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Australia [351 & 227] defeat South Africa [162 & 298] by 118 runs in first Test

Great ball by Starc. Nothing the batsman could have done about it.
 
Australia are being absolutely ruthless

easy series win for them
 
Junaids said:
Oh look, it’s reversing after 27 overs!

I remember being at Wellington two years ago on a strip where after Day 1 the par score was 500, and then Mitch Marsh started to reverse the ball around corners!

Australia are very skilled at getting reverse swing even when the outfield is smooth and grassy.
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And when the ball starts to reverse, Starc is the most dangerous bowler in international cricket at the moment

The angle he created during bowling makes it more tough to play
 
shah_1 said:
Australia are being absolutely ruthless

easy series win for them
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Let's say Aus win 4-0 does it change the rankings?



They are surely playing as the best or 2nd best side in the world.
 
Syed1 said:
Let's say Aus win 4-0 does it change the rankings?



They are surely playing as the best or 2nd best side in the world.
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Yes, Aus will jump to rank 2, but still some gap compared to India. Mainly due to poor performance in Asia cost them lots of points. I guess losing to SL 0-3 and 1-1 against BD was too costly.
 
ABD should score a big hundred here if SA are to level the scores with Aussies.

QDK was badly out of form and not much batting to come after this pair.
 
I see massive disinterest by the SA side and am wondering if our local cricket experts will now opine that South Africa are now preparing for the Sri Lanka tour in August?

This Australia series is really only a warm-up for the main event: the series against Sri Lanka which starts in just over four months.

:smith
 
This partnership has to double the score for SAF before 6th wicket to have a chance here - don't see them chasing 170+ on Day 5 wicket against Lyon & Strac.
 
AB is playing an absolute blinder

Test cricket - what a game!
 
Cryin Out Loud said:
I see massive disinterest by the SA side and am wondering if our local cricket experts will now opine that South Africa are now preparing for the Sri Lanka tour in August?

This Australia series is really only a warm-up for the main event: the series against Sri Lanka which starts in just over four months.

:smith
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Some of you are way too insecure and it's way too easy to get under your skin
 
You really have to watch AB to realise how ridiculously good he is. Stats will never do justice to what such players - AB, Stokes, VK, Gilly - bring to the team. The aura is everything. Genius. Wrong to think Amla was better than him in tests, AB is a beast in every format. No match between the two. Not in 2012, 2014 or now.
 
Ab Fan said:
What a delight to watch AB and Qdk together.
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Just came to say this

Two players i could just sit and watch all day. Fluent,masterful and unconventional

Quinny looks far more composed than anything he did in his last series
 
Junaids said:
Mickey Arthur must be rubbing his hands in anticipation of Pakistan’s tour in December.

South Africa has again breached the quota by picking seven white players when the maximum quota across the year is five.

No wonder Morkel is about to quit and De Villiers and Steyn are thought to be about to follow.

South Africa will probably need to field 7 non-whites per Test against Pakistan to meet the government-imposed annual quota. Which means that Elgar, Markram, De Kock and FAF will be the only four whites that the selectors will be able to select against Pakistan. And they will have to keep picking what’s left of Amla.
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Fielding 7 non-white players is easier with ABD and Morkel leaving. If Steyn stays, then that would pose a serious problem. If he ends up fit for the last two AUS Tests, I think he'll break the record and leave. No mid 30s bowler of his generation needs to waste months touring, preparing for and playing against weak Asian Test teams.

If Amla stays, the current side won't look horrifically different. Ngidi for Morkel, [woeful] Bavuma for AB, and a batter or AR to replace De Bruyn [seems white]. Who do you think will replace him? And if Amla walks as well? Are there any [even white] suitable replacements?
 
What a shame for de kock and for S.A.

Looked like to be bringing some control back and all of a sudden throws it away
 
Poor from de Kock.. He was looking as good as ever. Think this is the repeat of SA first test vs Aus 2014 where again AB was lone warrior against peak MJ.
 
If Steyn will be available for selection for the 3rd Test, how is he going to fit into team? They need a proper specialist batsman instead of De Bruyn, so he can't slot in for him with Philander at 7.

QDK, like Amla, just threw it away again. SA can't expect Elgar to score all their runs, or Markam and Faf to be that prolific against this attack.

200 behind, and while Philander, and Rabada are capable lower order batsmen, they're not Cummins or Starc.

The fastmen haven't gotten a helpful pitch yet, and SA's batting already looks poor.
 
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SA have regressed badly it seems. Amla is apparantly on decline and the other two reliable players are Du Plesis and AB. Rest are mediocre. Bowling is decent but not as good as it used to be.
 
Junaids said:
Mickey Arthur must be rubbing his hands in anticipation of Pakistan’s tour in December.

South Africa has again breached the quota by picking seven white players when the maximum quota across the year is five.

No wonder Morkel is about to quit and De Villiers and Steyn are thought to be about to follow.

South Africa will probably need to field 7 non-whites per Test against Pakistan to meet the government-imposed annual quota. Which means that Elgar, Markram, De Kock and FAF will be the only four whites that the selectors will be able to select against Pakistan. And they will have to keep picking what’s left of Amla.
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Looks like your famed theory of resting/faking injury for preparing for AUS tour is not bearing much fruit till now :ashwin
 
Haze and starc from both ends now and ball reversing pretty well

Some serious batting will only going to save SA in last hour of play
 
IndianFan2018 said:
Looks like your famed theory of resting/faking injury for preparing for AUS tour is not bearing much fruit till now :ashwin
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Yeah and when you look back at that SA v IND series you know understand it was SA who was poor and not that India had improved :yk
 
SA will lose this series. It is a great time for an Asian team to tour SA.

India missed a huge chance thanks to some out of the mind selection and team tactics.
 
Lefthanded said:
If Steyn will be available for selection for the 3rd Test, how is he going to fit into team? They need a proper specialist batsman instead of De Bruyn, so he can't slot in for him with Philander at 7.

QDK, like Amla, just threw it away again. SA can't expect Elgar to score all their runs, or Markam and Faf to be that prolific against this attack.

200 behind, and while Philander, and Rabada are capable lower order batsmen, they're not Cummins or Starc.

The fastmen haven't gotten a helpful pitch yet, and SA's batting already looks poor.
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Many PPers were rating this mediocre SA test team as deserving No. 1 team :facepalm:

Amla better retire soon with decent average :bhajji
 
de Villiers should stop giving singles now. Starc, Cummins and Hazle will know tail too easily otherwise.
 
Maharaj gone too. No batsman willing to fight apart from ABDV. India's 2-1 loss (almost win) isn't looking that good anymore.
 
Since 8th wicket is down AB too will be gone soon trying to attack more

What a pity, deserves a hundred for all the tough work he had done so far
 
Wonder what will happen once Amla, ABDV, Morkel, Steyn, Faf retire which is sooner rather than later. Minnow transition days await SA.
 
Damn, Starc getting some monster reverse swing along with Hazlewood.
 
South Africa should prepare flat pitches and try to draw the remaining 3 matches...lol...their batting looks horrible
 
5er for Starc, one of the best reverse swing spells I have seen. ABDV stranded on 71.
 
Great spell by Starc

That's why he's the best in the world for me as far as pure pace bowling is concerned
 
Should the tail be shielded?

Yes.

At least for 7-8 overs.

Absolute ridiculous to see ABDV not shielding tail, when Aus. bowlers are breathing fire.

Another argument is that all players should face the equal chin music so that's how they learn.

Well, I don't see any problem if top order set batsman shield the tail especially if situation in the game is demanding it.

What do you guys think?

Batsman should take as much as strike as possible especially for first 7-8 overs? Or Give bowlers full exposure from get go?
 
SA did Aus a big favor by dishing out this slow pitch. Aus bowlers are used to getting bucket loads of wickets on similar pitches back home.

If SA are to win a Test match, they better roll out a green track and hope that Philander bowls a 7/50 kind of spell.

SA batting was suspectful considering how they batted against India. Against India, these kind of surfaces could work as India does not have the pace attack that could exploit and reverse like Starc does. But against Aus these kind of surfaces will not work.
 
They were way behind the game at that point
 
Slog said:
They were way behind the game at that point
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As you probably noticed, Tail nowadays can put on 50 odd partnerships here and there, that's all you need sometimes to change the course of the game. Especially if you are ABDV, you can turn the match on your own.
 
Syed1 said:
Let's say Aus win 4-0 does it change the rankings?

They are surely playing as the best or 2nd best side in the world.
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If they win 4-0 they only get to 111 points to India's 121 points.

India is so far ahead at the moment, Australia would have to win something like 10-0 to catch up.
 
I remember some SA commentator talking at the end of India series saying that it will be a great battle of pacemen between SA and AUS and he proudly said #PackYourHelmets
The only people wearing helmets are Wicketkeeper and forward shortleg when Nathan Lyon is bowling :))
 
We all have wish lists in any match we're invested in, involving preferred players and team succeeding.

Here's mine:

#1: SA wins or draws series.
#2: ABD wins a match off his bat and/or helps win/draw other matches.
#4: Rabada 10-fer.
#5: Amla turns back the clock with a serene hundred in a tough situation.
#6: QDK does a Gilchrist Perth style hundred, preferably after the top order has contributed. Singles out Starc for special treatment. Or less unrealistically, he makes a couple of good scores.
#7: Morne Morkel 5-fer.
#8: Steyn overtakes Pollock with the last ball of the match, Murali-style, reminding SA that their best years couldn't have happened without him.

At the moment, this Test is more or less beyond rescue and this wish list looks like it'll have more than a few unfulfilled.

More modestly, I'd take a drawn series with stunners ABD, QDK and Morkel.
 
troodon said:
I remember some SA commentator talking at the end of India series saying that it will be a great battle of pacemen between SA and AUS and he proudly said #PackYourHelmets
The only people wearing helmets are Wicketkeeper and forward shortleg when Nathan Lyon is bowling :))
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Yea SA annoying cheerleader Mike Haysman was the one shouting more :ashwin
 
South Africa's batting looks very vulnerable these days. They lack the grit and resilience they once had with the likes of Smith, Kirsten, Kallis etc.

They are beatable but we need to get our batting in order before this winter.
 
AUSTRALIA took a firm grip on the first Sunfoil Test match at Sahara Stadium Kingsmead on Friday as the Standard Bank Proteas struggled first to avoid the follow on target and then get anywhere close to the visitors’ first innings total on the second day.

AB de Villiers stood man alone as none of the other specialist batsmen stayed long enough to share a substantial partnership with him.

The major damage was done first by the spin of Nathan Lyon and then by the ability of Mitchell Starc to reverse swing the old ball effectively.

De Villiers was denied the opportunity to score his 6th century against Australia when he ran out of partners (71 off 127 balls, 11 fours) as the Proteas were bowled out for 162 in only 51.4 overs. It left the Proteas with a massive first innings deficit of 189 with Australia to start their second innings at the start of the third day’s play tomorrow morning.

Aiden Markram’s 32 was the second-best batting contribution for the Proteas.

Starc finished off the innings abruptly with figures of 5/34 in only 10.4 overs while Lyon picked up 3/50.

Starc has had a good all-round match to date as his eighth wicket partnership of 49 with Mitchell Marsh was a key contribution as well.

With Marsh falling just four runs short of his third Test match century (96 off 173 balls, 13 fours and a six) Australia were able to post exactly 100 runs for their last three partnerships and that made an enormous difference to the total that the Proteas had to face. A total of 351 was probably a little bit better than par, bearing in mind the abrasive nature of the pitch and the spin that has been available throughout.

Keshav Maharaj claimed his fourth five-wicket haul (5/123 in 33.4 overs) and it came as no surprise that Steve Smith introduced Lyon into the Australian attack as early as the start of the eighth over. He achieved immediate success, getting rid of Dean Elgar and Hashim Amla in the space of his first five deliveries and the Proteas never really recovered.

The Sunfoil Education Trust (SET) has so far benefited to the tune of R132 000 from the first two days’ play. This is a result of the number of boundaries and sixes hit as well as wickets taken by the two teams.
 
Actually AB didnt really got enough chance to shield tail. They got hardly any score.

Maharaj 0
Rabada 0
Morkel 0

This is what Starc does. In contrast, Indian bowling although they did well, still leaked some runs through Philander and Rabada and couldn't really turn the series.
 
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Is playing in South Africa harming South African cricket? :13:
 
Syed1 said:
But still lost 2-1 :shh :shh
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Why are you always focused on loses of India, why don't you appreciate a team's good performances even though it's India? I am an Indian but I always appreciate Pak's good performances, for an example they played extremely good and convincingly won in CT final. No shame in accepting and appraising of a team's good performances.
 
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Ok, I can assume everyone who told me I was wrong in day 1 for pointing that although the pitch was slow, it would still move and actually gave GOOD bowlers a chance to take wickets have all shut up now? Good!

I remember people saying the runs were easy and the only way a batsman could get out was if they made a mistake 😂😂😂
 
Ab Fan said:
Actually AB didnt really got enough chance to shield tail. They got hardly any score.

Maharaj 0
Rabada 0
Morkel 0

This is what Starc does. In contrast, Indian bowling although they did well, still leaked some runs through Philander and Rabada and couldn't really turn the series.
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Yup . This is where they missed the trick of not having Umesh Yadav.
 
IndianFan2018 said:
Many PPers were rating this mediocre SA test team as deserving No. 1 team :facepalm:

Amla better retire soon with decent average :bhajji
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Unfortunately, as many know, there is no clear #1 team. And as you likely know, SA couldn't beat England at home or away, AUS/Eng now fail in each other's backyards and in Asia. India could've won the series, but hubris of Kohli and his maalshi coach cost them that. As of now, India can't pretend they are the best team outside rankings.

India needs to win or draw in Eng/Aus this year, and I really hope that happens.
 
Lefthanded said:
Unfortunately, as many know, there is no clear #1 team. And as you likely know, SA couldn't beat England at home or away, AUS/Eng now fail in each other's backyards and in Asia. India could've won the series, but hubris of Kohli and his maalshi coach cost them that. As of now, India can't pretend they are the best team outside rankings.

India needs to win or draw in Eng/Aus this year, and I really hope that happens.
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Only official measure for test supermacy is ICC Test Rankings and Mace (which Ind clearly owns) :aag

No matter if any Tom , Dick and Harry agrees or not Ind is No. 1 test team :shh

Let SA or AUS rightfully earn the throne by winning consistently and adding ranking points #GameOfThrones
 
Australia got a flying start. They will most likely score 300 and declare and then SA will be all out under 200.

Just the repetition of 2014 test series between the two.
 
Ab Fan said:
Australia got a flying start. They will most likely score 300 and declare and then SA will be all out under 200.

Just the repetition of 2014 test series between the two.
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That’s not what I’d do.

South Africa picked an extra batsman instead of a fourth quick. And there are only three days between the Durban and Port Elizabeth Tests.

Australia should seek to bat for a very, very long time - preferably until the middle of Day 4.

That would be a 130 over innings, and would require Morkel, Philander and Rabada to bowl 30 overs each in hot, humid conditions.

Which would make the Second Test a nightmare for South Africa, with an exhausted pace attack, each of whom has just bowled 55 to 60 overs in four days.

I don’t think South Africa has a batting line-up that can consistently reach 300.

As an aside, the success of Mitch Starc yesterday tells me that when Pakistan tours in eight months they require four quicks, of whom one should be Shaheen Shah Afridi.

A pace attack of:

M Abbas
M Amir
H Ali
SS Afridi

........would do well in South Africa.

But that leaves too long a tail to pick Yasir Shah too, so I’d pick Shadab Khan to bat at 7, with Sarfraz at 6.
 
One sided test match :( Bradman will score a 100 and give the Saffers 400+ to chase in fourth innings.
 
Khawaja and Paine are rubbish, replace them with better players and Australia will smash everyone outside Asia
 
I'll be watching a procession tomorrow, if I'm lucky.

SA don't want learn, we've lost numerous times to Australia at home. Not a single series has been an innings shootout. We have nothing to lose really.
 
Australia are totally dominating this now. Starc has been brilliant so far.

I've been looking forward to this series for ages and not disappointed.

Hopefully South Africa can put up a fight in their 2nd innings.
 
Australia can declare now and win it by 150 runs. This fragile batting line up cannot handle this against slow track specialists Aussie bowlers.
 
wrongun said:
Ok, I can assume everyone who told me I was wrong in day 1 for pointing that although the pitch was slow, it would still move and actually gave GOOD bowlers a chance to take wickets have all shut up now? Good!

I remember people saying the runs were easy and the only way a batsman could get out was if they made a mistake ������
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It is a painfully slow track. Rightnow SA is mentally so shot that they may even struggle against Zimbabwe. Infact they only made 396 against them.Now their confidence is even more dented after India tour after first two tests.
 
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