Bavuma battles adversity to put South Africa in control

GQEBERHA, South Africa, Oct 20 : South Africa captain Temba Bavuma said he enjoyed battling against adversity as he scored 179 on Tuesday to turn around his side’s fortunes in the second test against Australia and also quell some of his own mental demons.

The captain produced a defiant display and showcased his batting skills as South Africa recovered from a precarious 110-6 in the morning session on the third day to declare on 425-9 before taking an Australian wicket prior to stumps, an emphatic response to their heavy defeat in last week’s first test.

The 36-year-old Bavuma had been forced to the crease with the hosts on 12-2 on Sunday’s rain-restricted opening day, when only an hour's play was possible, and had to resume his innings on Monday as the ball moved around after the wet weather finally relented. South Africa slumped to 97-5 by the close of the second day.

“I walked into a tricky situation,” he told reporters. “I think everything was in the bowlers’ favour, the conditions overhead, the wicket itself, we’d just lost two early wickets, but ordinarily I’ve found myself in those situations quite a number of times and I guess it seems to bring out the best in me." 

The sun appeared on Tuesday after two rain-affected days and the pitch flattened out, offering the batters considerably more assistance, although Bavuma insisted conditions were not as easy as they might have seemed.

DEALING WITH AUSTRALIA’S QUALITY ATTACK

“With the quality of the bowling attack, they're still able to put you under pressure, even when the ball is slightly softer and older.

“I think from a mindset point of view, for me, nothing really changed. I was always just trying to be as tight as I could and try to hit the ball as straight as I could.

“The one thing was being able to get the team out of a tough situation. But then from a personal point of view, to go on to getting a big 100, that's obviously something that's been a thorn in my side throughout my career. So it was nice to get over that mental hurdle,” he added.

Bavuma, who has overcome a long-standing elbow injury, not only surpassed his previous highest test score but featured in two record partnerships.

He added 132 with Marco Jansen, who scored 85, to set a South African seventh-wicket record at St George’s Park, before putting on a national-record 183 for the eighth wicket with number nine Simon Harmer, who made a test career-best 82.

“They put a heavy price on their wickets and part of our plan was to keep Australia in the field for as long as we could. It all went according to plan,” Bavuma added as Australia will resume at 3–1 at the start of day four.