As the two-match test series between South Africa and Zimbabwe is officially underway, this first day was nothing short of eventful. With the Proteas squad finishing at 418/9, their batting unit was full of twists and turns throughout. Although many analysts were concerned about how both sides would perform due to the absence of some players and the rest of the others, many replacements didn’t miss a beat during all three sessions.
Zimbabwe played in their first test match after about a decade, and nothing was better for them than playing their intercontinental rivals across the border. With about 13,000 proud fans in attendance, it gave the first match a very nice appeal as well. Although this was just the first day, more fans will show up over the next couple of days for these four innings full of excitement and a potential matchup that can come down to the wire. Talking about day one in specific now, there were key points to note in this game on how both teams performed and what they could do to further elevate it tomorrow.
The Middle and Bottom-Order Dominance of South Africa Shows Up Again
Looking at South Africa’s squad, their last 7 batsman made the most impact for this unit one more time. Although they were missing many stars like Marco Jansen, Temba Bavuma, and Tristan Stubbs for resting purposes, newcomers such as Lhuan-dre Pretorious dominated the innings. The 19-year-old slammed 153 runs and really did it with exquisite fours plus monstrous sixes out of the ground.
Someone who managed to get a 150+ score in his first-ever test innings, his 15 combined boundaries allowed him to hit such a big score in just 160 balls faced. Coming in at a time when South Africa was just 23/3, this young rising star’s contribution helped them get to 289/7 before he ended up getting caught by Wellington Masakadza.
With some local South African fans already comparing him to the likes of Graeme Smith and Quinton De Kock, another player to look out for after this performance was all-rounder Corbin Bosch. Although few fans remember him from his time with Mumbai Indians this season, Bosch finally got to get his name known playing for South Africa.
When Lhaun-dre Pretorious got out and South Africa was 7-down, many fans thought Zimbabwe would quickly wrap the match up today. But that was not reality as Bosch remains not out after striking a century and getting the Proteas well over 400 runs. Although his innings was not as flashy as Pretorious, this batting performance has shown his ability to play controlled shots while also being a bowling threat tomorrow.
Zimbabwe’s Top 3 Bowlers Continue Creating Pressure
Although Zimbabwe’s bowling struggled as a total unit in their return to test cricket, their three major bowlers gave them a shot to get South Africa all out early. Back-end bowlers like Vincent Masekesa, 97 runs allowed in 13 overs, and Brian Bennett, were a major cause for them losing control of this match, but Zimbabwe had control of this match early on.
Getting the Proteas strangled at 55/4, Tanaka Chivanga was looking like he would take over a match once again. Getting three wickets in his first spell, his intent was to get people out of the crease and force them to double think where they would play their shots. Along with that, he had also gotten Lhuan-Dre Pretorious out and gave his side another to get the opposition bowled out for less than 300.
Even though it didn’t eventually end up happening, their other pacer, Blessing Muzarabani, continued to remain the team’s top bowler after picking up 2 more wickets. Someone who has 54 test match wickets in just 13 matches, his length once again played a dominating factor with balls bowled more fully and towards the legs. As he has been a revelation for this bowling attack, the most popular name of Wellington Masakadza ended up taking the maximum overs with 30 overs bowled. Although he allowed 109 runs, his wicket of Kyle Verreynne, who was looking like he had finally found form, ended up being massive. The major story is how the remaining bowlers can perform early tomorrow, and the remaining innings they have to bowl.
The Questionable Top-Order For Proteas
As it was mentioned that most of the batters after 4-down performed today, their top order has once again come into huge question. Although regular starters Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram are not playing in this match, they need to find other pieces that could compete with someone like Ryan Rickleton, who lacked consistency during the last World Test Championship. Even though Tony De Zorzi has been in the fold for the last couple years, he got out for 0 runs once again.
Having faced 16 balls, De Zorzi does have potential but has yet to find any consistency in the front. The other opener in Matthew Breetzke, out for 13 runs, also seemed to lack the similar confidence he has when playing in ODIs.
David Bedingham has not really been able to find any form as he also got out for 0 in just 3 balls. The major solution the South Africa team could try next match is to move Dewald Brevis into the top four and move down Bedingham.
Seeing that would allow the Proteas to have a balanced attack, rather than having to worry about their bottom-order always dominating, it would allow them to score a high amount of runs in every match. Going into the second innings it will be quite interesting to see if they make any adjustments tommrow and if they move Corbin Bosch up-top after seeing how he finishes tommorow.
Also Read: ICC WTC 2023-25 : Temba Bavuma Slams Australia’s Horrible Sledging