Captain Temba Bavuma produced a career-best 179 on Tuesday, the third day of the second Test against Australia at St George’s Park, as South Africa mounted a dramatic comeback. The hosts were 97 for five overnight but finished on 425 for nine declared, a score that looked unlikely at the start of play.
Bavuma shared century partnerships with Marco Jansen (85) and Simon Harmer (82) along the way. He had spent the first two rain-shortened days battling bowler-friendly conditions before reaching this innings.
Jansen’s aggressive innings shifts the momentum
The situation looked grim when the sixth wicket fell on 110 early in the day. Jansen, however, changed the tempo, striking nine fours and three sixes from 100 deliveries.
He also dominated a seventh-wicket stand of 132 from 186 balls. Jansen departed after clipping Scott Boland to midwicket in the first over with the second new ball, and Bavuma became more assertive once Harmer arrived.
Record eighth-wicket stand and late declaration
Bavuma and Harmer added 182 runs for the eighth wicket, setting a South African Test record. The pair fell off successive balls, after which Bavuma declared, leaving Australia a short period to bat before the close.
