BATTING TRACK
TOIL: PAKISTAN HIT BACK WITH CENTURY PARTNERSHIP Early moisture gave visiting bowlers some help but became easier to bat as the pitch dried out.
Montagu Toller is not a well-known cricketer with great exploits immediately springing to mind except for those with the most intricate knowledge of the sport, but it looks like the Proteas will need to take a leaf out of his book after the first day of the second Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi yesterday.
Toller is an Olympic Games hero, having taken 7/9 as Great Britain bowled France out for 26 to win the 1900 Olympic final by 158 runs.
It was the only time cricket has featured at the Olympics, but the relevant item of trivia from paceman Toller’s tale is that all seven of those wickets were out bowled.
In other words, he must have really targeted the stumps and it looks as if that is going to be the best line of attack for the Proteas as well.
That’s because Pakistan won the toss and reached 145/3 on the first day, which saw the final session of play washed out.
After early moisture gave the South African bowlers some assistance, the pitch dried out and developed into a real beauty for batting as Babar Azam (77*) and Fawad Alam (42*) shared a fruitful partnership.
Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada and Wiaan Mulder, the all-rounder who has specifically been chosen for his line-and-length abilities, have all bowled well, but with precious little movement on offer in the afternoon and the ball seldom bouncing more than hiphigh, “bowled” and “lbw” seem the most likely ways for them to get wickets, and straight lines are going to be essential.
Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj is probably the greatest threat to the Pakistan batsmen and his variations of flight and pace, cunning and accuracy, have certainly tested Babar and Fawad.
The Dolphins star removed both Salman Butt and Azhar Ali for a duck, the opener being smartly caught behind by Quinton de Kock as the ball turned and Azhar being trapped lbw by a delivery that went straight on with the arm.
Back-up spinner George Linde left the field after bowling just 2.5 overs as a fierce drive by Babar lacerated the pinkie finger of his left-hand, leaving Maharaj, who turns 31 on Sunday, to toil for 25 overs, as the turn on offer diminished.
“Getting through the early session is crucial for batsmen here and Babar and Fawad absorbed the pressure nicely, but after lunch it was easier to bat. With the newish ball and the moisture in the morning, the ball tended to stick in the pitch a bit more. But as the moisture seeped away, the turn became substantially less,” said Maharaj after the early close of play yesterday.