Ryan Rickelton, on his return to the side, notched up his maiden Test hundred, but Sri Lanka’s pacers pulled their team back into the game against South Africa at the end of day 1 in the second Test at St. George’s Park in Gqeberha.
Asitha Fernando provided the perfect start for Sri Lanka, trapping Tony de Zorzi lbw off the first ball he faced, with no runs on the board. Aiden Markram looked promising, but Lahiru Kumara struck twice in three overs, leaving the hosts struggling at 44 for 3.
Kumara’s first scalp was Markram, who became his 100th Test wicket as a delivery that nipped back shattered his stumps. Next, Tristan Stubbs, one of the centurions from the first game, couldn’t replicate his heroics, managing only a faint outside edge to keeper Kusal Mendis.
Once again, skipper Temba Bavuma stood tall for the Proteas. Along with Ryan Rickelton, who came in at No. 3, he revived the innings with a superb century stand. Bavuma continued his fine form in the series, notching up his 23rd Test fifty, while Rickelton brought up his maiden half-century. The pair took control in the second session, forcing the Lankan bowlers to toil.
However, after batting brilliantly, Bavuma misjudged a short ball, gloving it to the keeper off Asitha just before tea. His gritty knock of 78 off 109 balls ended the 133-run fourth-wicket stand.
Post-tea, Sri Lanka had opportunities to send back David Bedingham, but he was dropped twice — once by Vishwa Fernando and then by Dinesh Chandimal. Bedingham, however, failed to capitalize and was soon bowled by Prabath Jayasuriya while attempting an aggressive shot, leaving the home side at 186 for 5.
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Rickelton, then joined by Kyle Verreynne, showed patience as the duo pushed South Africa past 250 with a steady half-century partnership. Rickelton then converted his maiden fifty into a maiden Test hundred, setting the hosts up for a strong finish on the opening day.
But the second new ball provided the much-needed breakthrough for Sri Lanka. Kumara was brought back and struck immediately, dismissing the left hander for a well-made 106, which included 11 boundaries in 250 balls.
That wicket triggered another, as Vishwa Fernando bowled Marco Jansen with a beauty, sending his off stump cartwheeling. Sri Lanka staged a strong comeback towards the end of the day, with South Africa finishing at 269 for 7, Verreynne unbeaten on 48 at stumps.
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Kumara was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka, finishing with 3 for 54, while two Fernandos, and Jayasuriya shared the remaining four wickets.
Earlier, South African captain Temba Bavuma elected to bat first after winning the toss. They made a couple of changes following injuries to Wiaan Mulder and Gerald Coetzee, with Ryan Rickelton and Dane Paterson coming into the side.
Despite losing the first Test, the visitors, Sri Lanka, fielded an unchanged XI.
Playing XI:
Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva (C), Kusal Mendis (WK), Prabath Jayasuriya, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Asitha Fernando
South Africa: Aiden Markram, Tony de Zorzi, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Temba Bavuma (C), David Bedingham, Kyle Verreynne (WK), Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Dane Paterson
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aiden Markram | b Lahiru Kumara | 20 | 35 | 4 | 0 | 57.14 |
| Tony de Zorzi | lbw b Vishwa Fernando | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Ryan Rickelton | c Pathum Nissanka b Lahiru Kumara | 101 | 250 | 11 | 0 | 40.40 |
| Tristan Stubbs | c Kamindu Mendis b Lahiru Kumara | 4 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 22.22 |
| Temba Bavuma | c Kamindu Mendis b Asitha Fernando | 78 | 109 | 8 | 1 | 71.56 |
| David Bedingham | b Prabath Jayasuriya | 6 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 31.58 |
| Kyle Verreynne | not out | 105 | 133 | 12 | 3 | 78.95 |
| Marco Jansen | b Vishwa Fernando | 4 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 80.00 |
| Keshav Maharaj | c Dimuth Karunaratne b Vishwa Fernando | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Kagiso Rabada | b Asitha Fernando | 23 | 40 | 5 | 0 | 57.50 |
| Dane Paterson | c Kusal Mendis b Lahiru Kumara | 9 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 90.00 |
| Extras | 8 (b 1 , lb 1 , nb 2, w 4, pen 0) |
| Total | 358/10 (102.4 Overs, RR: 3.49) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vishwa Fernando | 22 | 6 | 65 | 2 | 2.95 | |
| Asitha Fernando | 23 | 2 | 102 | 3 | 4.43 | |
| Lahiru Kumara | 17.4 | 3 | 79 | 4 | 4.54 | |
| Prabath Jayasuriya | 31 | 4 | 84 | 1 | 2.71 | |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | 9 | 1 | 26 | 0 | 2.89 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pathum Nissanka | b Keshav Maharaj | 89 | 157 | 11 | 1 | 56.69 |
| Dimuth Karunaratne | c Kyle Verreynne b Kagiso Rabada | 20 | 43 | 4 | 0 | 46.51 |
| Dinesh Chandimal | c Kyle Verreynne b Dane Paterson | 44 | 97 | 5 | 0 | 45.36 |
| Angelo Mathews | c Kyle Verreynne b Marco Jansen | 44 | 90 | 6 | 0 | 48.89 |
| Kamindu Mendis | c Aiden Markram b Marco Jansen | 48 | 92 | 4 | 0 | 52.17 |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | c Aiden Markram b Dane Paterson | 14 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 51.85 |
| Kusal Mendis | b Dane Paterson | 16 | 28 | 3 | 0 | 57.14 |
| Prabath Jayasuriya | st Kyle Verreynne b Keshav Maharaj | 24 | 32 | 4 | 0 | 75.00 |
| Lahiru Kumara | c Marco Jansen b Dane Paterson | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Vishwa Fernando | c Kyle Verreynne b Dane Paterson | 2 | 31 | 0 | 0 | 6.45 |
| Asitha Fernando | not out | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 27 (b 13 , lb 8 , nb 5, w 1, pen 0) |
| Total | 328/10 (99.2 Overs, RR: 3.3) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kagiso Rabada | 24 | 7 | 56 | 1 | 2.33 | |
| Marco Jansen | 25 | 4 | 100 | 2 | 4.00 | |
| Dane Paterson | 22 | 4 | 71 | 5 | 3.23 | |
| Keshav Maharaj | 24.2 | 5 | 65 | 1 | 2.69 | |
| Aiden Markram | 4 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 3.75 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tony de Zorzi | b Prabath Jayasuriya | 19 | 38 | 2 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Aiden Markram | c Kusal Mendis b Vishwa Fernando | 55 | 75 | 5 | 0 | 73.33 |
| Ryan Rickelton | lbw b Prabath Jayasuriya | 24 | 45 | 3 | 0 | 53.33 |
| Tristan Stubbs | run out (Dimuth Karunaratne) | 47 | 112 | 2 | 0 | 41.96 |
| Temba Bavuma | b Prabath Jayasuriya | 66 | 116 | 3 | 2 | 56.90 |
| David Bedingham | c Dhananjaya de Silva b Prabath Jayasuriya | 35 | 55 | 3 | 0 | 63.64 |
| Kyle Verreynne | c Kusal Mendis b Vishwa Fernando | 9 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Marco Jansen | c Asitha Fernando b Prabath Jayasuriya | 8 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 72.73 |
| Keshav Maharaj | not out | 14 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 63.64 |
| Kagiso Rabada | c Kusal Mendis b Lahiru Kumara | 8 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Dane Paterson | b Asitha Fernando | 14 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 175.00 |
| Extras | 18 (b 1 , lb 7 , nb 1, w 9, pen 0) |
| Total | 317/10 (86 Overs, RR: 3.69) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vishwa Fernando | 19 | 4 | 47 | 2 | 2.47 | |
| Asitha Fernando | 14 | 2 | 52 | 1 | 3.71 | |
| Lahiru Kumara | 16 | 0 | 71 | 1 | 4.44 | |
| Prabath Jayasuriya | 34 | 2 | 129 | 5 | 3.79 | |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3.33 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pathum Nissanka | c Kyle Verreynne b Dane Paterson | 18 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 40.91 |
| Dimuth Karunaratne | lbw b Kagiso Rabada | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Dinesh Chandimal | lbw b Dane Paterson | 29 | 57 | 5 | 0 | 50.88 |
| Angelo Mathews | b Keshav Maharaj | 32 | 59 | 4 | 1 | 54.24 |
| Kamindu Mendis | c Kyle Verreynne b Keshav Maharaj | 35 | 35 | 4 | 1 | 100.00 |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | c Kyle Verreynne b Kagiso Rabada | 50 | 92 | 7 | 0 | 54.35 |
| Kusal Mendis | c Aiden Markram b Keshav Maharaj | 46 | 76 | 3 | 2 | 60.53 |
| Prabath Jayasuriya | c Temba Bavuma b Keshav Maharaj | 9 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 47.37 |
| Vishwa Fernando | c Marco Jansen b Keshav Maharaj | 5 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 20.83 |
| Lahiru Kumara | c Ryan Rickelton b Marco Jansen | 1 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 9.09 |
| Asitha Fernando | not out | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 12 (b 5 , lb 1 , nb 6, w 0, pen 0) |
| Total | 238/10 (69.1 Overs, RR: 3.44) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kagiso Rabada | 21 | 3 | 63 | 2 | 3.00 | |
| Marco Jansen | 10.1 | 1 | 54 | 1 | 5.35 | |
| Keshav Maharaj | 25 | 3 | 76 | 5 | 3.04 | |
| Dane Paterson | 12 | 3 | 33 | 2 | 2.75 | |
| Aiden Markram | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6.00 | |
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