Hosts seek reprieve with second new ball

Second day’s play of opening Test washed out.

BRISBANE:

The imminent second new ball is the trump card up Australia’s sleeve as they attempt to battle their way back into the rain-hit first Test against South Africa, said the hosts’ coach Mickey Arthur yesterday.

He spoke as the entire second day was washed out with the top-ranked Proteas in the box seat at 255 for two after a strong opening day, with Hashim Amla (90) and Jacques Kallis (84) nearing centuries. Arthur, who was South Africa’s coach when the Proteas pulled off an historic 2-1 series win over Australia on their last tour there in 2008-09, said Australia will have to turn around an indifferent opening day to salvage the match.

“We first have to get seven wickets now,” said Arthur. “There’s been a huge chunk of the game taken away. We’ve still got to play very, very well to give ourselves an opportunity to win.”

Despite his reluctance to talk tactics Arthur pointed to bowling with the second new ball, which skipper Michael Clarke attempted to take before play was ended early on Friday due to bad light.

“We’ve still got that second new ball up our sleeve, that’s the one trump we have. We have to make that second new ball work for us.”

He said Australia had bowled too short and missed the opportunity to put the South African batsmen under pressure on Friday’s first day.

“I thought we got our lengths wrong, we needed to be a little bit fuller. We weren’t as clinical as we had been and not as clinical as we hoped to be. We weren’t able to put South Africa under pressure for long enough.”

South Africa will be one batsman down for the rest of the Test after JP Duminy was ruled out for the remainder of the three-Test series with a ruptured Achilles tendon, suffered during a warm-down drill after Friday’s play. Duminy’s loss poses an immediate problem for the Proteas, who went into the first Brisbane Test without a recognised spinner after preferring seamer Rory Kleinveldt to leg-spinner Imran Tahir in an all-pace attack.

“I feel really sorry for JP,” said Arthur. “Our thoughts go out to him and I’m sure in six months’ time he’ll be fit and raring to go again.” 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 11^th, 2012.