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.
Agencies
June 23,2020

Islamabad, Jun 23: Seven more Pakistan cricketers, including Muhammad Hafeez and Wahab Riaz, selected for the tour of England have tested positive for COVID-19, taking the total to 10, the PCB revealed on Tuesday.

The seven who tested positive on Tuesday are Kashif Bhatti, Muhammad Hasnain, Fakhar Zaman, Muhammad Rizwan, Imran Khan, Hafeez and Riaz. Shadab Khan, Haider Ali and Haris Rauf had returned positive tests on Monday.

“It is not a great situation to be in and what it shows is these are 10 fit and young athletes...if it can happen to players it can happen to anyone,” Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) CEO, Wasim Khan told a media conference.

He said a support staff member, masseur Malang Ali, had also tested positive for COVID-19.

Khan said that the players and officials would now assemble in Lahore and another round of tests would be carried out on June 25 and a revised squad would be announced the next day.

The squad has to leave on June 28 for the series scheduled to be held next month, he said.

“It is a matter of concern but we shouldn’t panic at this time as we have time on our hands,” Khan said.

He said the players and officials would be retested on reaching England.

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
March 3,2020

Mumbai, Mar 3: India on Tuesday retained their number one spot and captain Virat Kohli remained static at second in the ICC rankings despite a dismal Test series against New Zealand.

India have 116 rating points, six more than New Zealand with third-placed Australia accumulating 108 points. The 0-2 result against New Zealand was India's first series loss in the World Test Championship.

Kohli remains in second position in the batting rankings despite a forgettable Test series in which he made 38 runs in four innings, the ICC said in a statement.

New Zealand opener Tom Blundell and his Indian counterpart Prithvi Shaw and debutant paceman Kyle Jamieson were among the biggest movers in the rankings, released on Tuesday.

Blundell had a successful series against India, scoring 117 runs in four innings, with one half-century, which put him among the top two run-scorers in the series.

The performance meant he was rewarded with a jump of 27 places to No. 46. Shaw, who returned for his first series since his Test debut against West Indies in 2018, and made a punchy 54 in the first innings of the Christchurch Test, rose 17 places to No.76.

Australia's Steve Smith retained his top spot, holding a 25-point advantage over Kohli. Smith's apprentice Marnus Labuschagne jumped one spot to round off the top three, taking the place of New Zealand captain Kane Williamson.

England all-rounder Ben Stokes and India opener Mayank Agarwal moved a spot each and swapped places to break into and fall out of the top 10 respectively.

Among bowlers, Tim Southee's Player of the Series winning performance against India took him into the top five, with a jump of two places to No.4, while Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult returned to the top 10, gaining four places each to occupy the seventh and ninth positions respectively.

But the biggest gainer was Jamieson, who rose from No. 80 to 43.

There was only one change in the top ten among all-rounders, with Southee dropping a spot to No.10 and team-mate Neil Wagner falling out of the top 10 with a drop of four spots.

As with the bowling rankings, Jamieson, who frustrated India with handy lower order runs, gained big on the all-rounders' table, rising 26 places to No. 22.

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
March 27,2020

New Delhi, Mar 27: Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar on Friday donated Rs 50 lakh to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which has so far claimed 17 Indian lives and wreaked havoc globally.

Tendulkar's donation is so far the biggest contribution among India's leading sportspersons, some of whom have pledged their salaries while a few others have donated medical equipment to fight the dreaded outbreak, which has caused more than 24,000 deaths globally.

"Sachin Tendulkar decided to contribute Rs 25 lakh each to Prime Minister's Relief Fund and Chief Minister's Relief Fund in his bid to join the fight against COVID-19. It was his decision that he wanted to contribute to both funds," a source privy to the development, told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

Tendulkar has been associated with a lot of charity work and there has been umpteen times, he has taken up social causes, helped people, which has never been brought to public notice.

Among other prominent cricketers, the Pathan brothers -- Irfan and Yusuf -- donated 4000 face masks to Baroda police and health department while Mahendra Singh Dhoni, through a Pune based NGO, made a contribution of Rs 1 lakh.

Among athletes from other disciplines, wrestler Bajrang Punia and sprinter Hima Das are some of the prominent names to have donated their salaries in the battle against the dreaded virus which has led to a 21-day national lockdown.

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.