South Africa vs Pakistan – Pakistan came back well in the second half of the first session following a 61-run opening stand that set the tone for South Africa’s innings in the second Test in Cape Town. Rickelton reached his second fifty-plus score but the wickets of Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder and Tristan Stubbs helped Pakistan bounce back strongly as South Africa went into Lunch on Day 1 at 72/3.
South Africa vs Pakistan – It was a productive first hour’s play for South Africa after the hosts opted to bat, with Rickelton leading the charge. Rickelton played some crisp drives, getting three fours inside the first five overs before Markram drove Mir Hamza for two successive boundaries. Meanwhile, Saim Ayub twisted his ankle while fielding and had to be helped off the field, and later was taken to a hospital for scans, adding to Pakistan’s concerns. The bowlers didn’t find much help barring the occasional movement, with Rickelton’s two back-to-back fours off Khurram Shahzad in the 12th over helping South Africa past 50.
Memorable Matches and Series
South Africa vs Pakistan – Markram, who was saved by the umpire’s call on the first ball of the match, had another reprieve in the second over after the drinks break, dropped by Abdullah Shafique at cover when the batter played a hard cut off Shahzad. At the other end, Rickelton continued to collect runs at a good rate, playing a fine on-drive off Mir Hamza for his seventh boundary to enter the 40s. The opening partnership, however, came to an end when Markram tried to drive a Shahzad delivery pitched outside off and edged it to the ‘keeper.
South Africa vs Pakistan – Pakistan were a lot more disciplined with their line and length in the second hour but it didn’t help that the edges weren’t carrying to the slip cordon. Their persistence finally brought a reward when Mulder became the next to depart, caught behind off Mohammad Abbas who kept bowling in the outside-off channel patiently. Rickelton reached fifty in the final over before the break but South Africa suffered another setback as Stubbs edged behind a delivery from Salman Agha at the stroke of Lunch.
South Africa vs Pakistan – Ryan Rickelton, promoted to open the batting in Tony de Zorzi’s injury-enforced absence, scored fifty but was the only one of South Africa’s top three to kick on as Pakistan made three important breakthroughs in the morning session. Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder and Tristan Stubbs will all be disappointed with their shot selection as Pakistan were rewarded for their patience in front of a nearly-packed Newlands.
South Africa vs Pakistan – For now, the spectators will be relieved that Newlands has not played the way it did last year when a vicious pitch saw the match end in 107 overs and South Africa bowled out for 55 by lunch on day one. The mottled green surface with slightly less grass than expected has played placidly and is expected to get better for batting over the next day and a half.
Key Players and Their Impact South Africa vs Pakistan
That will only make Pakistan more pleased that they took advantage of the errors which presented themselves. South Africa vs Pakistan –
Mohammad Abbas, who bowled 19.3 consecutive overs at SuperSport Park last weekend for a career-best 6 for 54, took the new ball and almost had immediate success. His first ball angled across Markram and hit his front pad and Pakistan thought they had the first wicket. Umpire Nitin Menon was unmoved so they reviewed but replays showed it was clipping the top of off but Markram survived on umpire’s call.
Rickelton hit the first boundary of the morning, a well-timed flick through the on-side and the next two, on the other side of the ‘v’. Markram found his rhythm shortly afterwards with back-to-back drives off the left-armer Mir Hamza, who was brought into this match for the injured Naseem Shah.
South Africa vs Pakistan – The first real trouble came in the next over when Rickelton edged Abbas through the cordon and Aamer Jamal and Saim Ayub chased it from gully. Jamal got to the ball first and Ayub was on hand to pick up the relay but seemed to roll over his ankle and appeared in sudden and severe pain. He received treatment on field, including strapping, and hobbled off before being taken to hospital for further scans.
Pakistan’s mood dipped and the next five overs cost 22 runs, as South Africa’s openers brought up a fifty-run stand. It is only their second half-century partnership since March 2023, after Markam and de Zorzi put on 55 against Sri Lanka in Gqeberha.
Memorable Matches and Series South Africa vs Pakistan
Abbas finally had the ball taken out of his hands after six overs, which meant he had delivered 25.3 consecutive overs in the series, and was replaced by Hamza from the other end as Saud Shakeel rotated his three premier quicks. The chance came from Khurram Shahzad, who had Markram driving loosely straight to substitute fielder Abdullah Shafique. After three ducks in the ODIs and no game time since, Shafique was under pressure and the ball went straight into and out of his hands. Markram was on 17.
South Africa vs Pakistan – No actual damage was done as, in the next over, Markram slashed at a ball that just moved away and inside-edged through to Mohammad Rizwan. Shahzad kept the pressure on and induced an edge off Rickelton but the chance fell short of the cordon, who were standing quite deep. That brought Wiaan Mulder to the crease, promoted above Tristan Stubbs for this match, but his stay at No.3 may be short-lived. Abbas returned after a seven-over break and his unerring accuracy found Mulder’s outside edge to give Pakistan a second wicket.
Aamer Jamal was brought towards the end of the session, as was Salman Agha. He is expected to play a big role with the ball, after not bowling at all at Super Sport Park, and duly got a wicket in his first over. On the stroke of lunch, Tristan Stubbs stayed back to a tossed-up ball and edged to Rizwan.
The Enduring Legacy of the South Africa vs Pakistan Rivalry
Brief scores: South Africa 72/3 (Ryan Rickelton 50*, Aiden Markram 17; Salman Agha 1-1, Khurram Shahzad 1-17) vs Pakistan.