South Africa 191 (Bavuma 70, Asitha 3-44, Kumara 3-70) and beat 366 (Stubbs 122, Bavuma 113) on 5 December Sri Lanka 42 (Jansen 7-13) and 282 (Chandimal 83, Dhananjay 59, Jansen 4-73) from 233 runs
Nevertheless, South Africa made a threatening start when Kagiso Rabada edged Dhananjaya on the fifth ball of the morning and Gerald Coetzee had the ball caught on the 12th ball. Chance fell to Jensen’s left in the alley. Dhananjay responded by hitting Rabada for a four through the midwicket gap and pulled Coetzee in front of square. Chandimal also dealt with Coetzee’s short ball well and cut it through point for four runs.
Rabada bowled a spell of five overs, scoring 18 runs without any success and once he was out, the Sri Lankan pair settled down. Dhananjay drove Johnson through cover, Chandimal edged him in the same area to reach 150 and both scored runs. On Maharaj, who got almost no turn. By the first drinks break, Sri Lanka had scored 61 runs in 16 overs at a rate of less than four.
Chandimal brought up his half-century with a powerful pull off Johnson soon after the interval and Dhananjay brought up his half-century off 66 balls in the next over, indicative of the aggression with which he batted. He played another shot in anger when he hit a six over long off off Maharaj. However, Maharaj had the last laugh when Dhananjay bowled an innocuous delivery to Tristan Stubbs at short midwicket on 59.
This brought Mendis to the crease after being out for a duck four times in South Africa. He got his first run in five innings from a cover drive which went for four runs as the Sri Lankan score reached 200 runs. He was almost run out later in the over when he took off for a run without talking to Chandimal, but came back. Time.
South Africa recalled Rabada before lunch but the selection of short balls was well negotiated. Rabada also took his no-ball count to 10 during the innings, which included five no-balls in the morning session, as Sri Lanka were 220 for 6 at lunch. He scored 117 runs in 32 overs in the first session.
The 10 overs after lunch were full of South African gifts as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 47, helped by a team that took the risk of trying things given the runs they had. Could have. Without gully, Mendis squared out to Jensen for four and then took 15 in his 19th over as Jensen missed his length completely. Maharaj was also falling victim to Mendis’s aggression as he headed towards his half-century.
Not long into his third spell, Coetzee sent a half-volley down the leg and it seemed South Africa could get nothing right on either side of the pitch. His next ball was on middle and Chandimal tried to flick it, but closed the face of the bat very early and Coetzee got the edge. She released her relief pitch with a series of throat-shredding screams.
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