AUSTRALIA TOUR TO SA
Zaahier Adams|Published
What unfolded at St George’s Park on Tuesday was extraordinary and unforgettable.
In a passage of play that will echo through South African cricket for generations, Temba Bavuma produced an innings that may ultimately define not only this series, but his legacy.
Eight years ago on this very ground, with Australia having won the opening Test in Durban and South Africa staring at a crossroads in the series, it was AB de Villiers who hauled the Proteas from the canvas with a mercurial century.
The circumstances were strikingly familiar. Once again Australia arrived in Gqeberha holding the upper hand. Once again South Africa's batting was under intense pressure. And once again the home side required its most senior batter to face the chin music.
This time, it was Bavuma's moment.
When he walked to the crease at 12/2, with Scott Boland on a hat-trick, South Africa were already wobbling. By 40/4 the situation had become perilous. At 110/6, Australia's grip appeared almost complete and the sense was that the tourists were on track to eradicate the humiliation they suffered the last time they were in South Africa.
Instead, Bavuma produced an innings of courage and significance.
He spent more than nine hours at the crease, faced 334 balls, scored a career-best 179 and walked off with South Africa declaring on 425/9 after game-changing partnerships of 132 with Marco Jansen (82) and 183 with Simon Harmer (83).
But Bavuma's innings was more than just the numbers. Its compilation was batsmanship personified.
There was little flourish and no recklessness, combining technical discipline with immense mental resilience. He absorbed pressure when survival became the priority and countered when opportunities emerged.
Most importantly, he refused to yield.
"I obviously walked into a tricky situation. I think everything was in the bowler's favour. The conditions, overheads, the wicket itself," Bavuma told reporters after stumps.
"We just lost two early wickets. I think ordinarily I find myself in those situations quite a number of times. I guess it seems to bring out the best in me.
"From an approach point of view it wasn't any different, to be honest, in terms of how I've always gone about it. Get myself stuck in.
"Pride myself in getting the team into a competitive position. I guess what was different, more from a personal point of view, this time was being able to go through and put up a score. That was, I guess from a personal point of view, very good."
Bavuma's maiden Test century at Newlands a decade ago remains a seminal moment in South African cricket for reasons that extended beyond the boundary rope. There were also decisive contributions in the World Test Championship final at Lord's and the first Test against India at Eden Gardens last year that will live long in the memory.
Yet this epic should surely rank as Bavuma's greatest personal achievement, given both the circumstances and the scale of the performance. The Proteas captain was loath to place it on that pedestal just yet.
"I mean, I'm happy that I was able to get one against Australia," Bavuma said. "But look, I haven't had time to kind of let it all sink in.
"I think obviously the one at Newlands will always kind of be there at the top for a lot of reasons. I think the one thing, like I said, just from a personal point of view, to go on to get a big hundred, that's obviously something that's been kind of a thorn in my batting career. So it was nice to mentally get over that."
For years Bavuma has carried burdens that few South African cricketers have known. His critics have not always been just.
They should now be reminded of a glorious, sunlit day at St George's Park when the smallest man on the field stood the tallest.