South Africa v Bangladesh, 1st Test, Day 4 - 5 Talking Points

If it had not been for the rain, South Africa would’ve achieved a 1-0 lead in the series against Bangladesh without much fuss. With Faf du Plessis and Temba Bavuma providing a crucial partnership in the middle order, they posted a big total on the board and the bowlers managed to pick up three wickets before Tea on day 4.

South Africa was in a spot of bother for a while when they lost their top order cheaply. Yet, Temba Bavuma and skipper Faf du Plessis bolstered their command by stitching a 142-run partnership. Both these players registered timely half-centuries and this pretty much settled the deal for the host side.

Bangladesh in reply lost three wickets very early in the game. Morne Morkel removed the dangerous Tamim Iqbal in the very first over and Imrul Kayes and Mominul Haque lost their wickets in quick succession. During the Tea break, the rain gods came in and stole the final session. Nevertheless, there was no dearth of drama and here are five talking points of the day.

1. Bavuma-Du Plessis partnership

South Africa was struggling at 70 for the loss of three when skipper Du Plessis joined Temba Bavuma. Du Plessis scored 71 off 107 balls and Bavuma notched 81 off 101 balls. The ease with which they handled the bowlers showed how good batsmen they are. Their 143-run stand killed that little lingering hope of a draw from the visitors’ perspective and it’d be surprising if they don’t get the job done on Monday.

2. Mehidy Hasan goes for plenty

It’s quite a headache to deal with when your marquee bowler goes for plenty of runs. Mushfiqur Rahim was in that similar situation on day 4 as his main spinner Mehidy Hasan was taken to all parts of the ground. He conceded 69 runs in his 11 overs and his skipper didn’t trust him with the ball later on. It was a forgettable outing for Mehidy Hasan, who went wicketless in the entire game, conceding 247 runs in 67 overs.

3. Rain delays the Proteas party

With Imrul Kayes wicket, the umpires called for the Tea break and that was the final piece of action which took place on the day. Just when the momentum had shifted completely in South Africa’s way, the rain gods interrupted the game during this break and didn’t permit any cricket later on. South Africa looked favourites to wind up the game on day 4 if it had not been for this untimely stoppage.

4. Mominul Haque – The surprise package

Mominul contributing with the bat might not be a big news, but with the ball, he picked up 3 crucial wickets and at a time when Mushfiqur was finding it difficult to cope with the failure of his best bowlers, he registered figures of 3/27 in 6 overs. He picked up three priceless wickets of Bavuma, Du Plessis and De Kock and that was the only phase where Bangladesh had the upper hand on day 4.

5. Morne Morkel breathtaking first over

Chasing down a target in excess of 400, the last thing one would want is to lose 2 wickets in the first over of the innings. Morne Morkel did exactly the same as he ripped the stumps of Tamim and followed it with a peach for Mominul. Unfortunately, he walked back to the pavilion after suffering an injury whilst bowling is 6th over and it is being said that he’ll miss the remainder of the series.