AUSTRALIA TOUR TO SA
Zaahier Adams|Published
SCOREBOARD
Second Test, Day 1, St George’s Park
South Africa: 20/2 (Ackerman 5*, Bavuma 4*, Markram 11, Boland 2/5)
Only 74 deliveries were bowled on Sunday, but that was more than enough for Australia to remind the Proteas just how steep the climb is if they are to square the series at St George's Park.
Persistent rain dominated the opening day of the second Test, forcing multiple stoppages before play was finally abandoned at 4:16pm.
When play was possible, however, Australia wasted little time in making their presence felt.
Curator Adrian Carter had left a healthy covering of grass on the St George's Park pitch and, after winning the toss, Australian captain Pat Cummins needed no second invitation to send South Africa in.
The visitors doubled down on the decision by selecting an all-seam attack, leaving out veteran off-spinner Nathan Lyon in favour of cult hero Scott Boland. Ranked No. 8 in the ICC Test bowling rankings, Boland is often forced to wait patiently behind the formidable trio of Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.
What he lacks in opportunities, though, he makes up for in impact.
Boland understood immediately what the conditions demanded. With moisture lingering beneath the surface and heavy cloud cover overhead, the Victorian set about exploiting every ounce of assistance on offer.
Through his relentless accuracy, disciplined lengths and ability to exploit uncertainty, Boland repeatedly landed the ball in a narrow corridor outside off stump, forcing batters into decisions they would rather avoid.
The dismissal of Aiden Markram illustrated the point perfectly.
At the time, Markram appeared to be South Africa's most assured batter. He had left well, looked composed, driven elegantly through the covers, and seemed to understand that survival was at a premium. Yet Boland delivered the type of ball that thrives in seaming conditions.
Pitched up, it offered enough encouragement for an attempted drive from Markram before deviating sharply back to uproot the Proteas vice-captain's middle stump.
It was a chilling statement of intent, one that was reinforced the very next ball.
Having seen the previous Boland delivery nip back, David Bedingham was immediately confronted by one that held its line outside off stump. The result was an edge through to wicketkeeper Alex Carey.
Boland was on a hat-trick, and the die-hard Proteas fans who had braved the miserable weather were left stunned as Boland threatened to blow the match open with what seemed like two lightning bolts.
Proteas captain Temba Bavuma ensured there were no further calamities, only just surviving the hat-trick ball, which required an inside edge to narrowly avoid becoming Boland's third victim in as many deliveries.
At the other end, debutant Marques Ackerman had a front-row seat to the chaos.
The left-hander was already facing one of the toughest assignments in cricket: a Test debut against one of the world's premier pace attacks in seam-friendly conditions. Any lingering belief that international cricket offers a settling-in period would have disappeared quickly.
To his credit, Ackerman showed composure. He relied on more than a decade of first-class experience to weather the early storm before getting off the mark after 15 deliveries with his maiden Test run.
His challenge, though, has only just begun.
When play resumes on Monday, Ackerman and Bavuma will return knowing South Africa remain at the foot of a mountain. They will hope for clearer skies, but more importantly, they will need a way to blunt Boland and an Australian seam attack that required just 12.2 overs to seize control of the contest.
At the other end, a wide-eyed Marques Ackerman watched on in almost disbelief. The Proteas debutant had challenges of his own to confront, not only coming to terms with the pace of Test cricket, but also realising that there would be no freebies on offer with the new ball at the highest level.
Ackerman drew on his decade-long first-class experience to battle through a 15-ball stay before getting off the mark with his first Test run.
The stylish left-hander is, however, only at the foot of the mountain and will return on Monday alongside his captain, Bavuma, hoping not only for clearer skies but also armed with a game plan capable of nullifying chief threat Boland and the remainder of Australia's seam attack.
TEAMS FOR ST GEORGE'S PARK
PROTEAS: Aiden Markram, Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Temba Bavuma (capt), Matthew Breetzke, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Simon Harmer, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada
AUSTRALIA: Travis Head, Nic Maddinson, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Matthew Renshaw, Beau Webster, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins (capt), Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, Josh Hazlewood