Cape Town: After his team address in Gqeberha was the prelude for Australia being bowled out for 99, Andrew McDonald tried another collective pep talk in the Newlands nets before day two of the tie-breaking third Test.
If it inspired confidence in some, a more pragmatic view was shown by the sight of captain and number eight Pat Cummins padding up to bat, a day after he showed more confidence in his bowlers than batsmen to set the agenda when he won the toss. Steve Smith observed the scene as a mere spectator, still suffering whiplash-like symptoms from a neck injury.
More telling, as it turned out, was the identity of the last Australian participant to leave the nets: Josh Inglis. His throwdown session was replete with drives, cuts and frenetic foot movement, all familiar to those who saw him peel off a debut Test century in Sri Lanka last year.
By day’s end in Cape Town, it had been Inglis to make the most indelible mark on proceedings with a damaging and unbeaten 85, the perfect accelerator after a decent platform had been laid by Travis Head (41), Matt Renshaw (74) and the recalled Cameron Green (65).
Spectators remained tense for most of the day, knowing from recent history that Australia were more than capable of collapsing. Twice they lost two wickets in quick succession, but it was the team’s ability to staunch those bleeds that made for arguably their best ensemble batting day in well over a year.
Inglis’ stand with wicketkeeper Alex Carey (51 not out) absorbed the second new ball and was ultimately worth 145 in 38.4 overs by the close, taking Australia into the lead at 4-330 and offering the promise of a second big day’s batting against the most spectacular backdrop in world cricket.
“It was just sticking to our processes as long as possible,” Renshaw said of McDonald’s words. “We knew that they were going to come hard through periods, and it was just about building partnerships.
“We’ve sort of hinted at some partnerships over the first two Tests, probably more so with the bowlers. So it’s just about the batters trying to build some partnerships out there, and yeah, fortunately we had a couple of good ones.”
Marnus Labuschagne’s torturous duck had briefly appeared to set up the day for South Africa, arriving five balls after Head dragged Simon Harmer’s first ball into the stumps. Labuschagne must surely be spelled for the home series against New Zealand.
A third wicket may have followed soon after lunch when Green offered a low edge into the slips. But replays were inconclusive and, consistent with a Labuschagne catch riled not out in Durban, Green carried on his innings.
Renshaw and Green then offered a calming window into Australia’s batting future, adding 126 together at a largely steady pace – excepted for when Green launched into Kagiso Rabada with a hat-trick of hook shots. One of these landed centimetres from the grasp of deep square leg, compelling Renshaw to wander down for a chat.
“I was just asking if he was all good,” Renshaw explained. “He did hit 16 off three balls, so he got the run rate up a bit. But yeah, was just sort of seeing how he was going, seeing how whether that was in his plans, whether that’s what he wanted.
“It was more just sort of keeping that tempo, keeping the calmness out there. A times, if you hit a few boundaries in a row, you get a bit giddy. So it’s just about calming him down and sort of getting him to think about the process.”
Marco Jansen’s double strike accounted for Renshaw and Green in successive overs, but this cleared the stage for Inglis, who did not always look comfortable but succeeded in keeping the risk/reward equation in his favour alongside a more sedate Carey.
One telling outcome of Australia’s partnerships was that after he took the new ball in the morning, every Rabada spell began against set batsmen. After play South Africa revealed he had battles stomach cramps, while Jansen was also dealing with some back stiffness – the inevitable toll of a compressed three Test series.
As the shadows lengthened over Newlands, Inglis unfurled some of his very best stuff. One flick through midwicket recalled the Waugh twins, while his wrists were instrumental in producing a wider variety of cuts than your average Cape Town steakhouse.
“He’s a very talented player,” Renshaw said. “We’ve seen that across a lot of the white ball formats. But I think yeah, to sort of come in today, we were under a little bit of pressure, having lost two quick wickets, and the way that he played was really positive. It was very Josh innings, and it was really what we needed at that time.
“He’s got a lot of different options. He’s obviously got both sweeps. He can hit down the ground. He can hit over mid wicket. Very good player of spin. So I think that’s the positive, and it doesn’t really give them anywhere to to bowl.”
Batting with this kind of tempo and skill at number five, rather than the modest number seven spot he had during the Ashes, Inglis is capable of being as dangerous in that position as prime Michael Clarke. Alongside Renshaw and Green, life after Smith and Labuschagne may not look too shabby after all.
Daniel Brettig is The Age’s chief cricket writer and the author of several books on cricket.Connect via X.From our partners
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