182 runs and thus the series.
The defeat concluded the visitors’ disastrous first two Test matches after they were routed by six wickets in the first match at Brisbane inside two days. A potential face-saving third match was still to be played in Sydney.
“Right now, it’s not simple. It was a little bit of a beating, “Dean Elgar, the Proteas’ captain, said.
Australia dominates South Africa
In response to South Africa’s first innings score of 189, Australia declared on Wednesday at 575-8, supported by man-of-the-match Warner’s 200 and a valiant 85 from Steve Smith in the sweltering heat. Australia then completely dominated with the ball.
After Elgar went for a duck, South Africa resumed day four on a score of 15-1 before play was halted by rain early on Wednesday.
However, they were eventually defeated for 204 after three wickets fell at the Melbourne Cricket Ground before lunch and the remaining eight during the second session. Temba Bavuma led the way with 65 points, and Nathan Lyon finished with 3-58 in a severely injured attack.
“The victory ranks right there. Over the years, we’ve faced South Africa in a number of exciting games. It’s really adorable and worthy of praise, “said Pat Cummins, an Australian captain.
“I thought Warner and Smith’s bravery while batting in the heat was admirable. Putting their injuries behind them, Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green also showed up.” As a result, South Africa will travel to Sydney for the final Test next week with little to play for other than pride and the possibility of making changes to a batting lineup that has largely struggled.
“We must reflect deeply before moving forward once more. There are a few but not many positive results from this test,” said Elgar. South Africa is a proud cricketing nation, and 2-1 sounds much better than 3-0, he continued. “There’s a lot to play for (in Sydney),” he said.
With Green and Starc already ruled out due to finger injuries, Australia will have a new-look team as they race against time to prepare for a major series in India in February. After recovering from a side strain, Josh Hazlewood is expected to play again for Starc, and Green’s replacement is still to be chosen.
Bruised finger
Despite the hosts’ attack being depleted and Green, who took 5-27 in their first innings, being unable to bowl due to a fractured finger, wickets still fell.
Due to Australia’s elite pace attack, Theunis de Bruyn (28), Sarel Erwee (21), and Khaya Zondo (one) all left before lunch. Then, any hope they had for the second session was dashed by Nathan Lyon’s spin and two careless runouts.
Starc was also dealing with a bloody and bruised finger, but he continued to play despite the discomfort, and his rapid play created a lot of issues. As his confidence increased, Erwee, who had resumed on seven, hit a fantastic drive for four off of him, but Starc quickly got back at him by trapping him lbw with a cracking yorker.
De Bruyn started out on six and eventually reached a total of 28, but he soon after followed his teammate back to the pavilion. This time, Scott Boland caused trouble by luring an edge that the dependable Smith grabbed in the slips for his 150th catch. On the all-time list, Rahul Dravid of India is first with 210, placing him in 14th place.
Bavuma illogically attempted a single from Cummins, and Khaya Zondo was easily run out by a Travis Head underarm throw as South Africa was under pressure and needed to dig in. They were at a 65-4 disadvantage before Bavuma and Kyle Verreynne buckled down. But shortly after lunch, Boland struck once more, lbw-ing Verreynne, one of their series’ best batsmen, for 33.
Prior to another disastrous runout involving Bavuma, Lyon’s spinner removed Marco Jansen. Keshav Maharaj was also removed after a confusing mix-up, and Starc delivered a direct blow. Smith’s rare wicket and more shoddy Lyon dismissals put an end to the game.
