After rain threatened to spoil the occasion, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood have kept the New Year’s Test alive with a superb bowling performance at the SCG on Saturday afternoon.
South Africa is 6-149 at stumps on day four, still trailing by 326 runs, after Australia declared its first innings to a close at 4-475. It means the hosts need 14 wickets on Sunday to claim a remarkable victory and secure a series whitewash over the Proteas.
These are the most significant day four Talking Points!
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‘PRETTY HARSH’ CALL ROBS KHAWAJA
To declare or not to declare, that is the question.
If play had resumed at the scheduled start time of 10am on Saturday morning, Australia almost certainly would have continued batting. Usman Khawaja was unbeaten on 195, eyeing off a maiden Test double century, with Matthew Renshaw at the other end on 5.
“I think it would be pretty harsh if (captain Pat Cummins) bowled straight away, I don‘t think that’s going to happen,” Khawaja told reporters on Friday evening.
“We could go out there and get a few more runs really quickly, or we could declare pretty much straight away.
“It‘s obviously a decision he’ll have to make tomorrow, decide on what the weather’s doing and how he wants to play out this game.”
Unfortunately, the dreaded rain returned on Saturday morning, pushing back the start of play until 1.45pm. The Australians weren’t helped by a hole in the NRMA branded covers, which caused water to seep onto the pitch and cause further delays.
Suddenly, a declaration beckoned. Time was running out.
Australia needed to take 20 wickets for victory, and with only five sessions of play remaining, Cummins knew every over would be crucial.
The skipper officially declared during the lunch break with Australia 4-475, signalling to the South African dressing room they were bowling when play resumed.
“We definitely would have batted if we had the full day’s play, for sure,” Josh Hazlewood told reporters at stumps.
Khawaja and Renshaw both would have been devastated. The former was five runs short of a career-defining milestone, while the latter had waited five years for another chance to prove his worth at Test level.
Renshaw explains rollercoaster SCG Test | 05:41
Regardless, the team objective prioritises personal accolades. Chasing the win, albeit an unlikely one, was paramount.
“Look, 195 not out is not too bad. I think if you have a mantra of team first, you’ve got to take those individual performances out of the thinking,” former Australian captain Allan Border said on Fox Cricket.
“What’s your best option to win the game, and it’s to get bowling as soon as possible. I’d get booed all the way out there for sure, but how bad would it be tomorrow night when we have one wicket to get and a couple of overs to go, and you’re off for bad light?
“It’s harsh, but I’d be declaring now.”
HAZLEWOOD DEBATE SETTLED ONCE AND FOR ALL
The Josh Hazlewood vs Scott Boland debate has officially been settled.
Boland has been superb in Australian whites since making his Test debut last summer, but Hazlewood remains ahead of him in the pecking order.
The New South Welshman missed three consecutive Tests this summer due to a side strain setback, with Boland snaring 10 wickets at 17.00 in his absence.
Hazlewood’s return created a dilemma. Did Boland deserve to be dropped? Had he leapfrogged Hazlewood in the pecking order?
“I think it’s still in place,” Hazlewood told reporters on Monday.
“It’s always good to have pressure and every time Scotty’s played, he’s done remarkably well. With the Ashes coming up it’s a big one that he’s looking at, and he’s a similar bowler to myself and Pat. We could potentially all play there together on a wicket that might seam and swing. It’s great to have options and it keeps you on your toes.”
Hazlewood ultimately got the nod ahead of Boland for the SCG New Year’s Test, and he only needed one over to prove it was the correct call.
The 31-year-old’s first over on Saturday afternoon was unplayable. His second delivery caught the shoulder of Dean Elgar’s bat, flying through the vacant fourth slip for a boundary.
The fourth ball nipped away and beat the South African captain’s outside edge; the next one swung back in and narrowly evaded the off stump. He finished the over with another length delivery that flew past the bat.
The SCG applauded as Hazlewood retrieved his cap from the umpire at the change of ends. It marked the first time he had bowled the opening over of a Test innings since March 2018, and it was worth the wait.
Hazlewood, who finished the day with 2-29 from 12 overs, snared Australia’s first breakthrough of the day in the ninth over, with Elgar gloving a bouncer through to wicketkeeper Alex Carey. It sparked a collapse of 3-15.
Elgar arguably should have been back in the sheds 20 minutes earlier when he edged a Hazlewood delivery through to Steve Smith at second slip, but the third umpire adjudicated that the catch was not clean.
CUMMINS’ MASTERSTROKE IN THE FIELD
Sarel Erwee’s wicket was a genuine blunder.
The South African opener, who has patiently made his way towards 18 on Saturday afternoon, decided to leave a Nathan Lyon delivery that held its line and clipped the top of off stump.
It was a horrific error of judgment from the left-hander, who sheepishly made his way back to the sheds with South Africa in a spot of bother at 2-37.
But a tactical masterstroke from skipper Pat Cummins may have contributed to Erwee’s dismissal.
Cummins had placed Travis Head under the helmet silly point position earlier in the over, waiting for an edge. The field change forced Erwee to think twice about prodding outside the off stump.
Three deliveries later, he was out.
It was another captaincy masterstroke from Cummins, who is yet to lose a Test series as skipper. His only loss after 12 matches as Test captain came on a raging turner in Galle.
“What he’s doing is really good,” Border told foxsports.com.au.
“I must admit, I was one of the sceptics about fast bowlers (being captains). As a captain, you’re sort of thinking about things nearly every ball when you’re out there in the field.
“To load that on your No. 1 bowler, I thought, ‘Gee, that’s going to be a bit hard’.
“But it’s been pretty successful.
“The advice would just keep playing positive, attacking cricket, and encourage everyone to do that.”
Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist also praised Cummins for his bowler rotation after the tea break, specifically the reintroduction of Hazlewood following a burst from the spinners.
CAN THE AUSSIES ACTUALLY DO IT?
Fourteen wickets in 98 overs. Can the Australians feasibly do it?
At first glance, probably not. Due to wet weather and a lack of foot traffic, the SCG pitch has not deteriorated as much as expected, meaning there will be less spin and seam on offer than usual on day five.
Australia is also down a bowler after Cameron Green suffered a finger injury during the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. The hosts could have replaced Green with a fifth bowling option and moved Alex Carey up to No. 6, but national selectors instead opted for Matthew Renshaw. With the power of hindsight, that may have been mistake.
South Africa’s inexperienced batting becomes a factor as well. The Proteas have not survived more than 70 overs in their most recent seven Test innings, rolled for less than 205 on each occasion.
But Australia will also be wary of its underwhelming track record when bowling on day five at the SCG, botching two certain victories in the New South Wales capital in the last 24 months.
Two years ago, Australia needed eight wickets on day five to defeat India in the New Year’s Test, but they couldn’t get the job done, losing the coveted Border-Gavaskar Trophy the following week in Brisbane.
Last summer, the Australians required 10 wickets on day five to topple England in the fourth Ashes Test in Sydney, but they could only muster nine breakthroughs with the Poms narrowly avoiding a series whitewash by the barest of margins.
Thankfully, no rain is forecast in Sydney on Sunday, but 14 wickets remain a tall order.
“Ashton and Gaz, a big day tomorrow for them,” Hazlewood told reporters at stumps.
“If we were going out needing seven or eight wickets, we’d be pretty confident. 14 obviously is a lot different.”
