South Africa completed a monumental nine wicket victory over Australia in the second Test at the MCG to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
Sport 24 reports that chasing down a total of 183 on the final day’s play, South African captain Graeme Smith, who led from the front with a gutsy 75, and an out of sorts Neil McKenzie who was still there at the end on 58 not out, made sure that South Africa inflicted a first home series defeat for the all-conquering Australians in 17 years.
Lacking penetration, the Australian bowling never looked like exerting any pressure on the Proteas batting line-up and when Hashim Amla hit the winning runs off Nathan Hauritz, it capped off one of the most extraordinary Test matches in South African cricket history.
In a match which ebbed and flowed throughout the five days, JP Duminy’s heroic 166 and Dale Steyn’s 76 in the first innings, will go down as the partnership that not only changed the outcome of the match but also the course of history as South Africa basked in the glory of their first ever series win in Australia and as a result, loosened Australia’s grip at the top of international cricket.
South African speedster Dale Steyn was named Man of the Match for his match figures of 10 for 154 and his 76 runs in the first innings.
The third Test in Sydney starts on January 3.
Tweet
3 Jan?!?!?!
I thought the test started on 1 Jan. 🙁 I will miss the whole test then. 🙁 I thought I would be around for at least one day of it. 🙁
With Brett Lee, Shane Watson and Andrew Symonds all injured, the Aussies are going to have their hands full for that final test.
BS requested these Pics. I think they are very apt.
Yet again – well done to the boys!
we still have an ODI series to win though…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 4) :
For all I care we could lose all the ODI’s 🙂
If we win the next test we take the #1 Spot in the world. 😎
What a shame Rob isn’t a Proteas fan and can’t share in the celebrations as a result. Don’t you feel sorry for him? 😉
@KSA Shark © (Comment 5) : Yeah – that would hurt the Aussies more – so it’s the first priority. 😈
I actually don’t think they’ll be able to beat us…the best they can get is a draw…
@klempie (Comment 6) : Hey…he did say he was supporting them this time around.
Rob is Rob… but surely even HE will celebrate an Aussie defeat…by the blind squirrels…
Wouldnt it be great if we culd beat them by a huge margin in the next test?
@wpw (Comment 9) : You’re alive! KSA was tryin to email you the Stevie G story… 🙄
Im still on leave dude. Ja, i believe he has been charged for assault this morning. Very disappointing not to mention the bad timing… The DJ who was assaulted probably taunted him about something…
@wpw (Comment 11) : The idiot was probably paid to irritate him. I don’t think it’s gonna be a big thing though – and I really hope it’s not gonna hurt our good run…
@ wpw: 9 wickets not huge enough? 😉
@klempie (Comment 6) :
Shame, he ain’t ever gonna get this monkey off his back. 🙂
@klempie (Comment 13) :
Some people are hard to please. 9 wickets and HOURS to spare and they still call it a small margin…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 8) : well done proteas! They shut me up good and proper with these two results.
Klemp, one thing you’ll learn about me is that I’m always big enough to admit it when I’m wrong about something
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 15) :
I bet the Aussie press will make it sound like a loss with 3 days to spare.
I feel for Ponting and his team, they are going to take a beating from the press.
Things like these makes one very proud. 😎 😀
So will Duminy be dropped for the next test? McKenzie scored a fifty so he can’t be dropped for at least 5 test matches. 😉
Tough Man of the Match call on JP Duminy whose 1.5 century probably turned the tide entirely back towards the Proteas.
But Steyn certainly was deserving of the award.
Reminds me of the Sharks, a team with a lot of confidence.
@McLovin (Comment 19) :
I am glad I am not the selectors, but if I was, I would rest McKenzie, Move everyone above #4 up and slot Prince in above Duminy, leaving the lineup looking like this.
G Smith
H Amla
J Kallis
AB de Villiers
A Prince
JP Duminy
M Boucher
M Morkel
P Harris
D Steyn
M Ntini
Amla has come in early enough in all but the last inning to be considered an opener anyway.
@Baldrick (Comment 20) : Yeah…but you can’t help thinking that Duminy is the kinda guy who will save or win plenty of test matches and MOM awards in the future. I don’t even think they cared too much about that that.
You’re correct – they look like a tight bucnh…just like The Sharks.
Keep going strong Proteas! Their streak just keeps getting longer…
Maybe they should drop Kallis. He was by far the worst batsmen in 2008. His batting average was 31.66 for 2008. By far the worst of our top 6.
@McLovin (Comment 23) :
If prince could Bowl then I would say yes, But we need Kallis in there for his bowling. he is not one of our top strike bowlers but he does offer the option of a damn good backup bowler.
Out of our top 6 (excluding Duminy)only Kallis & Prince did not score a 1000 runs in 2008. Kallis only scored 665 and Prince 900. But Prince only played in 13 tests and the rest, except McKenzie who played 14, all played 15 tests.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 24) : I would be moerse surprised if they dropped Kallis. As you said he offers value as a bowler & seems to be slowly coming back into form.
These are the players’ batting averages for 2008
Smith – 72.00
McK – 53.65
Amla – 52.77
Kallis – 31.66
AB – 58.94
Prince – 64.28
Very impressive.
Yeah…King Kallis has played well in the series so far.
He got crucial wickets and managed to collect a good number of runs along the way…can’t complain much – he seems to be on the right track.
I think they might just just leave the squad unchanged. We still have T20 games and ODI’s ahead…plenty of action.
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 28) :
A very valid thought that. Why mess with a winning team? Yes McK has had a shocker thusfar but his 1st dismissal was actually NOT out and he has scored now.
This are going to be a looooong day. 🙄
Ruan Pienaar is a k#k flyhalf. 😉 😈
Frans Steyn is the best flyhalf in the world.
Matfield is a great captain.
Adi Jacobs can’t tackle.
Why do i feel like those are directed directly at ME. 😆
@McLovin (Comment 30) :
i know how you feel.
I keep thinking “Ah the holidays are over let’s get the rugby news going again” Only to remember that it only FEELS like it is over coz New years is not acknowledged in anyway in KSA so it is work asual.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 35) : At least one of them definitely are. 😉 😆
@McLovin (Comment 31) :
No!
@McLovin (Comment 32) :
Noooo!
@McLovin (Comment 33) :
Is jy Gesuip??????????? Capt of what? Drag Queen dressup team?
@McLovin (Comment 34) :
Sometimes.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 36) : This is the first year of my working life that I’m working between xmas and new year. It sucks. Not doing it again. 👿
@McLovin (Comment 37) :
i presume it is the one with the longest response above. 😀
@McLovin (Comment 39) :
Damn, that is harsh, but that is what you get for being the newby I presume.
I have done it a few times while here but not ever while I was still in SA.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 41) : It’s what you get for being a nice guy. 🙄
But then again I’m basically being paid to do nothing at the moment. But don’t tell anyone. 😉
@McLovin (Comment 43) : you mean you are gettin paid to stir on sharksworld ? 🙂
@McLovin (Comment 42) :
So that’ll never happen to me then. 😀
I gotta do some NON-PC work for a bit. 🙁 🙁
Speak to you guys later.
@McLovin (Comment 31) :Ruan Pienaar is a k#k flyhalf…because I’m from Pretoria and we were taught that a flyhalf should always skop die bal and never make dashing runs or score beautiful tries under any circumstances.
@McLovin (Comment 32) :Frans Steyn is the best flyhalf in the world…of hair products.
@McLovin (Comment 33) :Matfield is a great captain…of the Bulls netball team…the one that stays in hotels…
@McLovin (Comment 34) : Adi Jacobs can’t tackle…the whole team by himself…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 47) : Hair products would be a step in the right direction for Frans. Or a hat. 😉
Honestly….with the team AUS have it is not all that special beating them…
What is special is that it was us that beat them in a series for the first time in 17 years…
And another special thing is that this is the first series win against Aus since readmission!????!!!!!!!!??!?!!?
We need to beat them in the3rd test as well then this would be a special beating them…
Oh cozz they don’t have any bowlers to talk of…
No spinner, up and coming fast bowlers that are not doing much with the ball…
And then their batsman have been getting themselves out on occasion…
But 3 – 0…that would be great…
@KSA Shark © (Comment 21) : I think that Mickey will resist the temptation to change a winning side. Tough on Ashwell, but remember that he will now been out of match practice for over three weeks.
Mac must play, he and Smith have a great understanding and an incredible track record. Mac has lost form granted but this knock today would have been the fillip that he required. Also provides the LH/ RH combination up front, I say leave the team as it is! Revaluate things when we get back for the Home series.
@Hmmm (Comment 51) : Not the best Australian team but it still feels good to put them in their place…probably because the one-eyed Aus commentators and journalists were still in denial before the start of the series…going on and on about how we can never win a series in Aus…
Now they have opened the other eye…
@McLovin (Comment 19) : @KSA Shark © (Comment 21) :
McKenzie made the 7th most runs in cricket this year, 3rd of the South Africans at an average of 53.65:
– Smith 1st overall with 1656 (200 in front of 2nd placed Sehwag)
– Amla 4th overall with 1161
– Mckenzie 7th overall with 1073
– AB 10th overall with 1061
It is not just about the 4 inn is Aus…same situation as when Prince and AB were struggling in 2007…only scoring 528 and 387 runs respectively…but still remained in the side and it paid off this year…
When Aus beat us they always go on about how great they are and not how crap we are. The have been cleaned up twice in a row now. Good and proper. We have been superior in all aspects. Can’t help it if they aren’t up to the task.
It will be very silly to leave Duminy out though…he and AB (both at the age of 24) are the future and they need to build from here…they are the 3rd and 4th batsman in the not so distant future…
@Hmmm (Comment 55) : We’ve all had to rebuild our squads…the difference is we did a better job with ours. That’s another victory on it’s own…
@Hmmm (Comment 60) :
Graeme Smith (capt) -youngster *
Neil McKenzie
Hashim Amla – youngster
Jacques Kallis
AB de Villiers – youngster
JP Duminy -youngster
Mark Boucher (wk)
Morne Morkel – youngster
Paul Harris
Dale Steyn – youngster
Makhaya Ntini
From this you can clearly see that the guys who contributed the most to these results are all the youngsters that we’ve blended in carefully over the years. The aussies were so caught up with being bullies they forgot to plan for the future….not our problem. 😈
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 57) :
Yeh I agree…as I said…still great that WE were the 1st in all those years and also great to finally get a series win (ANYWHERE) since readmission…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 62) :
LoL
Smith not such a youngster anynmore…he is 28 in Feb…but as a batsman he could easily go another 6/7 years though…
Dale Steyn is going to be something…he has the 2nd best strike rate of ALL time…he already has 11 fivers in an inn and 3 tenners in a match…only 3 and 1 behind Ntini ALREADY if not mistaken…still got some way to go to pass Donald on fivers/inn…
If he remotely continues in current form…he is going to break all SA bowling records….
What is special is that we have had the 1st series win (home or away) against Aus since 1970 when we beat them 4/4 in a home series….so that is the first time in 38 years we have beaten them in a series…
Best strike rates in an innings
South Africa – Test matches
Player Overs Mdns Runs Wkts SR Opposition Ground Match Date Scorecard
JH Kallis 4.3 1 21 5 5.4 v Bangladesh Potchefstroom 25 Oct 2002 Test # 1621
DW Steyn 8.0 2 23 5 9.6 v India Ahmedabad 3 Apr 2008 Test # 1871
HJ Tayfield 8.4×8 1 23 7 9.7 v Australia Durban 20 Jan 1950 Test # 320
JH Sinclair 12.0×5 4 26 6 10.0 v England Cape Town 1 Apr 1899 Test # 59
DW Steyn 10.3 1 49 6 10.5 v New Zealand Centurion 16 Nov 2007 Test # 1848
DW Steyn 7.0 0 30 4 10.5 v India Cape Town 2 Jan 2007 Test # 1827
GA Faulkner 11.0 4 17 6 11.0 v England Leeds 29 Jul 1907 Test # 94
JH Kallis 7.2 3 13 4 11.0 v Zimbabwe Cape Town 4 Mar 2005 Test # 1737
B Mitchell 7.3 0 26 4 11.2 v Australia Johannesburg 24 Dec 1935 Test # 248
RO Schwarz 11.4 0 47 6 11.6 v Australia Sydney 3 Mar 1911 Test # 115
Hmmm – you a cricket fan, by any chance? 🙂
@Hmmm (Comment 64) : 🙂 I put a star on him because he’s not so young anymore- i guess we can call him “the middleman”…connecting the old and young generations…
@robdylan (Comment 68) : LOL!!!
@robdylan (Comment 68) :
Nope…why you ask? LoL
I do watch (ODI & T20I) when we playing big sides…but only take interest in test match results…
I just thought I’d google stats for a half hour or so…was intertesting…we have a few players that are going to rewrite SA and possibly world cricket books…
If Smith keeps up some kind of form he is very much set to score teh most runs ever in cricket (depending on how long Tendulkar is still going to play of cozz)…but he will most def break the SA record…he has way more runs than Kallis had at the same time…
And Stey…still young and new on the scene…if he only takes 50 wickets year the next 5 years (which I doubt that it will only be that) he will have 400 wickets…he already has the 6th most wickets ever for SA, 2nd most tenners a match and 3rd most fivers an inn…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 69) :
Oh ok…but as a batsman he surely has about 4/5 good years left anyways…the he will be Kallis’ age…and kallis still does good work with the ball too….
@Hmmm (Comment 70) :
That is not to mention AB that is only 24 and already 10th most runs for a SA player of all time and in this year if he only scores around 700 runs he will be 7th at only 25 (the 3 he will be passing have retired (Pollock/Cronje/Mitchell)…
Not to mention JP and Amla yet to play themselves into the record books too…
@robdylan (Comment 68) :
Now I know why Hmmm has been so scarce. He has been watching cricket. 😉
@KSA Shark © (Comment 73) :
Who watches test cricket…that must be darn borring!??!
Here are some more stats from cricinfo.
Aus have won nine out of 11 Tests at the SCG since 2000.
Good morning…
AUS – 445
RSA – 316/8*
One wicket needed by the Aussies due to Smith’s injury…
South Africa 327/9 – End of innings… 😐
Siddle gets 5 wickets…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 78) : YOH,when i left for work we were stanmding strong.
@PJLD (Comment 79) : Same here…but our tail had no resistance this time around…
Stumps – Day 3
AUS 2nd innings – 33/0 in 6 overs… 😯
The lead is now 151… 🙁
Seems highly unlikely that we’ll win this one. Too bad really, but not the end of the world. It’s a dead rubber.
Take a bow Smith, Arthur & team.
@McLovin (Comment 81) : Yeah…looks like the best we can do is a draw…
Unless we can bowl them out for 180 and chase 298…
bad luck Proteas
Ello ladies!
Im on leave until next monday… So wots new? Saw on news24 that Heyneke might not return to coach Leicester
@robdylan (Comment 83) : Ai
@wpw (Comment 85) : Read the same thing.
If true then what happens to Hougie?
@robdylan (Comment 83) :
Sometimes bad things happen to good people…and sometimes bad things happen to YOU. 👿
I see PdV was looking for some talent at the Cobras game… 🙂
@wpw (Comment 88) : He will have to find somewhere else to live. 😉
@McLovin (Comment 91) : Is he still being breast-fed?
Hougaard looks like the gay one from boyzone.
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 92) : No, but he still needs someone to warm his bottle. 😉
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 90) : Cobras?
@robdylan (Comment 95) : Yeah – he probably needs an opening batsman…
@McLovin (Comment 93) : HAHAHAHAHAHA
@robdylan (Comment 95) : It’s a cricket team Rob…a cricket team. 🙄
@klempie (Comment 98) : HEY!
@klempie (Comment 98) : wasn’t the Crickets a rock and roll band in the 50s? Buddy Holly’s band?
@robdylan (Comment 95) :
Cape Cobras…see, even **I** knew that.. 😉
Hello everyone! 😀
Hello Tannie! 😀
My favourite cricket is Jiminy.
@wpw (Comment 102) :
👿
@Ice (Bébé de Glace) (Comment 101) : Hey Ice…
@McLovin (Comment 103) : I think we’ve just found a nickname for JP…
@Ice (Bébé de Glace) (Comment 104) : hallo daar!
@robdylan (Comment 107) : Where’s Oubaas?
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 108) : Yanbu, or something
Hi all , I’m back from my 3 weeks of internetlessness. Hope you all had good holidays 😀
@Pokkel (Comment 110) : Welcome back…don’t tell people you had internetlessness… 🙂
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 111) : I had an acute infection. My laptop got stolen about a month ago so I could only get on when I was at my mom’s. I was able to treat the symptoms with my cell thankfully.
@Pokkel (Comment 110) : hey dude – welcome back!
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 111) : Why??? It was soooo much fun reading through about 150 e-mails this morning 😯
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 111) : There is fun things to do without the internet… 🙄
@Pokkel (Comment 115) : Easy boy…eeaaaaasssyyyyyy… 😉
@klempie (Comment 116) :
family site! family site!
😈
@Pokkel (Comment 115) : Like hiking and fishing or sitting in my Jacuzzi….the great outdoors… some of you should get a bit of sun sometime 😉
@Pokkel (Comment 119) : When I sit in my Jacuzzi I have a beautifull view of the Drakensberg . It’s not ALWAYS bad living in the platteland
OK some serious questions regarding the history and all of that
Myself love our cricket/rugby or Protea/Springbok surname combinations in the current format.
Jean & AB de Villiers,
Francois & Dale Steyn,
Juan & Greame Smith,
Johan & Bakkies Botha!
Then the two surnames that produce the most Springbokke in history du Plessis give us two Springbok broers and Morkel two Protea cricketers.
Myself will pick de Villiers because they produced some legend Springbokke and cricketers in the past like Vinnige Fanie & Witkop Dawie & HO. Add Snor our coach and Giniel (x Paarl Gimmie) the Dakar Rally Driver and in current 2nd place! de Villiers even gave the Hane the best TH fatty in history.
Geez myself had a way to long leave. 😳
@PaarlBok (Comment 121) : thought about that for a while, did you? 🙂
@PaarlBok (Comment 121) : Well, I’m not that old – but as far as I can remember- we’ve always had a good De Villiers somewhere in the mix…
@robdylan (Comment 122) : Is this the part where you ask him to think about an article??? 😆
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 123) : you know me too well, umfaan 🙂
@robdylan (Comment 124) : BTW – is it actually cool for a honkey to call a Zulu dude that? Or does it have derogatory overtones? In which case – I’m sure you know there was no offence intended
@robdylan (Comment 125) : Onosele soutpiel! LOL 😛
@robdylan (Comment 124) :
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 123) :
Broers I’ll leave the articles to you lot. My red tale come out the same as Klempie
@klempie (Comment 126) :
😆
@klempie (Comment 126) : PS. I am a soutpiel too.
Ciao everyone. Just managed to finish my piddly 1.7km run WITHOUT stopping to catch my breath. 😎
@klempie (Comment 129) : how long did it take you?
@robdylan (Comment 125) : He he …if you’re mates it means the same as dude – but you better not say that to a stranger unless they are way younger than you…
RSA opened with McKenzie and Morkel??? 😯
Who came up with that dumb idea? Now we are one wicket down for 13 – chasing 376.
ollinger to Morkel, OUT, and he gets his first wicket! Morkel just stands there and rolls the wrists loosely, something of an odd chip shot that is gobbled up by Johnson, tumbling to his left at mid-on
M Morkel c Johnson b Bollinger 0
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 132) : ollinger is how they pronounce Bollinger in Aus… 😳
If McKenzie scores a ton all will be forgiven. We really need him to score some big runs. I hope Kallis gets to 10K runs if he does bat tomorrow.
Did u guys hear KP wants to run the England cricket team on his own? It seems the current coach is to be axed shortly.
@robdylan (Comment 130) : Not sure. Probs 8 minutes or so.
@wpw (Comment 135) : Word is he wants Graham Ford to go and coach. Fordie turned down the Kiwi job which probably indicates he was talking with KP about it before. They were together at Natal when Natal was still great at cricket and you couldn’t win a Test match without at least 3 Dolphins in the side…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 132) : Morkel opening. Stupid.
Amla and McKenzie going steady at 60/1…
@klempie (Comment 138) : Definitely. The kid gets 41 and then suddenly they throw him into the deep end to face the new ball? That was a wasted wicket that could’ve been useful tomorrow…
@blckshrk – PROTEAS (Comment 139) : Shhhhhhhhhhh!! 👿
OK survived.
62/2
@klempie (Comment 142) : Yeah…I guess we are effectively 2 down…still upset about that Morkel thing. 👿
Proteas to win by 3 wickets.
bunch of useless chokers 🙂