South Africa in Australia (2012)

Aussies set 430 to win for SA. Pattinson and Hilfy were having fun of SA bowling attack, Clarke should have extended it. 

Tough task for RSA, although AB and Faf are there and Kallis to come it looks way too difficult a task to bat out the entire day tomorrow, RSA have played poorly though, they'll have to win at Perth to hang on to that No.1 ranking, and they will be going there without Kallis.

I'm not feeling well today so I can't write much, will just say well done RSA, this is why they are the No.1 side in the world and this is why I think they'll stay there for a long time!!! 

Lyon took a great catch to see Smith's back, now SA 206 for 2 in second innings with a lead of 268. Amla blazing all guns right from the start.This is just Day 2 and 12 overs to go.

by the way saw a funny quote/stat by someone "Only the third time in the history of Test cricket that all 10 wickets have fallen to the same first name, after those two pals of mine, Jim and Anil"

South Africa confirm their status as the best side on the planet with a fine win in the final test. Behind the 8 ball in the 1st two tests , they sent Australia packing in quick time to win by a huge margin of over 300 runs.  Amla and a returning to devasting form , de Villiers scored big hundreds 2nd time around to leave Australia reeling.  No dream conclusion to his career for Ricky Ponting as he failed yet again with all the SA bowlers contributing to the big win.
                 So SA go unbeaten throughout 2012 - and all away from home - fantastic effort and they'll take some beating on current form.
                  Not all doom and gloom for Australia - Clarke's form has been extraordinary and the bowling is coming on leaps and bounds. 10 tests against England next year will show exactly where they are.

Firstly, I'd like to congratulate the Proteas on a series win. To win a series in Austarlia is never easy and this series certainly was hard fought. In the end, it was South Africa who won the crucial moments.

Having said that, this tour also highlighted a few areas of concern. The main concern is the bowling which was pretty ordinary in the first two tests. I know the wickets were flat and Clarke and Hussey batted really well but this attack, particularly that of the pacemen is supposed to be the best in the world. In my view, the true test of how good a bowling attack is, is how they perform on batting friendly tracks. At the very least, they should be able to control the run rate, something which did not happen in Adelaide in particular. The only bowler who was consistent throughout the series was Morkel, although Steyn and Philander did bowl superbly at Perth. To say Tahir was terrible would be an understatement which was such a pity given that he was initially supposed to be South Africa's answer to an attacking spin bowler. Robbie P bowled well in his only test, but there is still some way to go.

The batting generally was good. du Plessis played one of the best match saving innings you will ever see, particularly from a debutatant. Amla continued his good form from England and de Villiers played a vital role in saving the test in Adelaide and the victory in Perth not forgetting his contribution as a wicket-keeper. The only concerns would be that of the number six position, with both Rudolph and Elgar hardly contributing, but with the return of Duminy the batting lineup looks strong.





Edited by vize - 06 December 2012 at 7:25pm