Australia put South Africa on back foot

December 1, 2012
aus_s


Australia dismissed South Africa for 225 despite another dogged rearguard action from Faf du Plessis before moving shakily to 33-2 at the close of play on a thrilling first day of the third Test at the WACA on Friday.

The overhauled Australian pace bowling unit had reduced the tourists to 6-75 with five quick wickets around the lunch break but du Plessis once again proved unmovable until he ran out of tailend partners when unbeaten on 78.

Dale Steyn gave the tourists a quick boost in the late afternoon light when he had opener Ed Cowan caught for a golden duck with his third ball before Vernon Philander removed Shane Watson lbw for 10 after an appeal to the TV umpire.

Opener David Warner, who was unbeaten on 12, and nightwatchman Nathan Lyon, who had made seven, will resume on day two of a Test which will decide which of the countries will be number one in the Test rankings.

Australia's selectors had earlier been vindicated in their decision to rest Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle after the pacemen had run themselves into the ground in Adelaide in the wake of a series-ending injury to James Pattinson.

Recalled seamers Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Johnson and debutant John Hastings all got among the wickets to leave South Africa perhaps ruing the decision to bat first on a bouncy WACA track.

All-rounder Watson, who missed the two drawn Tests in Brisbane and Adelaide with a calf injury, made the first breakthrough with 38 runs on the board when he had Graeme Smith caught in the slips by Michael Clarke for 16.

The South Africans were looking like they might just survive until lunch, albeit with a modest total, before the intervention of left-arm quick Starc.

Two full, late-swinging deliveries in six balls fooled first opener Alviro Petersen (30) and then all-rounder Jacques Kallis (2) and ripped through the gate to make a mess of the stumps.

There was to be no respite after lunch and Hashim Amla had already been dropped by Cowan when he was run out by Warner's direct hit without adding to his tally of 11.

Cowan's spill deprived Hastings of his first Test wicket but the bowler did not have to wait long to claim it as he found some late movement to have AB de Villiers caught in the slips for four.

South Africa were now well and truly on the rack and it got worse when Johnson finally got some reward for some fine swing bowling with the first of his two wickets.

The sometimes erratic 2009 ICC World Player of Year has struggled with form and fitness in the year since his last Test but he proved once again he is a fearsome prospect at the WACA.

Dean Elgar's first Test innings lasted just 18 minutes and 12 balls before he caught a top edge with an attempted pull and Matthew Wade took the catch behind the stumps to hand the debutant a duck.

India collapsed from a similar position here last year and Warner had scored a 69-ball century by the end of the first day's play with Australia winning inside three days.

South Africa are made of sterner stuff, however, and du Plessis anchored a stand of 57 with Robin Peterson, 64 with Vernon Philander and 19 with Morne Morkel to triple his country's tally for the last four wickets.

Coming after the 78 and unbeaten 110 he scored to save a draw on his Test debut in Adelaide, the 28-year-old now boasts a Test batting average of 266. Lyon broke up all three of du Plessis's big partnerships to finish with figures of 3-41, ending South Africa's innings when he had Morkel caught by Hastings.

Lyon faced the South Africans again with bat in hand sooner than he would have liked to protect the wicket of Ricky Ponting, who is playing his 168th and final Test in Perth.



Score board

SOUTH?AFRICA?(I Innings):
Smith c Clarke b Watson 16
Petersen b Starc 30
Amla (run out) 11
Kallis b Starc 2
De Villers c Clarke b Hastings 4
Elgar c Wade b Johnson 0
Du Plessis (not out) 78
Peterson c Wade b Lyon 31
Philander c Hussey b Lyon 30
Steyn b Johnson 2
Morkel c Hastings b Lyon 17
Extras (LB-2, W-2) 4
Total (all out, 74 overs) 225
Fall of wickets: 1-38, 2-61, 3-63, 4-67, 5-67, 6-75, 7-132, 8-196, 9-206.
Bowling: Starc 16-3-55-2, Hastings 20-2-51-1, Watson 9-2-22-1, Johnson 17-3-54-2, Lyon 12-1-41-3.

AUSTRALIA (I Innings):
Warner (batting) 12
Cowan c Kallis b Steyn ....0
Watson lbw Philander 10
Lyon (batting) 7
Extras (LB-4) 4
Total (for 2 wkts, 11 overs) 33
Fall of wickets: 1-3, 2-18.
Bowling: Steyn 6-2-21-1, Vernon Philander 4-0-8-1, Morne Morkel 1-1-0-0.




Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
June 17,2020

New Delhi, Jun 17: Indian skipper Virat Kohli on Wednesday paid tributes to Indian Army soldiers, who were killed during the face-off with the Chinese troops in Ladakh's Galwan Valley.

Extending condolences to the kin of bravehearts, Kohli said, "No one is more selfless and brave than a soldier."

"Salute and deepest respect to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect our country in the Galwan Valley. NO one is more selfless and brave than a soldier. Sincere condolences to the families. I hope they find peace through our prayers at this difficult time," he tweeted.

The violent face-off happened on late evening and night of June 15 in Ladakh's Galwan Valley as a result of an attempt by the Chinese troops to "unilaterally change" the status quo during de-escalation in Eastern Ladakh and the situation could have been avoided if the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed by the Chinese side, India said on Tuesday.

The Army confirmed that 20 soldiers were killed in the face-off, including 17 who were critically injured at the stand-off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain.

Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged at the Galwan area in Ladakh where they had earlier clashed on the night of June 15 and 16, Indian Army said.

Former cricketer Irfan Pathan tweeted, "We will always be indebted to our jawans of #IndianArmy who lost their lives in #GalwanValley #JaiHind."

Expressing similar sentiments, Indian batsman Shikhar Dhawan wrote, "A sacrifice that will never be forgotten by the nation. Heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of the Indian Army officer and the two soldiers. Saluting your bravery, Jai Hind! #GalwanValley."

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
June 10,2020

Kingston, Jun 10: "Enough is enough", said West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo as he opened up on the raging issue of racism and called for "respect and equality" for black people, who have faced discrimination for years.

Bravo joined the likes of his former captain Darren Sammy and Chris Gayle in denouncing racism in the wake of African-American George Floyd's killing at the hands of a white police officer in the USA.

"It's sad to see what's going on around the world. As a black man, we know the history of what black people have been through. We never ask for revenge, we ask for equality and respect. That's it," Bravo told former Zimbabwe cricketer Pommie Mbangwa in an Instagram live chat on Tuesday.

"We give respect to others. Why is it that we are facing this over and over? Now enough is enough. We just want equality. We don't want revenge, war.

"We just want respect. We share love and appreciate people for who they are. That's what is most important."

The 36-year-old, who has played 40 Tests, 164 ODIs and 71 T20Is for West Indies, said he wants the world to know that they are powerful and beautiful people and gave the example of greats such as Nelson Mandela, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan.

"I just want our brothers and sisters to know that we are powerful and beautiful. And at the end of the day, you look at some of the greats of the world, whether it is Nelson Mandela, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan we have had leaders who paved the way for us," he said.

Two-time T20 World Cup-winning captain Sammy had earlier alleged that a racist nickname was used to address him during his IPL stint with Sunrisers Hyderabad and demanded an apology.

Sammy said he was called 'Kalu' while he was in India. 'Kalu' is a derogatory word to describe black people.

Gayle, who too plays in the IPL, took to Twitter to back Sammy, saying that racism does exist in cricket.

"It's never too late to fight for the right cause or what you've experienced over the years! So much more to your story, @darensammy88. Like I said, it's in the game!!," Gayle tweeted.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
Agencies
February 4,2020

Potchefstroom, Feb 4: Yashasvi Jaiswal and Divyaansh Saxena guided India to a comfortable ten wickets win over Pakistan in the ICC U19 World Cup semifinal at Senwes Park on Tuesday and progressed to the final of the tournament.

Chasing 173, Indian openers Jaiswal and Saxena played cautiously and stitched an unbeaten partnership of 176 runs.

The duo built the highest opening partnership of the tournament's history. Jaiswal, the left-handed batsman, scored his maiden century of the tournament as he amassed unbeaten 105 runs studded with eight fours and four sixes.

Saxena scored 59* off 99 balls including six fours. India chased down the total in 35.2 overs. This is the first time in the history of the U19 World Cup that a team won a knockout match by ten wickets.

Earlier, Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat.

Opener Haider Ali and skipper Rohail Nazir's half-centuries guided the side to a respectable total of 172. Ali played a knock of 56 runs while Nazir accumulated 62 runs including six boundaries.

Pakistan did not have a good start as they lost Mohammad Hurair (4) in the second over. Fahad Munir, came to bat at number three, failed to score a single run and was departed by Ravi Bishnoi on a duck in ninth over.

Apart from Ali and Nazir, Mohammad Haris was the only batsman to score runs in double digits. He played an innings of 21 runs off 15 balls. Indian bowlers showed a spirited performance as they bowled out arch-rival in 43.1 overs.

Pacers Karthik Tyagi and Sushant Mishra bagged two and three wickets respectively. Spinner Ravi Bishnoi clinched two scalps and conceded 46 runs in his ten overs.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.