South Africa and Bangladesh will feel equally pleased with their day’s work after the visitors reached 257 for six wickets at the close of the first day of the second Test in Dhaka on Thursday.
Winning the toss and batting, South Africa found themselves in deep trouble at 63/4 shortly after lunch. Graeme Smith, Herschelle Gibbs, Boeta Dippenaar and Neil McKenzie were all back in the air conditioned comfort of the dressing room as Mohammed Rafique took 3/10 in seven overs of slow left-arm spin.
Smith was the only one to perish to a quick bowler as he pulled Tapash Baisya straight to Ashraful at deep square leg for 15. Gibbs miss-timed a lofted on-drive off Rafique for 21, Dippenaaar was dealt a harsh hand when adjudged caught at silly point for a single and McKenzie was trapped dead in front for seven.
Strangely this is only Rafique’s third Test match, having made his debut in Bangladesh’s inaugural Test against India nearly three years ago.
The rot was stopped by Jacques Rudolph and Mark Boucher as they played with control and caution on as slow a pitch as has hosted Test cricket. They put on 107 for the 5th wicket. The hallmark of the partnership was prudent shot selection, a crucial aspect on a pitch of such uneven bounce.
Rudolph followed his first Test double century with a composed 71 before he was caught behind off leg-spinner Ashraful. Boucher then added 49 with Shaun Pollock as they worked the ball around the wicket with skill before the wicketkeeper became Rafique’s fourth victim, bowled for 71 as he made room to cut.
South Africa were 219/7 with 15 overs remaining in the day and Bangladesh were in with an outside chance of batting on the first day. But Shaun Pollock and debutant Robin Peterson showed patience and concentration as they added 38 for the seventh wicket to stumps. An indication of the difficulties faced in scoring on this surface is that the usually ultra-aggressive Pollock had taken 90 balls to reach 38. Peterson will resume on 15.
Mark Boucher felt that South Africa had done a good job under the circumstances. ”I think that 257 is probably worth about 320 on this track, so although it might appear to be an indifferent day we have done a pretty good job. The ball is not bouncing or coming on to the bat at all and scoring runs is hard work,” he said at the end of the day. – Sapa