South Africa Hold Firm Against Australia Despite Starc’s Six-Wicket Haul in Cape Town

South Africa made a strong start in the third Test against Australia, with four batters scoring half-centuries on Tuesday. Aiden Markram, Marques Ackerman and David Bedingham led the way with the bat, while Marco Jansen also made a valuable contribution to help the home side put up a challenging score at Newlands.

Australia skipper Pat Cummins chose to bowl after winning the toss, with the three-match series tied at 1-1. However, South Africa's opening pair made the visitors pay for that decision, adding 158 runs before the first wicket fell as Markram and Ackerman gave their side an excellent start.

Nathan Lyon finally broke South Africa’s opening stand in the second session, stumping Ackerman to give Australia their first wicket. Ackerman had been the more attacking batter and narrowly missed out on a century, scoring 95 off 94 balls, including 12 fours and two sixes.

Markram and David Bedingham then added 45 runs for the second wicket before Josh Hazlewood dismissed the opener in the 45th over. Markram scored 78 off 141 balls, hitting 10 fours and a six during his stay at the crease.

Markram’s wicket led to a sudden collapse in the South African middle order, with the hosts losing four more wickets in quick succession. As a result, South Africa were reduced to 232/6 early in the final session on the first day.

The Proteas were in trouble after losing back-to-back wickets, but Marco Jansen and Ryan Rickelton helped them fight back. The pair added 95 runs for the seventh wicket before Mitchell Starc broke the stand by dismissing both batters in the 81st over. Jansen struck seven fours in his 52 off 71 balls, while Rickelton faced 83 deliveries to score 42.

Starc then cleared the remaining batters to end South Africa’s innings, dismissing Gerald Coetzee and Kagiso Rabada for ducks. He finished with six wickets for 72 runs in 16.3 overs, while Nathan Lyon took two wickets. Apart from them, Josh Hazlewood and Cooper Connolly also performed well and chipped in with one wicket each.

Australia will now come back tomorrow to start their innings, however, going past South Africa’s big total of 329 won’t be easy for them. The Proteas bowling attack is also in great touch, promising fans an action packed day two in Cape Town Test.