Proteas captain went to his half-century and looked comfortable towards end of the post-lunch session against Sri Lanka. However, he lost his wicket just before tea after going after a short ball.
Image: Marco Longari / AFP
Sri Lanka looked as if they had a heavy lunch and went for a quiet nap during the second session of the second Test against the Proteas at a blustery St George's Park in Gqeberha.
But with two overs to go before the tea break, it's like an alarm went off to wake them up after the Proteas' batters Temba Bavuma and Ryan Rickelton had looked untroubled on a pitch that looked flat and devoid of any real pace and sideways movement.
The Proteas duo, who put on a 37-run stand before lunch, had both gone to their respective half-centuries with some ease, as the Sri Lankan bowlers toiled. They knocked it around easily and took on the spinners straight down the ground.
It was one-way traffic, with Sri Lanka seemingly just going through the motions.
However, with two overs to go before the tea break, Sri Lanka reintroduced Asitha Fernando, who with his first ball of the morning had got the wicket of Tony de Zorzi. They then pushed a few men back on the leg-side boundary and proceeded to try a bit of short-pitched bowling against Bavuma.
In the first Test in Durban, Sri Lanka had bowled a few at Bavuma in the Proteas' first innings, but were denied a wicket when the Proteas captained gloved the ball to the wicket-keeper following a front-foot no-ball.
Bavama went at one of the first balls of the over, but it fell short of the fine-leg fielder on the boundary. He again got inside the line and went at a few more shot balls, before one eventually connected with his glove and he was caught behind by wicket-keeper Kushal Mendis.
Bavuma (78 off 109 balls, 8x4, 1x6) was well set for another big score after sharing a 133-run stand with Rickelton. He is going to be bitterly disappointed, because first-innings runs is going to be key on a wicket, which already looks a lot dryer than it was in the morning because of the strong wind.
Rickelton (72 off 159 ball, 8x4), on the other hand, is still at the crease and will be hoping to bat until the end of the days play and notch up a first Test century, which will make it hard for him to be dropped for the upcoming series against Pakistan.
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