What's new

South Africa finish Day 1 of the second Test against Pakistan in a commanding position at 316/4

The Bald Eagle

The Bald Eagle

Super Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Nov 25, 2023
Runs
14,189
With South Africa sealing a thrilling two-wicket win in the first Test at Centurion, the focus now shifts to the second and final Test at Cape Town's iconic Newlands Stadium. The Proteas have already secured their spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) final, but a series win against Pakistan remains high on their agenda. For Pakistan, the match presents an opportunity to salvage pride and avoid a whitewash in the two-match series.

South Africa will take confidence from their gritty lower-order contributions, particularly the Rabada-Jansen partnership, which saw them home in Centurion. Temba Bavuma's leadership and Aiden Markram's resilience will once again be critical for the hosts, while bowlers like Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen will look to replicate their impactful performances.

Pakistan, on the other hand, will aim to turn individual brilliance into collective success. Mohammad Abbas, fresh from a sensational six-wicket haul, will spearhead the bowling attack, while Saud Shakeel and Babar Azam will need to lead with the bat. Pakistan's challenge lies in batting consistency and converting starts into substantial partnerships to put pressure on South Africa.

With Cape Town's seam-friendly conditions, another gripping contest is on the cards as both teams aim to finish the series on a high.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Warning:

All posters please take note of the following guidelines for match threads on PakPassion:

1. No personal insults at other posters, players, officials, coaching staffs etc.

2. No making fun of player's, official's, coaching staff's names.

3. Do not add any references to media, their social media or post any pictures or screenshots from other sports websites.

4. Stick to commenting on this match. There is no need to bring other countries into the match discussion as there are plenty of other threads where those discussions can be added.
 
Shan Masood shared following thoughts in his presser ahead of the 2nd Test

Team Selection and Pitch Conditions:

"I'd like to have one final look at the pitch. It looks a bit different, less grass covering.For us, it'll be just slightly trickier (to tackle these conditions) where we still feel that pace will have a lot of a role to play in these conditions even if it's not the usual pitch you can't decide on the pitch once until the two teams have batted on it. We still feel that pace will have a lot of a role to play in these conditions."

Performance and Expectations:

"We want to enjoy these performances as wins. We can't control the result.There's a lot of potential in this side, and if we're not crossing the line, we're not doing our talent justice."

Learning from Experience:

"I always look at the bigger picture if we take the positives with us and learn from our mistakes, then we will have a great run as a Test team.We should’ve beaten Australia in Australia. We have to learn to win in crucial moments."
 
Pakistan’s still unsure about their final XI for the second Test, with less than 24 hours to go. Shan Masood said it’s tricky balancing the team and they want to have a last look at the pitch before deciding.

The Newlands surface has been getting a lot of attention after the last Test, where the pitch was rated unsatisfactory. It had uneven bounce, and fast bowlers dominated, so everyone’s curious to see how it will play this time. South Africa has already picked their side, including spinner Keshav Maharaj, but Pakistan's situation is a bit more complicated.
 
Shan c
Saim
🇿🇼Babar
KG
Saud
Agha
Rizwan +
Noman
Naseem
Khurram
Abbas
---------------
3 pacers with Noman to hold up an end , also averages 20 with bat.

Try to get 300 in 1st innings to stay in game
 
Saim and Salman are good enough spinners for a team like South Africa, if the wicket does take turn. Plus, Ghulam and Saud can bowl some part-time stuff too.

I'd rather take four pacers and only need three than take three and end up needing four.
 
Bilal7 said:
Saim and Salman are good enough spinners for a team like South Africa, if the wicket does take turn. Plus, Ghulam and Saud can bowl some part-time stuff too.

I'd rather take four pacers and only need three than take three and end up needing four.
Click to expand...

This isn’t a ODI where you just turn to Saud, Saim Ghulam to turn their arm over.

South Africa are not stupid to shorten their batting in order to play one proper spinner on this deck. They know their tracks better than Pakistan and Aqib. They should play Noman
 
I won't dispute the selection of Numan since mirroring SA selection (maharaj) is a logical decision but I still feel we should stick with AJ.

Jamal looks good enough to get a 50 in SA. Numan though a decent batsman won't be able to contribute with bat in SA. Seen him struggle vs mild bounce. He'd be a proper tail ender which in Pakistan's case means 150-6 to 157 all out type scenarios.
 
Marooned said:
I won't dispute the selection of Numan since mirroring SA selection (maharaj) is a logical decision but I still feel we should stick with AJ.

Jamal looks good enough to get a 50 in SA. Numan though a decent batsman won't be able to contribute with bat in SA. Seen him struggle vs mild bounce. He'd be a proper tail ender which in Pakistan's case means 150-6 to 157 all out type scenarios.
Click to expand...
How is noman Tailender he won you series vs england with bat and ball just because he is not great vs bounce he surely can stick around and score handy runs which can win pak games.
 
The problem with Jamal is he’s being bowled like a 5 th bowler rather than a fourth and unless he’s batting in a top 7 he will be surplus to the requirements. For some reason post Australia tour his bowling has completely lost the vote of confidence of the skipper and it shows in his bowling
 
Xoib said:
The problem with Jamal is he’s being bowled like a 5 th bowler rather than a fourth and unless he’s batting in a top 7 he will be surplus to the requirements. For some reason post Australia tour his bowling has completely lost the vote of confidence of the skipper and it shows in his bowling
Click to expand...
Concur. If you are picking him, he has to bowl more.
He did contribute 46 runs in 1st test match which were significant and he looked good for more.
 
Cricket Warrior said:
i think its better to drop AJ and go with genuine fast bowler
Click to expand...
If we had an out and out quick like Hasnain then we could of gone for broke.

Playing both Abbas and Hamza will increase the tail and lower the pace of the attack.

AJ can bowl 140 ks if he s given some overs before the end of the match and can score handy runs which we will need.
 
Shoaib Akhtar 100 MPH said:
If we had an out and out quick like Hasnain then we could of gone for broke.

Playing both Abbas and Hamza will increase the tail and lower the pace of the attack.

AJ can bowl 140 ks if he s given some overs before the end of the match and can score handy runs which we will need.
Click to expand...
Yeah, Aamir Jamal's batting is a huge plus down the order, especially on tricky wickets where every run matters. You can get more out of his bowling if you use him right. But Shan used him very poorly in the last test.

That said, I question the claim that he can bowl at 140 clicks. He did bowl at that pace in Australia a year ago, but since then he has been bowling in the 131-133 range in pretty every format.
 
South Africa have brought in Maphaka, Mulder and Maharaj. I guess that gives some indication that the pitch may offer turn later in the match. But personally, I think Pakistan would be better off using Agha in that role. Jamal brings a balance to the playing eleven with his all-round abilities and should be retained. Mulder is a massive improvement over Bosch for South Africa, but I don't know how successful he will be batting in the top-order at No. 3.

Maphaka is someone Pakistan should capitalize on. He is incredibly raw and inexperienced with just 3 FC matches to his name. But knowing Pakistan, they will probably gift him with a fifer on debut too.
 
This should be comfortable victory for pakistan looking at the South Africa playing eleven.

This is probably South Africa weakest test playing eleven i have ever seen (except Nz tour where the send kid's) .

Pakistan is not going to any better chances to break the losing streaks in the southern Hemisphere.

@Nikhil_cric agree?
:kp
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Devadwal said:
This should be comfortable victory for pakistan looking at the South Africa playing eleven.

This is probably South Africa weakest test playing eleven i have ever seen ( except Nz tour where the send kid's) .

Pakistan is not going to any better chances to break the losing streaks in the southern Hemisphere.

@Nikhil_cric agree?
:kp
Click to expand...
It’s much better than their last test team. They got rid of walking wicket Zorzi with Mulder who is a decent all rounder Maharaj is back which is a huge plus for South Africa and they debut Mapakya who while raw is the best U 21 pace talent in the world
 
Hopefully Saffers have less intensity having qualified. pajeets chatting lots about Pakistan and insinuating they're not good enough.

A win is needed here
 
SA bowling attack looks very good but their batting lineup looks mediocre to say the least.

Pakistan has no motivation to win and with Shan as skipper I am not expecting too much.

Only a Babar special can give us some sort of hope.
 
Mir Hamza should be the first name in bowling sheet, as he’s the best bowler in Pakistan right now.

Shan Masood
Saim Ayub
Babar Azam
Saud Shakeel
Kamran Ghulam
Agha Salman
M Rizwan
Nauman Ali
Mohd Abbas
Mir Hamza
Khurram Shahzad
 
Xoib said:
It’s much better than their last test team. They got rid of walking wicket Zorzi with Mulder who is a decent all rounder Maharaj is back which is a huge plus for South Africa and they debut Mapakya who while raw is the best U 21 pace talent in the world
Click to expand...
How is this better than last match? Dane Peterson & Corbin Bosch were standout players from the last test match .

Kwena Maphaka is rookie and hasn't developed his game so far .

:kp
 
Devadwal said:
How is this better than last match? Dane Peterson & Corbin Bosch were standout players from the last test match .

Kwena Maphaka is rookie and hasn't developed his game so far .

:kp
Click to expand...
Peterson and Bosch may have done well but they are being replaced by superior players. Bosch has a
Mediocre FC record and was nothing more then a bench pick due to injuries Peterson also is nothing more then a FC journeyman it’s credit to our rubbish team that we made them look so good
 
I want to see 2 changed. Aamer Jamal and Naseem out for Hamza and Noman.

IMO AJ will be rested surely.
 
Hamza abbas and khurram will be too one dimensional. There always has to be a balance in attack or it becomes really frustrating.

Naseem wasn't great but even in 1st innings he got 3 quick wickets to get Pakistan back in the game. I'd stick with him.
 
Naseem rested for Hamza. Jamal stays. No spinner again. Surprising choice.

0cnd7az.png
 
Last edited:
This selection is next level of wokeness. Two 120k bowlers. Is this the slowest “pace” attack in history?

We might aswell be watching women’s cricket.
 
TheSultan said:
This selection is next level of wokeness. Two 120k bowlers. Is this the slowest “pace” attack in history?

We might aswell be watching women’s cricket.
Click to expand...
On These conditions pace is not a big factors and few days ago Abbas had already showed it.

Naseem only bowled well in patches in the 1st test ( day 3 after post lunch session)
 
Naseem is just not a 3 format bowler. His fragility is on another level.

He has to give up one format and it can't be ODI's because it's his best format.

I see a Test retirement coming soon.
 
Mir Hamza is a good selection with his left-arm angle and high-release point. Definitely brings something different to the attack.

I think they did the right decision not to play Noman. Agha is more than capable of playing the sole spinner role. He bowled quite well in Australia, and you need the extra batting depth on a surface like Cape Town that Jamal offers.
 
I must say Naseem handling by the team management is not helping his cause. How can you expect a young bowler to string consistent performances if he is picked in 1 game and dropped in the next

My suggestion is give him 4-5 test on a trot and if he’s not delivering then bin him for good the poor chap has played 3 off last 7 tests you can’t expect him to deliver with this selection policy
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Naseem is just not a 3 format bowler. His fragility is on another level.

He has to give up one format and it can't be ODI's because it's his best format.

I see a Test retirement coming soon.
Click to expand...
you can’t expect a player to perform if he’s picked in 1 game and dropped the next 2 his performance last game did not deserve a drop should be givin couple of series on the trot and then make a final call on his test selection
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Naseem is just not a 3 format bowler. His fragility is on another level.

He has to give up one format and it can't be ODI's because it's his best format.

I see a Test retirement coming soon.
Click to expand...
Shaheen is already reluctant to Play the test cricket .if Naseem do it same then what will be the pakistan bowling options for the future test series?
 
Xoib said:
I must say Naseem handling by the team management is not helping his cause. How can you expect a young bowler to string consistent performances if he is picked in 1 game and dropped in the next

My suggestion is give him 4-5 test on a trot and if he’s not delivering then bin him for good the poor chap has played 3 off last 7 tests you can’t expect him to deliver with this selection policy
Click to expand...
Naseem has stiffness in his back, which is why he is missing out today.
 
Masood: Less grass than usual. We wanted to bowl.

Bavuma: We are going to bat.

So Both captain wish is granted.
 
Xoib said:
I must say Naseem handling by the team management is not helping his cause. How can you expect a young bowler to string consistent performances if he is picked in 1 game and dropped in the next

My suggestion is give him 4-5 test on a trot and if he’s not delivering then bin him for good the poor chap has played 3 off last 7 tests you can’t expect him to deliver with this selection policy
Click to expand...
Spot on.

Especially here in good bowling conditions. Can't even give him 2 consecutive games. This is no way to build a team.

Back stiffness or wtv niggle is just an excuse which is commonly used by all teams.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Naseem is just not a 3 format bowler. His fragility is on another level.

He has to give up one format and it can't be ODI's because it's his best format.

I see a Test retirement coming soon.
Click to expand...
The problem is the lack of FC cricket. Pakistan plays very less test cricket as it is and the lack of FC does not help. If a bowler is not bowling long spells consistently, he will struggle when he has to do so after a long time.

Despite struggling with this heavily at the start of his career, Naseem has managed his injuries well in recent times. You obviously had the shoulder injury last year, but that was a freak injury that he sustained while fielding, and something that could have happened to anyone.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Naseem is just not a 3 format bowler. His fragility is on another level.

He has to give up one format and it can't be ODI's because it's his best format.

I see a Test retirement coming soon.
Click to expand...
Been saying that for a while now. We need to prepare a different set of seamers for test cricket
 
Devadwal said:
Masood: Less grass than usual. We wanted to bowl.

Bavuma: We are going to bat.

So Both captain wish is granted.
Click to expand...
I think Masood is looking too much into what happened last time there was a test match here. I doubt South Africa will make the same type of pitch after what happened to them. Otherwise they wouldn't be happy batting first. Chasing for Pakistan will be a challenge even if its a flat road, let alone Newlands.
 
Stupidity to drop Naseem. He was consistently bowling 137-140ks in the first test.
He didn't bowl bad as well.
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
The problem is the lack of FC cricket. Pakistan plays very less test cricket as it is and the lack of FC does not help. If a bowler is not bowling long spells consistently, he will struggle when he has to do so after a long time.

Despite struggling with this heavily at the start of his career, Naseem has managed his injuries well in recent times. You obviously had the shoulder injury last year, but that was a freak injury that he sustained while fielding, and something that could have happened to anyone.
Click to expand...

Not talking about the shoulder injury. I don't think his body can take the workload.

3 format fast bowlers are extremely rare.
I think there's some research to suggest that constantly varying workloads cause more injuries than consistently high (FC) workloads.

He always gets these niggles and gets them way too often.

He should either cut his domestic T20 workloads completely (Starc did this between 2015-2024) or he should retire from Tests.
 
Xoib said:
you can’t expect a player to perform if he’s picked in 1 game and dropped the next 2 his performance last game did not deserve a drop should be givin couple of series on the trot and then make a final call on his test selection
Click to expand...
He was dropped today because of a stiff back
 
followed said:
Lol here comes another 120ks speed demon aka mir the female version of male super fast bowler hamza.
Click to expand...
Mir Hamza's pace is about the same as Marco Jansen. He also brings height and left-arm swing, and is an experienced domestic campaigner. We could do a lot worse than him.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
Not talking about the shoulder injury. I don't think his body can take the workload.

3 format fast bowlers are extremely rare.
I think there's some research to suggest that constantly varying workloads cause more injuries than consistently high (FC) workloads.

He always gets these niggles and gets them way too often.

He should either cut his domestic T20 workloads completely (Starc did this between 2015-2024) or he should retire from Tests.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I agree. ODIs don't happen much these days anyway. T20s are the biggest scourge for our fast bowlers. And such a major barrier to their fitness and availability for the format that actually matters.
 
Shan Masood is the mutated strain of Imran Farhat. The guy somehow dominates domestic cricket and looks like a deer caught up in the headlights at international level.
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
Yeah, I agree. ODIs don't happen much these days anyway. T20s are the biggest scourge for our fast bowlers. And such a major barrier to their fitness and availability for the format that actually matters.
Click to expand...
Really hated Shan not trusting Jamal to bowl proper spells in the previous test.
 
Bavuma- Wicket looks a bit direr than we are accustomed to, expect it to break up and probably assist the spinners. It's pretty hot as well

But pakistan didn't select any proper spinner . genius

:kp
 
I don’t mind Hamza and Abbas but this does not look a pitch where you play two 78 mph bowlers when Sa dropped their 78 mph bowler and picked a 90 mph one atleast take a hint from that:facepalm
 
Xoib said:
I don’t mind Hamza and Abbas but this does not look a pitch where you play two 78 mph bowlers when Sa dropped their 78 mph bowler and picked a 90 mph one atleast take a hint from that:facepalm
Click to expand...
Pakistan have no one that can bowl quick. Naseem is out because of stiffness in his back. The quickest bowler Khurram Shahzad is playing.
 
Perfect selection from the available squad, had Shan used his part time spinners to break the tailend partnership Pakistan would had won the match. Naseem had fluke wickets and Jamal was under bowled last match, even Khurum in the second inning brought on when was too late. Poor captaincy from Shan, he needs to be more proactive thus match and make better tactical decisions or should be shown door.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

FearlessRoar
  • Locked
South Africa vs Pakistan | 2nd Test | Cape Town | January 03 - 07 | Pre-Match Discussion
2
Replies
133
Views
2K
Kianig89
Kianig89
C
  • Locked
South Africa vs Pakistan | 2nd ODI | Cape Town | December 19 | Pre-Match Discussion
Replies
41
Views
739
lucky_fish
L
The Bald Eagle
  • Poll
Congratulations to Pakistan for becoming the first visiting side to whitewash South Africa in ODIs
15 16 17
Replies
1K
Views
17K
Shoaib Akhtar 100 MPH
S
C
  • Locked
South Africa vs Pakistan | 1st Test | Centurion | Dec 26-30 | Pre-Match Discussion
2 3
Replies
197
Views
4K
Rana
Rana
FearlessRoar
  • Poll
South Africa (301 & 150/8) claim a hard-earned win by 2 wickets in the first Test against Pakistan (211 & 237) to go 1-0 up in the 2-match series
12 13 14
Replies
1K
Views
10K
sweep_shot
sweep_shot
Back
Top