Australia’s commanding position was certainly set up by Matthew Renshaw’s 190. But the bowlers stood tall on day three. Starc (2-63), Hazlewood (2-54), Cummins (3-54) and spinner Lyon (2-58) all played their part. Beau Webster snared one too, taking 1-23. Steve Smith, meanwhile, took four fine catches, including a couple of classics to move ahead of Joe Root (220) for the most catches from an outfielder.
The Proteas were their own worst enemies. Four of the top six got to 30, but none of them passed 50. Kerry O’Keeffe just said on Fox Cricket that “there are no demons” in this wicket and that’s true. The bounce is consistent, there’s no roaring spin and there was not much swing out there for the quicks either. Instead, Australia’s quicks, led by captain Pat Cummins, relied on pace, line and length. Oh, and some poor batsmanship from South Africa’s batsmen.
Australia’s captain Pat CumminsAP Photo/Themba Hadebe