Related Links : Sri Lanka Vs South Africa : 1st Test
South Africa may not be winning the SSC Test, but they get all the accolades for taking the Test Match to an unexpected fifth and final day. There was a completely different purpose and application shown by the Proteas who were bundled out in just over 50 overs on Day 1. The batsmen this time around believed that they could survive Muttiah Muralitharan and the end result was a far more competitive total of 311 for 4 having batted for 105 overs! The two not out batsmen at stumps on Day 4 are Skipper Ashwell Prince who has hardly put a foot wrong in this innings and is on 60 and with him is the cool and responsible Mark Boucher on 38. Sri Lankans may not be utterly disappointed at the ways things had gone by on the fourth day as they knew how the pitch was a batsman’s paradise and they never lost patience and waited for the batsmen to make the mistakes.
The day began with the new opening combination of Jacques Rudolph and Andrew Hall drawing inspiration from the record stand of Mahela and Sangakkara. The South African pair enjoyed batting on this dead surface and they took South Africa at no loss at the lunch break. A solid 150 for no loss in 46 Overs was on board for the Proteas with Rudolph on 80 and Hall on 60 at the end of the first session. However after lunch, Dilhara Fernando got his reverse swing going at brisk speeds and he came round the stumps to Rudolph who was on 90. Dilhara angled a full delivery into the left hander from round the stumps and then got the reverse swing to take the ball away from the left hander, by then Rudolph was forced to push and the resulting edge was safely taken by Chamara Kapugedera in the slips. That was the breakthrough for the Sri Lankans and it took them just 52 overs to get the first wicket! Well that was a fabulous opening stand indeed putting on 165. But they were soon 171 for 2 with Dilhara striking once again with his reverse swing removing Hashim Amla. The right hander was struck in the crease in front of the stumps as he was beaten by the pace and the late inswing from Dilhara. It wasn’t a straight forward lbw decision with doubts whether the ball would have swung past the legstump or would have straightened to hit the legstump.
Skipper Ashwell Prince promoted himself in the batting order and Herschelle Gibbs was given enough time to recover from his fever. Prince looked very relaxed in this innings and his footwork was very assured. He lost his partner Andrew Hall though who had also missed a well deserved century. Hall was done in by the magician Muralitharan who came round the stumps to beat Hall with his quick turn to strike the batsman in front of the offstump. It was a loud and long appeal from Murali as Billy Bowden’s computer brain seems to have been processing slow and his crooked finger came up ever so slowly. Prince and new man AB de Villiers then carried the South Africans to Tea at 207 for 3 with Prince seeing off 64 deliveries.
The first innings half centurion, AB de Villiers found the momentum going in his innings after the break, but was soon out picking the wrong length in playing the sweep shot off Muralitharan. It was the second new ball which Murali was sharing with Lasith Malinga. Muralitharan bowling round the stumps bowled it fuller in length and de Villiers who was on his sweep missed that and got struck in front of the stumps. South Africa at this stage slipped down to 234 for 4 with 21 more overs left in the day. They were thoughts that Murali could run through the rest of the batting line up in the remaining overs. But Mark Boucher and Ashwell Prince did not entertain any thoughts of an early finish to the Test Match as they batted through for more than an hour to put up an unbeaten 77 runs partnership for the fifth wicket.
We will have to see if Ashwell Prince and Mark Boucher keep their partnership going for the Proteas in tomorrow’s morning session or not. Herschelle Gibbs is yet to bat and everyone knows what he is capable of on his day. South Africans had successfully chased 434 in 50 Overs against the Aussies, so they should believe in their abilities in playing out the fifth and final day on a fifth day pitch that might remain intact with not much of quick turn for the spinners.