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

Nice drive from Marsh. A much improved player. He has worked really hard to improve his batting.
 
Usual bad light overacting starts. Coincidentally when Rabada comes to bowl.
 
These type of benign pitches kills whatever life test cricket has left. Attritional cricket at its boring best.
 
KESHAV MAHARAJ celebrated his home ground Test match debut with the key wickets of Steve Smith and Shaun Marsh on the opening day of the Sunfoil Test Series between the Standard Bank Proteas and Australia at Sahara Stadium Kingsmead on Thursday.

When bad light brought an early close with Australia on 225/5 after 76 overs after the visitors had won the toss on a good, although slow, batting surface, the match was evenly poised.

There could have been little doubt that the Proteas would have preferred to get a full day in fading light as they were only four overs away from the second new ball and only one wicket away from breaking through into the Australia lower-order.

Maharaj was key to the Proteas strategy after the Proteas decided to strengthen their batting with the inclusion of Theunis de Bruyn and field only four specialist bowlers. The strategy was sound as the surface was one that allowed Faf du Plessis to employ him early in the day and he sent down the most overs of any of the Proteas attack (2/69 in 24 overs).

His role and that of Vernon Philander, a typically economical and penetrative 2/36 in 17 overs, meant that the Australians were never able to get away to the free-scoring start they normally wish to employ.

There were two 56-run partnerships – the third wicket between David Warner (51 off 79 balls, 6 fours) and Smith (56 off 114 balls, 11 fours) and the fourth wicket between Smith and Shaun Marsh (40 off 96 balls, 6 fours).

For the rest the Proteas kept chipping away at regular intervals until Mitchell Marsh and Tim Paine added an unbroken 48 for the sixth wicket, leading to the close.
 
Did SA get scared of Aus pace attack and prepared a flat slow surface?

I hope the surfaces are green with lots of bounce and seam movement like the one India got in 1st and 3rd Tests.
 
troodon said:
Did SA get scared of Aus pace attack and prepared a flat slow surface?

I hope the surfaces are green with lots of bounce and seam movement like the one India got in 1st and 3rd Tests.
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Ironically, India whose weakness was supposed to be pace bowling, did better in the 1st and 3rd Tests than they did in the 2nd Test which allegedly had an "Indian pitch".
 
24 overs out of 76 by a main spinner on day 1 of a test in SA.

SA making sure that conditions favor India so that the match can last for 5 days.
 
Why did they roll our roads for them? oz are road kings.Also their Bowles know. How to use scoreboard pressure.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
Why did they roll our roads for them? oz are road kings.Also their Bowles know. How to use scoreboard pressure.
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How can you honestly watch a game where the score is 5/225, seamers got a few to nibble & a spinner has 2 wickets + a big shout first over and say it was a road? It's just a fair pitch. Certainly not overly batting friendly if Warner & Smith can be set & still surprised by a good ball & got out. Good batsmen not converting is exactly a pointer toward a pitch where the bowler is at least always in the game.
 
wrongun said:
How can you honestly watch a game where the score is 5/225, seamers got a few to nibble & a spinner has 2 wickets + a big shout first over and say it was a road? It's just a fair pitch. Certainly not overly batting friendly if Warner & Smith can be set & still surprised by a good ball & got out. Good batsmen not converting is exactly a pointer toward a pitch where the bowler is at least always in the game.
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SLOW PITCH. Not easy to play through the line. But not easy to take wickets too. Perfect disaster for a viewer. If you are patient enough, no reason why you can't score big here. Hardly anything for fast bowlers to boast about. Australia could easily have been 250/3 here. Gave away two wickets to the spinner who didn't have much going for him - was patient though. Also it was a great fielding day for SA, on any other day, Warner or Khawaja might still be batting. Disappointing pitch
 
Why there is no Allan Donald, Jacques Kallis and Shaun Pollock?

Are they preparing for IPL 2018 coming ahead?
 
Regarding the match, need to get Aus all out till lunch.
 
Wow, I didn't even know there was cricket today, been crazy busy with a huge project.
I thought the Australians were arriving late or mid March.

How is the pitch? How did we bowl? What's the team composition?
I'll tune in Sunday, I hope SA created a lively wicket.
 
soso_killer said:
Wow, I didn't even know there was cricket today, been crazy busy with a huge project.
I thought the Australians were arriving late or mid March.

How is the pitch? How did we bowl? What's the team composition?
I'll tune in Sunday, I hope SA created a lively wicket.
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Very evenly poised. Wouldn't say it was lively but good bowlers (like both bowling attacks) will be a threat.
 
Not a bad pitch. On the slower side, but there is something there for the bowlers.
 
This is an ultra slow pitch which reminds me of those usually dished out by SL for Jayawardene and Samaraweera to make merry. Just the ineptness of Aus batsmen is making this a 5 wicket day.
 
I think Australia will get more out of this than the SA bowlers. Keshav Maharaj has done well which means that Nathan Lyon will be in business. If Australia score around 320-350, SA will struggle. Currently the game is evenly poised.
 
wrongun said:
How can you honestly watch a game where the score is 5/225, seamers got a few to nibble & a spinner has 2 wickets + a big shout first over and say it was a road? It's just a fair pitch. Certainly not overly batting friendly if Warner & Smith can be set & still surprised by a good ball & got out. Good batsmen not converting is exactly a pointer toward a pitch where the bowler is at least always in the game.
Click to expand...

A lot of posters know nothing about test cricket and are delusional. A look at their post history reveals everything. This is a good pitch. 300 should be par score.
 
Apart from Warner , everybody else got out due to unforced error. Wickets falling does not make it a good pitch. Not a road , but a slow benign pitch for grafters where invariably a batsman has to make a mistake to get out. Asians have the tendency to make anything that the Westerners do extra ordinary while belittling their own in the same scenario.
 
Dark Magician said:
A lot of posters know nothing about test cricket and are delusional. A look at their post history reveals everything. This is a good pitch. 300 should be par score.
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That's my take on it. That new ball early tomorrow and a good/dropped catch or an umpires call either way could see Oz rolled for 280 or if the luck and some solid batting + tail wagging , 350 would be above par.

I think [MENTION=141397]Princejain191[/MENTION] & a few others mistake ALL slow pitches for boring runfests. Fact is NZ & English get some slow wickets, but they don't usually produce huge scores either because the extra grass & atmospherics (& in this case, a bit there for spinners too) mean the ball can nibble about just enough at any stage of your innings, if the bowling is good, so tons are actually hard fought all the way. No get in & cash in easy stuff.

This pitch seems a bit like that- slow (and I understand peoples criticism of that for an SA pitch, they wanted to see some bouncers & balls flying, that is understandable) but with a fair chance for all and so far good players & good bowling are getting rewarded, with nothing coming easy. Fair enough Test pitch.
 
soso_killer said:
Wow, I didn't even know there was cricket today, been crazy busy with a huge project.
I thought the Australians were arriving late or mid March.

How is the pitch? How did we bowl? What's the team composition?
I'll tune in Sunday, I hope SA created a lively wicket.
Click to expand...

Welcome back to PP, long time no see ..Ind left SA after giving sound beating in LOI and AUS arrived.


SA dissapointed more fans here in PP with dull pitch #ChickenedOut
 
Rightarmfast said:
What do you think, Cricket South Africa made this pitch to please BCCI or on the directions of BCCI?
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IndianFan2018 said:
No no brother,. That logic should be applied only for Ind tours. For all others different yardstick #DoubleStandards
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You have no idea how the real world works. This pitch is slower than usual as per BCCI instructions so that ABD will sit out the remaining Tests to prepare for the WI series, so that Holder decides to focus on IPL, thus making Stokes work harder to make his IPL money... and voila, India gets an advantage in the coming Test series in England.

#conspiracytheoriesareoftentrue
 
Dark Magician said:
A lot of posters know nothing about test cricket and are delusional. A look at their post history reveals everything. This is a good pitch. 300 should be par score.
Click to expand...

The exact attitude why test cricket isn't progressing even remotely as fast as our other forms and has always been nearing its death. Viewers should always be given priority. This is definitely not a 300 par pitch. But lets say it is. Then also, the slowness makes it tough to play shots as well as take wickets. It can be challenging for the batsmen but for the viewers, this is a horrible pitch especially when you are expecting to see some great fast bowlers. Grinding requires skill, but on a slow pitch, it is the most boring form of cricket entertainment.
 
wrongun said:
That's my take on it. That new ball early tomorrow and a good/dropped catch or an umpires call either way could see Oz rolled for 280 or if the luck and some solid batting + tail wagging , 350 would be above par.

I think [MENTION=141397]Princejain191[/MENTION] & a few others mistake ALL slow pitches for boring runfests. Fact is NZ & English get some slow wickets, but they don't usually produce huge scores either because the extra grass & atmospherics (& in this case, a bit there for spinners too) mean the ball can nibble about just enough at any stage of your innings, if the bowling is good, so tons are actually hard fought all the way. No get in & cash in easy stuff.

This pitch seems a bit like that- slow (and I understand peoples criticism of that for an SA pitch, they wanted to see some bouncers & balls flying, that is understandable) but with a fair chance for all and so far good players & good bowling are getting rewarded, with nothing coming easy. Fair enough Test pitch.
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Never said it will be a runfest. Just that bowling is not going to be the most challenging part. Techniques will not be tested. But yes, it will make for boring cricket and I am a huge test match fan, so I had bigger expectations from a SAvAUS series. This test match won't be attracting new viewers to test cricket and that is sad.
 
It is always the quality of competition in a game that is important. A spicy wicket and a slow dull pitch can both produce 300 scores. That does not mean both are equally difficult. Latter will be like watching paint dry. It will be a game of mistakes rather than skill. And won't be a good advertisement for an ailing format.
 
FAF just had a long conversation with maharaj after his 5 th delivery. Then he bowled the 6th with no change in field...nothing.

I wonder if they couldn't have had the same convo in between overs. Weird!
 
Nothing too wrong with this pitch to be honest. Par score around 300, mais it'll be interesting to see if it deteriorates on Day 4 or dies completely.
 
Both the teams have been defensive. Both want the first advantage. Also why Australia have been a little too careful and defensive since lunch yesterday. Starc's approach helps. Rubbing off on Marsh already. With their bowling attack, a 330 would be a decent score. Lyon and new ball would be the key
 
50 for Mitch
This guy has improved drastically, he was a complete Phateechar a year back
 
Some really hurting runs by Starc here..

Already 35 off 21 balls.
 
Anything over 300 is a more than decent total. SA have to bat well.
 
M Marsh *60(147). He has grinded out really well. Kudos to him. He has taken Aus to a good position now.
 
300-8.
Considering the Aussie bowling attack, I suspect this is a good first innings score.
Marsh will try n attack after lunch, the Aussie tail always wags, so they might end up with 350.
 
Right so South Africa makes easy wickets for Australia but hard and dangerous ones for India..... Interesting...



P>S> OH South Africa is going to get absolutely hammered in this test match, Aus imo already 1-0 up in the series.
 
Australia end at 351-8
M.Marsh with a potential match winning 96.

South Africa huffed and puffed against a decent Indian bowling attack. Can they do better against the Aussies? :danish
 
This Maharaj guy is a fantastic cricketer in making; the more I see, I am getting impressed. Still has 10-12 years career left and he is getting better by every series. He might end up as one of the ATGs of SAF cricket with 400+ wickets & 3000+ runs.
 
MMHS said:
This Maharaj guy is a fantastic cricketer in making; the more I see, I am getting impressed. Still has 10-12 years career left and he is getting better by every series. He might end up as one of the ATGs of SAF cricket with 400+ wickets & 3000+ runs.
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500+ wickets if they continue to play Test matches at same rate
 
41986A64-7B94-4656-A8DD-1606731DEA53.jpg

I’ve just got to Durban today: first time I’ve been here since the Nigeria v South Korea match at the 2010 World Cup (just google “Yakubu miss” - I was right in front of him!)

I’ve never been here in summer before, and what the TV pictures don’t show is just how humid and muggy the conditions are - it’s like Brisbane.

I think South Africa were fools not to prepare lively pitches again: I think they can only win in a low-scoring series.

This pitch is dark, devoid of live grass and it will crack and turn Nathan Lyon into a fourth innings match winner.

All the talk here is that at the end of the Fourth Test we will see De Villiers, Morkel and Steyn retire together.
 
So do I win a prize for my reading of the pitch? Ha ha!

Five minutes ago I said that Nathan Lyon would be the matchwinner.

And now he’s got two wickets for no runs!
 
Such poor players of spin.

Ball is turning. But there is even bounce. Any good batsman against spin should be able to negotiate this.

I suspect only AB is capable of handling Lyon here.
 
troodon said:
Such poor players of spin.

Ball is turning. But there is even bounce. Any good batsman against spin should be able to negotiate this.

I suspect only AB is capable of handling Lyon here.
Click to expand...
Such a privilege now watching the last few Tests of an ATG. We are all so lucky, whether we’re watching on TV or at the ground.

It’s a bit different with Amla: he was never quite in AB’s league but worse, there is that awful feeling of “he really needs to quit now that he’s a shadow of his former self”.

But with AB it’s the same feeling I had watching Zidane at the 2006 World Cup - “we are so privileged to watch the last days of a genius”.
 
Of note, the outfield is lush and green and there is only one disused strip three across from the one in use, and it has a thick covering of grass.

That is to say, you can’t scuff the ball by throwing it from the outfield onto a rough disused strip.

In other words, the only way either side is going to reverse it in this Test is by ball tampering. It’s as simple as that.
 
Junaids said:
So do I win a prize for my reading of the pitch? Ha ha!

Five minutes ago I said that Nathan Lyon would be the matchwinner.

And now he’s got two wickets for no runs!
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Mate most of the PPers predicted the same long before you ...when not so great Maharaj can take 5fer why not Lyon!
 
Disappoint with amla's dismissal

He used to be a very good player of spin but yeah those days are long gone...
 
Aus well ahead... SA continue their march towards minnow-ship
 
AB was the ONLY and ONLY reason why India lost first two tests. In third, he failed. SA lost

The same gonna happen here,if he fail to convert the start he gets then SA in deep trouble

These days i have no hope in de kock that too against a quality line up
 
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.
 
Protea Fan said:
AB was the ONLY and ONLY reason why India lost first two tests. In third, he failed. SA lost

The same gonna happen here,if he fail to convert the start he gets then SA in deep trouble

These days i have no hope in de kock that too against a quality line up
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You forget the great assist Kohli's selections provided.
 
What happened to that Bavuma guy?..he seemed to be a good batsman in that Australian tour
 
Protea Fan said:
AB was the ONLY and ONLY reason why India lost first two tests. In third, he failed. SA lost

The same gonna happen here,if he fail to convert the start he gets then SA in deep trouble

These days i have no hope in de kock that too against a quality line up
Click to expand...
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.
 
Junaids said:
Such a privilege now watching the last few Tests of an ATG. We are all so lucky, whether we’re watching on TV or at the ground.

It’s a bit different with Amla: he was never quite in AB’s league but worse, there is that awful feeling of “he really needs to quit now that he’s a shadow of his former self”.

But with AB it’s the same feeling I had watching Zidane at the 2006 World Cup - “we are so privileged to watch the last days of a genius”.
Click to expand...

AB is a a genius. Hope he gets a big score here. Smith is the only one comparable to him. Ab is a much better test batsmen than Kohli will ever be. Or Root for that matter.
 
Such a cowardly move to pick an extra batsman instead of a fourth quick.

South Africa are getting what they deserve. The over bowling of the quicks probably made Australia score 351 instead of 270.
 
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