South Africa vs Australia 2018: 1st Test, Day 4 – 5 things we learnt from the day

#2 Markram’s magnificent ton gave South Africa an iota of hope

Markram guides South Africa to a ray of hope

With Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis (along with Dean Elgar) gone inside 17 overs in a chase of 417, any sort of hope of South Africa winning (or saving) the Test match would’ve diminished. Hence, at 49/4, the game looked done and dusted.

However, Aiden Markram had other plans. In 6 Test matches before this one, Markram had already scored a couple of centuries and a couple of 90s. However, after his 94 against India in Centurion, the Titans opener was getting starts (across all formats) but wasn’t able to build on it. Hence, here he seized the opportunity and made it count.

With absolutely no pressure, Markram started to forge a fightback. He formed crucial partnerships with de Bruyn and de Kock. He first put on 87 with the former but the partnership which created a little tension in the Australian camp was Markram’s stand with de Kock. The duo forged a 147-run stand for the 6th wicket.

Markram, in particular, looked free-flowing right from the start. He struck a couple of delightful boundaries early on in the innings. Even after wickets fell, Markram didn’t get bogged down. He continued playing positively and kept the scoreboard ticking. He also found the boundary with ease. In his knock of 143, he struck 19 fours. However, with just 4 overs to go for the second new-ball, Markram edged one to the keeper off a Mitchell Marsh delivery.