Cummins and his men are flying. Here’s why South Africa could do the unthinkable

Gqeberha: What’s the best and most consequential batting ever seen in a Test match against Cummins, Hazlewood and Starc?

Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli in Australia are contenders, as is Ben Stokes at Lord’s in 2023. But it is arguable that no team has ever combined better against Australia’s “big three” than Dean Elgar, Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers at St George’s Park in 2018.

As Hazlewood alluded to this week, that game had plenty of reverse swing. But in a partnership that still sits vividly in this writer’s memory, Elgar and Amla somehow absorbed 46 overs together, during which the ball seemingly bent around corners for extended periods.

Only 88 runs were scored in that time, and eventually they succumbed to Starc and Hazlewood. But by weathering the reverse movement when the ball was still relatively new, they gave de Villiers a chance to unfurl one of his most spectacular centuries, against a projectile that was somewhat less threatening, and against bowlers not quite as sharp.

“It was important for us to absorb a little bit,” Proteas skipper Faf du Plessis said at the time.

“Australia are going to have times when they put you under pressure, and we absorbed brilliantly with Dean and Hashim, making sure the bowlers stay out there and bowl third and fourth spells. It set it up for an AB masterclass, which is the perfect situation for him to come in and transfer that pressure.”

From that point, South Africa held the upper hand in the 2018 series, and it was from a place of growing desperation that Australia’s tour collapsed into infamy. It’s worth noting that the current side, much older, wiser and better adjusted, would now see that for what it was – a sublime bit of team batsmanship, rather than cause for a touring team to panic.

Even so, the 2026 Proteas are casting around for similar inspiration in the city now known as Gqeberha. Amla, Elgar and de Villiers are all long-retired, and the closest thing they have to a batting star, Aiden Markram, only rejoined the team late on Friday night due to personal reasons.

David Bedingham, who fought gamely at No.3 at Kingsmead, gave an idea of the challenge the hosts feel they are facing.

“I was actually speaking to my friends about it, and in first-class cricket, you face a decent bowler and then there’s maybe another decent one, and then maybe you can cash in later with the third or fourth one,” Bedingham said candidly.

“But here, you get through six balls of Cummins, and then you look and it’s Starc. And then you get through their spell and it’s Hazlewood and Lyon,” Bedingham said.

“It’s tough, but we’ve faced them before, so hopefully we can just do it for longer periods of time.”

Similar things used to be said about the West Indian attacks of the 1980s and 1990s, when quality and pace lurked in every bowling change.

Australia’s squad looks united and jovial, aided by two rounds of golf at a pair of the numerous links courses dotted around the Eastern Cape region. The major threat to what would be a 2-0 series lead lies in the return of Kagiso Rabada, who was instrumental in cleaving Australia’s batting in 2018 and is a strong-enough performer to improve the bowlers around him.

Hazlewood said of Rabada, “Every time he plays against us, he seems to create a bit of havoc.”

The outstanding performance by Matt Renshaw in Durban will likely need to be followed up by a more even Australian batting display here. Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith will both be eager for scores befitting the way they struck the ball last week.

The selectors may be tempted, as they often are, to call in Scott Boland as an additional seamer in the attack. There has also been plenty of time spent this week with Cooper Connolly, who has batted extensively in centre-wicket sessions and must be pushing hard for inclusion.

Either move would mean pulling out another source of utility. Nathan Lyon has bowled well here in the past, while Beau Webster’s seamers and wingspan in the field are more vital as long as Cameron Green is unavailable for all-rounder duties.

There is something, too, about St George’s Park, itself, that seems to bring a little extra out of South Africa. Situated up the hill from the old town, it is a beautiful cricket ground, famed for the band that plays during matches and the quaintly named Duck Pond end.

In three Tests here against Australia since readmission, they have enjoyed two handsome victories, and would have had a third if not for the innings of Mark Waugh’s life, capped off by an Ian Healy six, in 1997.

A forecast of heavy rain for day one may have an effect on things, but the light will also be better than at Kingsmead. As a former player quipped warily this week, “We have been one up after Durban before!”

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