Maphaka's maiden Test wicket lights up Newlands

Kwena Maphaka’s first Test wicket and a rash error of judgment by Mohammad Rizwan, kept South Africa in the ascendancy on the third morning of the New Year’s Test in Cape Town. 

Keshav Maharaj added to South Africa supremacy taking the wicket of Salman Agha in the penultimate over before lunch, reducing Pakistan to 155/6 before the players made their way off the field.

The 18-year-old debutant, for whom a bright future has been forecast, made the breakthrough with the fifth ball after the drinks interval when he had Babar Azam, who’d just completed his second half-century of the series, caught down the leg-side by Kyle Verreynne.

It was far from the best delivery, but there was no hiding Maphaka’s excitement as he charged around Newlands, before being embraced by ecstatic teammates. 

Pakistan had made sedate progress through the first hour as Babar and Rizwan, looked at ease on a surface that offered little to Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen, who started proceedings in the morning. 

There was not a lot of movement on offer and Rabada only beat the outside edge once, and on another occasion, when he did find the edge of Babar’s bat, it flew over the slip cordon. 

Babar went to 50, but added just eight more runs, before handing Maphaka his big moment. Babar hit seven fours, having faced 127 balls.

The breakthrough was timely, giving South Africa an opening, and then the hosts were gifted Rizwan’s wicket, when the experienced keeper/batter charged down the wicket at Wiaan Mulder and attempted a wild hoick, only getting the inside edge with the ball crashing into the stumps.

Rizwan made 46, but any hope of Pakistan reaching the follow-on target of 416, ended with his injudicious attempt at an attacking stroke. 

 Maharaj then made that task even tougher, spinning one past Salman’s bat, with Verreynne completing a fine stumping. The irony of that wicket won’t be lost on anyone after Salman claimed at the end of the first day that pitch wasn’t assisting spin. 

Pakistan face an uphill battle, especially since they are down one batter because of Saim Ayub’s fractured ankle.