Nic Maddinson admitted to the "huge relief" he felt when he pulled the first ball of Australia's second innings for four after his 33-ball duck on the opening day in Durban. Head coach Andrew McDonald also lauded the maturity he showed after the difficult start.
He couldn't open his account in the first innings before dragging on against Marco Jansen, but on the third evening dispatched the left-arm quick to the boundary and went on to make 48 off 38 balls which set the tempo for Australia's second innings. His cameo allowed Australia to declare with plenty of time to force a result.
"I think I went out there and thought, 'I just have to get bat on this, wherever it is' and luckily I was able to get a bit of a loosener first up from the big fella who was a bit tight and tried to get a bumper to loosen things up, which was a huge relief to me," Maddinson told Kayo Sports on the fifth day at Kingsmead.
"There were probably some negative comments around but most of the support I got from guys within the squad, within state cricket and friends and family as well, it has all been super positive. That is what I tried to take out there and just relax a bit. I have done it [for] a long time. It is just about bringing it into place at this level."
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McDonald, who is one of Australia's three selectors alongside George Bailey and Tony Dodemaide, argued that Maddinson played both situations well even though the scoreboard didn't reflect it in the first innings.
"There was a heavy critiquing of his first innings," McDonald said. "He left the ball well. There was a lot on offer [for the bowlers], we felt, and he probably played at a ball that he was leaving for the first 30-odd deliveries. But we felt as though that was a difficult time and the method he was applying until his dismissal was the way to get through that scenario.
"A mature player reads the game well. I think the second innings, the scenario was slightly different, wasn't it? Flatter wicket, we needed to put runs on the board quickly to put some time in the game with the weather that was potentially around. So, I thought he played both scenarios quite well, albeit the first things didn't turn out the way that he always would have liked."
"I think he can play the high and the low [tempo]. I don't think that you'll see Nic just go out there and throw caution to the wind. I think he's a better batter than that."
In what was one of the most contentious selection calls in recent Australian history, Maddinson was recalled to open the batting in the first Test without a first-class game in 19 months - having not played the Sheffield Shield in the 2025-26 season after treatment for testicular cancer - and nearly 10 years after he last played Test cricket. Despite Maddinson's extended absence from red-ball cricket, McDonald said the process to recall him had been in line with how they judge any selection.
"We look at their method, the way that they score runs, we look at the attack and the opposition as well. So we're trying to match all that up," he said. "There's no right or wrong in that. It's about the process that we go to making that decision.
"If you want to talk specifically around the Nic Maddinson [selection], we feel as though the process to get that decision was really consistent with the way that we've applied it throughout the whole world in terms of our selections."
Reflecting on the first innings, Maddinson said he felt he had scoring opportunities which he couldn't take advantage of but was confident he didn't have to change much when his next innings came around.
"Marco Jansen is a tall left-armer and the ball was seaming a bit, so it is always a challenge at the top of the order. But I was disappointed with how it played out," he said. "I missed a few off my pads, a few cut shots and then you get stuck down that end. The result was not great.
"But it was that balance; you are trying to stick to your plan but also not do anything too rash just because I had not got off the mark. I was disappointed with the lead-up and a couple of balls I should have scored off, but that is cricket.
"I have been playing long enough to know that it doesn't always go to plan and it was just about settling down in the field. The game slowed down and then it was about trying to make the most of the second innings."