Proteas get dark reminder of the old days Down Under

Usman Khawaja dominated play on day two of the third Test between Australia and SA notching up a 13th Test century.
Image: Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

Those South African viewers who dropped off to sleep on Thursday may have dreamt that they’d been transported back to 2001-02, with Australia pounding the Proteas. 

Images of Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh laying waste to another South African attack. Gutsy spells from Shaun Pollock and Allan Donald, fielders gradually losing focus as their legs and minds tired. 

But it's 2023 and at the crease at the Sydney Cricket Ground were Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith — not Waugh as Pollock on commentary accidentally referred to him — and there were gutsy spells from Anrich Nortje and Marco Jansen. There were tired legs and minds in that final session played out under greying skies. 

Much like Pollock way back, Dean Elgar on Thursday looked lost. Why was there a deep mid-on for the new batter? Why was a big fast bowler fielding at point, usually a position reserved for the most nimble fielder? 

The day ended with Australia on 475/4, as dominant a position as any their predecessors had enjoyed 21 years ago when SA were defeated by 246 runs, 9 wickets and 10 wickets in a three match series. As retro trends go, this was one you’d rather chuck in the bin. 

It was a chastening experience for an attack that is certainly one of the world’s best but has been called upon far too often to conceal the shortcomings of the batting unit. 

Last week in Melbourne they bowled 145 overs, most of it in temperatures hovering around 35°C. Sydney has been kinder in terms of the weather, but the surface has been flat and slow and what turn Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer managed to extract was easily nullified by Australian batters high on confidence. 

Khawaja was sublime, all languid elegance with his offside play while his strokes through the leg-side were delivered with similar panache and added crispness. The SCG is among his favourite grounds — it's where he made his debut 12 years ago, scoring 37, an innings that highlighted his talent though it received way too much publicity from the Australian press at the time. 

Thursday’s was his fourth century there in his last six innings and when the rain halted play he was five runs short of a maiden Test double hundred. With the exception of a few problems with Harmer, Khawaja dominated the rest of the time, helping to ease a fidgety Smith through the first part of his innings. 

The former Australian captain looked out of sorts initially and only started settling down just before lunch. After the interval he found better rhythm and had the South Africans marching to the beat of his drum. 

Smith and Khawaja shared a partnership of 209 runs for the third wicket, giving the SCG crowd plenty of exercise as they stood to applaud the various milestones. In reaching his 30th Test century, Smith passed Don Bradman on the all time Australian charts, but then, one ball after reaching the landmark, chipped straight back to bowler Maharaj and was out for 103. 

SA’s bowlers produced very little, with one chance missed by Anrich Nortje in the 96th over when Khawaja was on 123. 

The only other wicket to fall was that of Travis Head, who played aggressively to score 70 and was beautifully caught on the square leg boundary by the substitute fielder, Rassie van der Dussen. 

The rain came an hour before the scheduled close. It was a relief to the South Africans on a day when there were simply too many reminders of the dark days of yore Down Under.