South Africa 301 (Markram 89, Bosch 81*, Shahzad 3-75, Naseem 3-92) and 150 for 8 (Bavuma 40, Abbas 6-54) batted Pakistan 211 (Ghulam 54, Paterson 5-61, Bosch 4-63) and 237 (Shakeel 84, Babar 50, Jansen 6-52) by two wickets
Pakistan gave themselves every chance as they ran through South Africa’s middle order on a morning of chaos, where South Africa lost 5 for 37, including four wickets for three runs in 12 balls , which forced the bowlers to finish the job.
Both Jansen and Rabada are capable with the bat, but with the pressure on maximum, every ball was an event, from the second one Rabada faced, hit and went past point for four, to the last , delicately directed by Jansen. point to ensure winning races.
These shots are also screenshots of how the two men approached the chase: Rabada backed himself up to play his shots while Jansen was more conservative and happy to wait for scoring opportunities.
Between them, they only gifted one chance, when Rabada, on 12, angled outside off and took the lead, but the chance fell short of Mohammad Rizwan. It happened after lunch, the break in which South Africa needed 32 to win.
Bavuma would also have been a relieved man after reaching 40 and then walking when he didn’t hit the ball. He was given what appeared to be the inside edge and he walked. Replays showed the ball grazed part of his clothing and, with all three scans available, South Africa could have sought a second opinion.
Instead, Bavuma, who had received treatment on his elbow shortly before, moved up from the middle order to finish the job.
Kyle Verreynne couldn’t get behind the line of a Naseem Shah delivery and clipped it to his stumps. In the next match, David Bedingham chased down an Abbas ball and was caught, and Corbin Bosch did almost exactly the same to give Abbas his sixth wicket and South Africa collapsed a position which seemed comfortable: 96 for 4 after teetering precariously on 27. for 3 nights.
Bavuma got the first runs of the morning, and his first runs, on the fifth ball, off a half-volley from Abbas which he clipped into square leg. Abbas adjusted by a length and on his next over he thought he had found Bavuma’s advantage. Rizwan pointed out that the ball had grazed Bavuma’s thigh, but Shah Masood looked back anyway. Rizwan was right and Bavuma, on 5, was able to continue.
Aiden Markram looked slightly more in control but got a streaky boundary before Bavuma smashed Khurram Shahzad at mid-off to leave South Africa with 100 to go.
On the next ball, Bavuma, on 13, was given weight to Shahzad but examined immediately. Replays showed an inside advantage and Bavuma survived again.
South Africa scored just three runs from the next 27 balls before Bavuma eased the pressure with a hook shot off Abbas that Naseem thought he could control. Naseem got his hand under the ball, but the momentum carried him over the boundary line and not only did Bavuma get away with the shot he’s fallen on several times this season, but he got six.
To add insult to injury, Markram smashed the second off Naseem’s next ball over extra cover for four. Fourteen dot balls followed before a Markram single took South Africa to the first glass break with no damage done and 35 runs scored in the first hour.
Three balls after the break, Markram was brought down by an Abbas shot that stayed low as he tried to trap his bat and keep it out. That ended a 43-run fourth-wicket stand between Bavuma and Markram and brought Bedingham, who has a best score of 35 this summer, to the crease.
He started with a wrist shot for four before Bavuma produced an exquisite cover, but the eye-catching shots were followed by risky shots.
Bavuma couldn’t resist another hook, even though he couldn’t fully extend his elbow, but the chance fell safely. He then advanced on Shahzad, brought back to replace Naseem, and punched over the covers, but could never get comfortable.
Two balls later, Shahzad thought he had found his outside edge but Rizwan saw it was a pad and Masood listened. Bavuma faced eight more balls before requiring treatment on his right elbow – the left was injured before this season – but continued. In the next match he drove expansively and loosely against Abbas and walked, but his teammates had enough in the tank to secure South Africa’s place at Lord’s next year and take a 1-point lead -0 in the series. South Africa will play another Test in this cycle, against Pakistan, at Newlands next week.
