BATTING MASTERCLASS: Brilliant Bavuma pulls Proteas back into series against Aussies with career-best Test score

Temba Bavuma might be diminutive in stature, but in the past three years he has morphed into one of the giants of the game.

His stoic and brilliant nine-hour marathon innings against Australia at a sun-bathed St George’s Park in Gqeberha has changed the shape of not only the match, but the entire series.

Bavuma’s 179 (334 balls, 18x4, 1x6) was the highest by a South African captain against Australia. He shared stands of 132 and 183 with Marco Jansen and Simon Harmer for the seventh and eighth wickets, respectively.

The Proteas skipper came to the crease under gloomy skies on day one with his team reeling at 12 for two and facing a hat-trick ball from the ever-dangerous seamer Scott Boland, who ended the innings on five for 81.

Nine hours and 12 minutes of batting later, and about 40 hours after he first strode to the crease, Bavuma’s vigil came to an end with the faintest of edges off the left-arm pace of Mitchell Starc, and the reliable glovework of Alex Carey.

Bavuma departed the pitch to a standing ovation from the smattering of people in the ground and to fist bumps from the Aussie players. The Aussies might be hard and uncompromising, but they recognise quality when they see it.

And Bavuma dished up so much quality – both with his blade and his mind – that even the bedraggled tourists had to tip their baggy greens to the Proteas skipper.

Between that first ball from Boland in the gloaming, to his majestic pull through midwicket off the bowling of Aussie skipper Pat Cummins to reach his century, Bavuma dominated.

His century – his fifth in Test cricket – came off 223 balls and included 11 fours and a six.

But the job was not done, and Bavuma added another 76 runs after that boundary off Cummins to take South Africa beyond 400 and into a position where only one team can win this match with two days left.

Cummins went wicketless in 26 overs while fellow paceman Josh Hazlewood only managed to bowl 14 overs in the innings due to illness on day two. He also failed to bag a wicket.

At the close, returning Proteas fast bowler Kagiso Rabada, who missed the first Test, removed Australia opener Nic Maddinson, caught at third slip by Harmer.

It was a textbook Rabada set-up, probing with pace outside the left-hander’s off-stump. After a missing one, Maddinson edged the fourth ball, leaving the tourists one down without a run on the board. Bad light ended play soon after with Australia three for one at the close.

Thanks to Bavuma, South Africa have an outside chance of winning this Test to level the series with two days left. They almost certainly can’t lose it from here.

As captain, Bavuma continues to raise his game. This was his fourth century as skipper in just 14 Tests at the helm.

Partnerships

While Bavuma’s brilliant 179 deserves all the plaudits, he needed support, and he found it in the lower order.

Jansen, the beanpole left-arm fast bowler, who bats right-handed, is a uniquely talented cricketer – coming to the crease early on day three, soon after Starc removed Wiaan Mulder (13 off 38 balls) with a snorter.

The fast bouncer had Mulder fending a ball aimed at his head and he only managed to glove it to Matt Renshaw in the slips. It was Starc’s 450th Test wicket.

South Africa had resumed day three on 97 for five and added only 13 runs before Mulder’s wicket. But by the end of the day, the Proteas had amassed a further 328 runs for the loss of just four wickets on the day. 

Despite a ball that was 50 overs old when Mulder departed, there was still some lateral movement and enough in it to keep the bowlers interested.

At 110 for six, Australia’s thoughts might have turned to some batting in the sunshine sometime soon after lunch. Jansen, though, had other ideas.

With Bavuma well ensconced at the other end, Jansen played as if the bowlers were average club players, smashing boundaries to all parts of St George’s with insouciance.

In the blink of an eye, he and Bavuma brought up a 50-partnership. During his entertaining innings, Boland and Cummins were dispatched for sixes while fours flowed freely.

Jansen might never have the deep application as a batter to become an all-rounder as great as Jacques Kallis. But he is a player that can change the course of a match in the mould of former England great Ian Botham.

When the second new ball was taken, things became tougher. Boland was still nibbling in and around off-stump. He struck Jansen in the groin with a nasty ball that had the big man writhing in pain.

Three balls later, Jansen was out, caught by Travis Head at midwicket as Jansen tried to flick the ball through the leg side. Jansen’s 85 came off 100 balls with 11 fours and three sixes. More importantly, the 132-run seventh-wicket stand put the Proteas in the driving seat.

Harmer heroics

With the total on 242 for seven, anything around 300 would still be considered a good total. But Harmer, a man who has played more than 250 first-class matches – mostly in England for Essex – knows how to bat.

Bavuma, still firmly in control on the other end, was 12 runs shy of his first century against Australia.

Harmer’s first priority was to offer the skipper enough support to reach that milestone, which he duly did.

At times Harmer looked like a top-four batter with elegant cover drives and assured pulls punctuating his innings.

Under the sun, he and Bavuma continued to grind the Aussie bowlers down with defiance and skill.

With his maiden Test century approaching, late in the day, Harmer saw his chance to move through the 80s and 90s quickly by attacking the occasional leg spin of Marnus Labuschagne.

Unfortunately, though, an attempted slog-sweep undid Harmer, and he was bowled for a fine 82, which came off 157 balls with 10 fours and a six.

Harmer was understandably distraught at throwing his wicket away, but in the greater scheme of things, he played his part in putting the Proteas in the driving seat in the match and back in the series. DM