Watch cricket video highlights of South Africa tour of Bangladesh 2024. Second test between Bangladesh and South Africa. Venue of the match will be Chattogram.
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Tony de Zorzi and Tristan Stubbs earned their maiden Test hundreds at Chattogram, marking a watershed moment for two of South Africa’s top three players. De Zorzi and Stubbs, who each have eight and five Test appearances, shared South Africa’s third-highest second-wicket partnership in Asia of 201, putting the team in a great position to win the series. They took advantage of batter-friendly circumstances, with minimal seam movement, swing, or high bounce, and barely a trace of spin to aid the home assault.
Bangladesh’s bowlers had little to work with, and their best effort was to keep South Africa quiet in spells. Their tall seamer, Nahid Rana, was the most impressive of the five-man attack, reaching speeds of high to 148kph but remaining wicketless. Taijul Islam, a left-arm spinner who had a five-for at Mirpur, was the only bowler to take wickets, albeit Hasan Mahmud would be disappointed. De Zorzi was dropped twice, at 6 and 69, on his route to an unbroken 141. South Africa opened the day positively, with stand-in skipper Aiden Markram and de Zorzi batting at 4.6 runs per over in the opening hour.
They struck four fours and a six between them, helping South Africa reach morning drinks on 60 without losing. The lone threat came from Hasan, who got de Zorzi’s edge with the first ball of his fourth over, but debutant wicketkeeper Mahidul Islam failed to hold on. Bangladesh then turned to spin from both ends, which proved well for Taijul. Markram moved down the track to a ball that was not as short as he had anticipated, chipping it to Mominul Haque at mid-on. Bangladesh’s scoring rate improved following Markram’s dismissal.
They did not give a boundary in 21 deliveries as Stubbs played himself in. He got his first four by reverse-sweeping Mehidy Hasan Miraz behind point, but Bangladesh reapplied the grip. Another 28 balls were bowled for 14 runs before de Zorzi scored South Africa’s century with a magnificent cover drive. De Zorzi was one run short from his third Test fifty as he went to lunch, and he reached it in the next over. South Africa struggled in the opening exchanges of the afternoon session, going 91 deliveries between boundaries while navigating Rana’s speed and Taijul’s lack of correct spin.
Nahid’s lengths improved from the longer ones he used in the morning, and he stuck to back-of-the-length balls that were difficult to get away with. But he didn’t get close to a wicket. Instead, Mahmud’s efforts should have yielded results. He pulled de Zorzi forward again and took the edge, but the opportunity went through Shadman Islam’s hands at first slip. De Zorzi and South Africa survived a stretch in which they scored only 34 runs in 13 overs after lunch before things improved. The next eight overs yielded 32 runs at a better scoring rate, and Stubbs reached his second Test fifty.
Stubbs gained confidence after hitting Mehidy over the sightscreen for six, and de Zorzi followed suit, sending Taijul over long-on. De Zorzi reached his century with a sweep shot off Mehidy via square leg, prompting enthusiastic ovation from the dugout, which included injured captain Temba Bavuma. De Zorzi is only the second black South African batsman to reach a Test century, following Bavuma. As de Zorzi suffered with cramping, Stubbs took 25 of the first 30 deliveries after tea and shown solid intent.
He was especially harsh on Mehidy, charging him twice for six and reverse-sweeping him for four to reach the ninety and knuckle down. De Zorzi struggled to run between the wickets, so the partnership settled down, and Stubbs spent 39 balls moving from 88 to 100. He did it with a single to deep point, prompting a standing ovation from the entire South African camp. With roughly 30 minutes remained in the day, Taijul bowled Stubbs in the following over with a low ball. South Africa interpreted this as a permission to attack.
De Zorzi and David Bedingham batted freely, scoring 34 runs in the six overs that followed while Bangladesh waited for the second new ball. They were also missing their captain, Najmul Hossain Shanto, who departed the field due to what appeared to be sickness. Taijul took charge in his absence, grabbing the second new ball as soon as it became available. Mehidy bowled one over with it before the players were removed due to poor lighting, and de Zorzi won the day’s awards.
South Africa entered this series with just two specialist batsmen with subcontinent experience, one of them, Markram, had scored a century in Asia. The other, Bavuma, was injured and had to miss the series, leaving them even more inexperienced. A Test and a day into the series, they have four hitters in the starting lineup who have scored hundreds on the subcontinent.
