1st Test
Day-2 Afternoon Session Highlights:
Marco Jansen has kept the Sri Lanka team on the backfoot by claiming 7 wickets
At The Tea of Day-2:
South Africa scored 191 (1st Innings) & 28/0 (2nd Innings), where as Sri Lanka scored 42 (1st Innings).
So, finally South Africa lead by 177 runs.
It took South Africa just 83 balls to bowl Sri Lanka out for a mere 42— their lowest-ever Test score— as Marco Jansen delivered a stunning performance, claiming 7/13.
This gave South Africa a commanding first-innings lead of 149 on a day where 16 wickets fell in just two sessions of play.
The seaming Durban pitch proved to be a nightmare for Sri Lanka, with batter after batter either nicking off or being bowled, none of them able to find solid ground in defense.
Kagiso Rabada initiated the carnage by getting Dimuth Karunaratne to nick to first slip, and Jansen took over as the main destroyer.
He dismissed Pathum Nissanka, who pushed at a delivery angled across him, and bowled Dinesh Chandimal with one that seamed in.
Angelo Mathews and Dhananjaya de Silva both fell attempting to force the pace, while the tail was just as clueless as the top order.
Gerald Coetzee also contributed with wickets, dismissing Kamindu Mendis and Kusal Mendis, leaving Sri Lanka in total disarray.
Jansen’s 41-ball spell, which yielded the third-best figures by a South African pacer at home, was a key highlight.
South Africa’s lead of 149 was the highest in Test matches where they had been bowled out for less than 200.
On a low-scoring, bowler-friendly pitch, this was a monumental advantage.
Just a short time before, South Africa had struggled to reach 191, thanks to Temba Bavuma’s 70, and had been firmly on the back foot.
Although more than two sessions were washed out on Day 1, Sri Lanka continued to trouble South Africa on Day 2 under bright sunshine.
The pacers had dismantled the South African top-order in overcast conditions on the first day, and their success continued as the sun came out.
Lahiru Kumara and Vishwa Fernando kept the pressure on in their opening spells.
Kumara added to his two wickets from Day 1 by trapping Kyle Verreynne plumb in front early on Day 2.
He then struck Wiaan Mulder on the glove, forcing him off the field, with scans to follow to assess the extent of the injury and Mulder’s availability for the rest of the Test.
With South Africa reduced to 85/6, they were in desperate need of a partnership, and Bavuma found support in Marco Jansen.
The pair defended resolutely, but Sri Lanka responded by introducing spin through Prabath Jayasuriya.
The tall left-arm spinner attacked the stumps consistently and got his reward when he breached Jansen’s defense, dismissing him lbw.
South Africa’s review was unsuccessful, and even as Bavuma neared a half-century, he lost another partner.
Gerald Coetzee, unlike Jansen, lacked the defensive temperament, and his attempted big hit against Jayasuriya was misdirected to deep midwicket, where Kamindu Mendis took a fine diving catch.
Keshav Maharaj, who came in next, took some pressure off Bavuma by lofting Jayasuriya down the ground twice and hitting him over cover for a few boundaries.
Bavuma, who had been stuck on 49, eventually reached his fifty, his 22nd in Tests.
But just as Maharaj looked set, Sri Lanka changed tactics, attacking him with pace from both ends.
This move worked as Maharaj chipped a delivery from Vishwa Fernando to mid-off, leaving South Africa in a precarious position.
Bavuma then took the initiative, driving Kumara through cover and straight down the ground, even hitting a six.
Mulder, who had been deemed available for batting if necessary, was called upon and hung in as the last-wicket pair added 26 runs.
However, the innings ended when Kagiso Rabada pulled one down to fine leg, and South Africa finished at 191 all out.
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