Plays of the Day as senior batter Aiden Markram takes responsibility and captain Temba Bavuma bats through an excruciating hamstring pain to get South Africa within reach of their first world title at Lord’s.
Markram takes responsibility
It is hard to believe that just a little over a year ago, Aiden Markram was nowhere near the Test team, dropped after a difficult tour to England. On Friday, the 30-year-old scored one of his finest knocks, an innings that he will remember for many years to come as he grafted hard to finish the day unbeaten on 102 runs, his eighth Test ton and one that will rank highly as it is in a final.
Courageous Bavuma
Early on in his innings, after completing a run, Temba Bavuma limped and looked in excruciating pain. Yet again, it was the problematic hamstring that ruled him out of many international fixtures in recent years. However, this time around, the pain was not going to stop Bavuma from helping his team get closer to victory. The 35-year-old soldiered his way to an unbeaten half-century, scoring 65*.
Markram – Mulder Partnership
Around the country and the rest of the cricket world, when Wiaan Mulder was announced as the number three batter for the final, there were doubts and questions were posed on the decision. On Friday, Mulder proved himself as a worthy contender for the position as he batted freely, combining with Markram for an important 61-run partnership.
Markram – Bavuma Partnership
When the country needed two batters to stand up in what is undoubtedly the country’s most important run chase, two of the most experienced batters, Markram and Bavuma, stood up and made their presence count against a strong Australian bowling attack. The two struck a perfect balance between rotating the strike with singles and putting away bad balls when the opportunity presented itself. The two combined for an unbeaten … run partnership for the third wicket.
The wagging tail
Earlier in the day, the Proteas struggled to take the last Australian wicket as the tail-end batters Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood batted for over 20 overs, frustrating the Proteas and taking the lead well past 250 runs. By the time Markram accounted for Hazlewood, the lead was sitting at 281 runs, a total that seemed out of reach for a Proteas side that had been bowled out for 138 in the first innings.
