South Africa v Sri Lanka 2nd Test - 5 Talking Points

South Africa defeated Sri Lanka by 282 runs in the 2nd Test at the Cape Town to go up 2-0 in the 3-match series and continue their dominance in the season. The Proteas would obviously be might pleased with the performance. They kept Sri Lanka under their thumb and wrapped up the match inside 4 days.

Chasing a mammoth target of 507 runs there was perhaps no chance for the current Sri Lankan batting order achieving the feat. As expected, the team which bundled out for just 110 in the first innings could manage only 224 before getting all out, thus, giving away the series to the hosts. Here we look at the 5 Talking Points of the game.

1. Batting woes for Sri Lanka continues

Sri Lanka underperformed in this series and was at their worse in this match. First of all, they surrendered for just 110 in the first innings, giving South Africa a match winning advantage by day two. South Africa later did what was expected from them and made defeat inevitable for the visitors by setting a huge target.

The fight was also missing and it was quite mediocre to see a chasing side reel at 69/4 when chasing 506. Maybe the top order could have batted with more responsibility to at least ensure the South Africans were made to break some sweat for the win.

Also read- SA v SL 2nd Test Review: South Africa roll over the Lankans to register 282-run win

2. Mathews and Chandimal fail to save Lanka:

The top order collapse threw the responsibility on Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal. The duo did not disappoint but their efforts were not enough in the end. Coming together when Sri Lanka was four down with just 69 on the board, Chandimal and Mathews added 75 runs for the 5th wicket and made the Protea bowlers bend their back a bit. But, eventually, the home side had the last laugh as the pair was broken by Rabada in the 46th over with the wicket of Chandimal. The vice captain’s departure officially kicked off the second collapse of the innings, which eventually led them to the defeat.

3. Herath’s lone battle:

While wickets fall in heaps at the other end, left-arm spinner Rangana Herath looked in a completely different mood. He wanted to fight back despite knowing the fact that the match had slipping out of their hands. The veteran scored a counter-attacking 35 runs knock batting at number 8 and was the sole reason behind Sri Lanka being able to go past the 200 runs mark.

4. Rabada’s record-breaking performance:

Kagiso Rabada played the catalyst’s role in South Africa’s quick win, finishing with 6/55 his fourth five wickets haul. What is more amazing is the fact that three out of these haul happen to be six –fors. The right-arm fast bowler is reaching newer levels of success each passing game which happens to be a great sign with a fading Dale Steyn around.

So far he has met with only success in his career which started hardly two years ago. While every young bowler is given a cool off period to find his foot at the international level, Rabada’s transition from the Under-19 level has been smooth and high impact. Recently proved his worth in Australia with match winning spells and he has continued to do the same in this series as well.

5. Amla continue to struggle

Hashim Amla has continued to struggle with his lean patch. While most of the South African batsmen have managed to get runs in this series, Amla, one of the most important names in the batting order has failed. So far, the right-handed batsman has managed only 20, 48, 29 and a duck in the previously innings

The tour of Australia, which preceded the ongoing series also was dull for him. A big knock was overdue from the master and the home series provided him the chance to get into his old run-scoring rhythm. However, thus far, things don’t seem to be falling in line for him.