AUS vs SA 1st Test – “Not a good Test wicket at all” Elgar slammed Gabba’s pitch: AUS vs SA played the second shortest Test match in Australia when the Aussies overcame the proteas in just two days to take a 1-0 lead in the 3 Test match series.
The only Test in Australia that ended with fewer deliveries was also between Australia and South Africa at Melbourne in 1931-32, which is also the shortest Test of all time where proteas were bowled out for 36 and 45.
Since the start of the match, a heated debate has been going around social media continuously about the pitch because of the damage it created, as it has been described as a “Graveyard for batsmen”.
South Africa captain Dean Elgar has slammed the green pitch, and the Gabba’s rise could likely come under scrutiny.
He revealed that he went to the umpires in the game’s closing stages to talk about the danger created by the pitch.
“I did ask the umpires when Kagiso Rabada got Travis Head out down leg; I said, ‘how long does it go on for until it potentially is unsafe?'”
“And then Anrich Nortje was bowling those short ones flying over our heads. I know the game is dead and buried; it was never to try and change or put a halt to the game. That’s where the umpire’s discretion comes into play, not us as players. I am not going to say it was safe or unsafe.”
AUS vs SA 1st Test: Elgar Slammed Gabba’s Pitch; “Not a Good Test Wicket at all”
“There were only a handful of runs left, so I thought maybe they thought I was trying to take the mickey. But it’s not a bad reference point going forward to get a reply.”
“You’ve got to ask yourself the question – is that a good advertisement for our format? Thirty-four wickets in two days – a pretty one-sided affair, I would say.
“The nature of it, how it started to play with some seriously steep bounce with the old ball, you are on a hiding to none as a batting unit. I don’t think it was a very good Test wicket, no.”
“It was interesting to see how quickly this one did start divoting and how quickly the ball sped up, especially the new ball. And also, today, the older ball was flying through, which shouldn’t be happening. The divots had quite a big role to play with the sideways movement and up and down and that steep bounce which is quite something to face.”
AUS vs SA 1st Test:
However, according to Aussies skipper Pat Cummins, there was nothing wrong with the pitch.
“No way, it was fine. Sideways movement, there was a little bit of up and down bounce, but it was fine. No balls were jumping off a length or anything like that. It was certainly tricky. Two days probably isn’t ideal. I don’t mind it if the groundsman errs on the greener side occasionally; I’ve played a lot of Tests where they’ve erred on the flatter side. Think it was the same for both teams.”
Australia bowled out South Africa for just 152 runs in the first innings, where seven players failed to score in double digits. Only Kyle Verreynne and Temba Bavuma showed resistance with 64 and 38 runs, respectively. Every bowler except Cameroon Green played their part, who only bowled three overs and went for 20 runs. Australia replied by scoring 218 runs, taking a massive 66-run lead.
Their start wasn’t good as opener David Warner got out on duck, and Usman Khawaja and Labuschagne also didn’t stay for long and went back to the pavilion scoring 11 runs each. However, Steve Smith and Travis Head showed their class once again and managed to take their side taking 66 runs lead, scoring 36 and 92 runs, respectively.
In the second innings, South Africa, when some solid performance was expected from him after a poor display in the first innings, they played in the worst way possible, and the whole team managed to score just 99 runs, giving a target of just 35 runs.
Both openers, Erwee and Elgar, once again failed to set the tone and gave away their wicket after scoring in single digits. Like the first innings, Bavuma showed resilience in the second innings and scored crucial 29 runs; after him, Zondo stepped up and scored 36 runs, avoiding his side suffering an inning defeat.
Even with the target of 35, South African bowlers gave their best and managed to take four of their players down before Anrotje gave five wide runs and lost the game.
It’s worth mentioning that Alex Carey and Temba Bavuma struck on the elbow, while the latter was then trapped lbw by one, which was kept low by Nathan Lyon.
The ICC’s pitch monitoring process has six categories to rate a pitch, where the lowest, unfit status is given only for extreme ones.
One demerit point is the ‘below average’ and ‘poor’ ratings. If a ground earns five over five years, it will be suspended from hosting international cricket. AUS vs SA 1st Test:
In the ‘Under below average’ category, the ICC’s criteria state:
“Either minimal carry and bounce and/or more than occasional seam movement, or occasional variable (but not excessive or dangerous) bounce and/or occasional variable carry.”
AUS v SA 1st Test: AUS vs SA 1st Test:
