Cummins Strikes As Smith Still Seethes

Neil Manthorp reports on a day that was dominated by Australia’s fightback and acrimony felt by Steve Smith

- Neil Manthorp

Pat Cummins single-handedly bowled Australia back into the third Test against South Africa with a superb spell of fast bowling on a well-paced but flat Newlands pitch yesterday after the hosts had won the toss and reached an ominous 220-2 half an hour after tea before crashing to 266-8 by the close.

Having bowled two wicketless spells at a cost of 47, a change of ends for Cummins saw him grab 4-17 starting with the priceless wicket of AB de Villiers (64) who drove tamely and unexpectedly to mid-off.

Faf du Plessis (5) and Temba Bavuma (1), who has played no first-class cricket for over two months, edged Cummins to Steve Smith at second slip before Quinton de Kock did the same to the keeper. Two further wickets fell before the close which saw man-in-the-news Kagiso Rabada walk to the crease to a cheering the like of which he is unlikely to experience again – as a batsman – where he joined Dean Elgar who had just completed his well-crafted ton.

Australia were as quiet and flat as the pitch in the first two sessions which were easily the least confrontational and cantankerous of the series so far. Some of that demeanour could have been the result of the curiously argumentative approach taken by captain Smith to the rescinding of Rabada’s ban three days before the Test started.