Australia v South Africa, 3rd Test, Day 3 Review: Stephen Cook guides South Africa past the deficit

Off-spinner Nathan Lyon has finally rediscovered his mojo back. His highly satisfying figures of 3/48 not only has taken Australia closer to a probable victory but has also helped him regain his drubbed confidence. The last few Tests were a real test of character and had virtually taken away his position of being the lead spinner in the Australian setup. His hard earned place in the pace-heavy Australian bowling attack was under scrutiny. But eventually, after the prolonged period of low time and not to forget the unforgettable 660 balls wicketless streak for his Sheffield side, Lyon was finally back roaring.

After Usman Khawaja made Faf du Plessis’ humble or say rather witty decision to declare in the first innings look vague. Mitchell Starc slammed a fluent 53 to extend Australia’s overnight lead of 48 runs lead to 124 runs. Khawaja couldn’t add anything substantial to his score and was made became the first to fall in the morning session. However, Starc took the innings forward and took control of the proceedings to add valuable runs to the team total before Rabada and Shamsi quickly wrapped up the innings after lunch.

The Australian bowling setup ensured that the game was in good control of the hosts. Australia continued to keep the visitors on the backfoot. While Lyon ended up as the pick of the bowlers today, his fast bowling counterparts also had a productive day Mitchell Starc was bowling with his usual pace and aggression and gave Australia their first break with the wicket of Dean Elgar before adding Faf du Plessis later on in the day to finish with 2/71. His bowling partner Josh Hazlewood was bowling tight lines and returned with 1/22.

A fighting fifty from Stephen Cook was the only salvage for the batting side as South Africa erased the 124 run deficit to end with ahead of 70 at stumps. Australians must have been taken by surprise today. All the batsmen, who probably made them worry throughout the series failed. But, the show of fight back from Cook was unanticipated. If South Africa needs to thank someone for saving them today, it has to be the right-hander.

South Africa recovered well after the early loss of Dean Elgar. Cook batting along with Hashim Amla took the Proteas to a stable position before the batting side lost their track and lost wickets at regular intervals. Hazlewood removed Hashim Amla for the fifth time from five innings in this series. The upsetting fact for a Proteas fan was Amla finally appeared to have put behind his bad form behind and looked well-settled at 45 before he nicked one behind to Wade. Amla went for a quick review but the hotspot caught the edge and he had to walk back.

Lyon then landed heavy blows. First, he chipped with the wicket of JP Duminy, bowled through the gate in the 49th over to break a thriving partnership of 49 runs between the left-hander and Cook. Few overs later, the off-spinner removed both Bavuma and Kyle Abbott in successive overs to put the visitors in a bothersome situation. As wickets fell at one end, Cook, after all the hard work at the other side, remained unconquered to complete his fifty, which he missed in the first innings after getting dismissed for 40, to end with 81 to his name.

Brief Scores: 

South Africa: 259/9d (Faf du Plessis 118; Josh Hazlewood 4/68) & 194/6 (Stephen Cook 81; Nathan Lyon 3/48)

Australia: 383 all out (Usman Khawaja 145; Kagiso Rabada 3/84)