Ken Borland

Kagiso Rabada is still not going to be there so the Proteas know the consistency of their inexperienced bowling attack is going to be their main area of focus in the second Test against Sri Lanka which starts at the Wanderers on Sunday.

Proteas management confirmed on Saturday that although they were happy with Rabada’s progress after recovering from a groin strain, they are still working on getting his bowling workloads up and they do not want to risk him with tough series against Pakistan and Australia still to come this summer.

It means South Africa will almost certainly go into the second Test with the same attack that played at Centurion and featured their least capped pace quartet since 1993. Given their rawness, it was not surprising that they struggled on the first day, getting carried away with the pace and bounce of the SuperSport Park pitch, struggling with their lines and not sticking to a full enough length. But they improved steadily and their bowling on the final day was spot-on.

“We have a very inexperienced bowling attack with KG not there to lead. Maybe they were trying too hard, they were nervous, and when the batsmen are scoring so quickly, it’s difficult to step back and take your time – that’s where the inexperience comes in. But from the second innings you could see the mindshift. In our language we also tried to give them more confidence.

“It’s all about the character they showed in that second innings. They bowled different lines and lengths and just tried to keep things as simple as possible. It was great to see them stand up and I can tell you that in the two days of practice we’ve had since then, it was some of the best bowling I’ve seen in the nets. The bowling has shown a massive improvement from that second innings,” senior player Dean Elgar said on Saturday.

The Proteas produced a top-class batting performance at Centurion, but Elgar acknowledged that it was against a depleted Sri Lankan attack and Sunday will bring a fresh start at the Wanderers.

“We scored more than 600 and you can’t take that hard work for granted, it was a good effort, but we have to be mindful that their bowling attack was hit by quite a few injuries. Still, we’ll take a lot of confidence from that performance and it was nice that a lot of batsmen got good starts. Scoring more than 600 has been a bit foreign to us of late, but we’ve put a stake in the ground now.

“We’ve been batting well domestically but it was great to do it at international level. A guy like Aiden Markram, who has been away from the team, brought his form of domestic cricket and proved that he’s not just a batsman who can score runs at domestic level, he can do it at this level too. And then it was very important that Faf du Plessis and I put in big performances as leaders and it was lovely to see Kesh Maharaj get runs too,” Elgar said.

Proteas batsman Temba Bavuma said on Friday that the pressure was on the South African batsmen in the first Test against Sri Lanka and the fact that they were able to deliver means they will go into the second Test starting at the Wanderers on Sunday with spirits high.

After a poor bowling display on the first day by the Proteas, Sri Lanka were able to post 396 in their first innings, their highest ever total in South Africa. Batting second on a tricky pitch on which the bounce was only getting more inconsistent, the home side replied with a brilliant total of 621. Dean Elgar and Aiden Markram set the tone with their opening stand of 141 and the middle-order then batted superbly, led by Faf du Plessis’ epic 199, to recover from a wobble that saw them lose three wickets for 20 runs. Bavuma stroked an impressive 71 as he shared a record fifth-wicket stand of 179 with Du Plessis, the key partnership of the match.

“It was a good all-round performance by the team, we were able to bring the game back through strong performances, led by the batting. There hasn’t been a lot of consistency or confidence in our batting so the pressure was on, especially on the senior guys to step up. There was pressure on us because we are quite an inexperienced side and the batting has the Test caps, so the team looks to us to perform, which adds an extra element of pressure.

“Fortunately they were able to step up and Dean and Aiden set us up, before Faf’s career-best knock which was more than magnificent. I was able to set up a partnership with him that led to a winning position and it was nice for myself to get some runs under the belt, to get the confidence flowing. I was happy with the way I went about my business although the opportunity was there to score so much more. Walking prematurely before the umpire’s decision was not my cleverest moment, but it was spur of the moment,” Bavuma said on Friday.

With both Migael Pretorius and Glenton Stuurman released from the squad due to muscle strains, and coach Mark Boucher having expressed his reluctance to not field a spinner, the return of Kagiso Rabada is the sole likely change to the team that won by an innings at Centurion.

“The first-innings bowling was not our best effort but the second innings was much better in terms of discipline, intensity and ruthlessness. Our bowling attack is quite inexperienced but they have a lot of skill, there’s no compromise on that. They are eager and keen to learn. The Wanderers will be quite similar to Centurion, with pace, bounce and lateral movement.

“Our bowlers relish those conditions and the batsmen are used to quick and more bouncy pitches. We are quite courageous mentally in those conditions. Our familiarity with the conditions makes it easier for us,” Bavuma said.

Left-arm paceman Beuran Hendricks landed the killer blows in a record performance as the Imperial Lions skittled an ailing Cape Cobras batting line-up for just 115 on the opening day of their CSA 4-Day Domestic Series match at the Wanderers on Monday.

Hendricks returned exceptional figures of seven for 29 in 13 overs, his career-best analysis and the best ever for the Lions against the Cobras, beating the seven for 61 fellow Proteas quick Friedel de Wet took in 2005/6.

The Cobras had bravely decided to bat first under overcast skies and Hendricks made them suffer as he swung and seamed the ball around in helpful conditions. Kyle Verreynne was the only batsman to do well, scoring 51.

The Lions then reached 152 for three by stumps and already have a first-innings lead of 37. Opener Dominic Hendricks, compact and leaving the ball well, dug in for the home side and had scored a tenacious, important 60 not out off 141 balls at the close, and captain Temba Bavuma was with him on 22.

In Bloemfontein, an outstanding unbeaten century by young Raynard van Tonder saw the Knights post 323 for seven in their match against the Dolphins.

The Knights, having won the toss, produced another solid batting display but Van Tonder was the only one to cash in as he scored a classy 119 not out.

An unflagging Dolphins attack kept plugging away though and Matthew Kleinveldt (44), Jacques Snyman (35), Pite van Biljon (39) and Farhaan Behardien (39) all made starts without going on past fifty.

The Warriors team owes Gihahn Cloete their gratitude as he ushered them to 137 for four on a rain-shortened opening day of their match against the Titans in Port Elizabeth.

Cloete showed good composure and determination as he scored 57 not out, helping the Warriors recover from 35 for two and then 84 for four. Sinethemba Qeshile is with him at the crease on 20 not out.

Lizaad Williams once again led the attack for the Titans, with two for 50 in 15 overs.

Winter may be upon us and the country still in the grip of the Covid-19 pandemic, but according to Central Gauteng Lions Cricket chief executive Jono Leaf-Wright, there are still sunny skies over the Wanderers and the floodlights will metaphorically keep shining bright through the crisis.

Leaf-Wright said the Johannesburg-based franchise is in a good position to hit the ground running when cricket resumes when he spoke in an online press conference to introduce the new Central Gauteng Lions board.

“The financials were in a great place back in February, but nobody envisaged then the impact Covid would have and we have lost many revenue streams. But it was to our benefit that the virus hit at the back end of our season and we are still in a decent place with no real long-term impact to the organisation. We are all working really hard on returning to work, training and playing.

“But we’re also working on mitigating the risks so we can return as quickly as possible and as safely as possible. It’s full steam ahead for our operations team and we’ve had exciting interest from our sponsors. Hopefully a lot of us will be back at the Wanderers in the next week or two and the floodlights are staying on to show people we are ready to return as soon as government allows,” Leaf-Wright said on Friday.

Leaf-Wright said they were hopeful that domestic cricket would be able to resume in November, but said they would be able to weather the storm if they had to wait until the new year.

“The plans we have discussed with Cricket South Africa are to have matches in November and there are still international tours that need to go ahead before that. There may be some problems if we don’t start as planned, but obviously we have to put safety first, we have a duty of care to the players. It’s not essential that we get back to playing in November, but we would need to if we are going to fit everything into the season.

“There are new tournaments that we want to launch but we won’t be able to if the schedule is full. The three existing events, the four-day series, One-Day Cup and the new-look Mzansi Super League, are key for us and our sponsors though. It’s just about how jam-packed we can make the season. In the meantime everybody on the team is working hard to stay fit and strong,” Leaf-Wright said.