Proteas claim two wickets before lunch, but look forward to second new ball

A wicket each for Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen, more troubles with no balls for the former and Shan Masood continuing to play patiently were the main features of a largely quiet fourth morning at newlands on Monday. 

Pakistan reached, 312/3 at lunch, still trailing SA by 109 runs with their skipper on 137 and Saud Shakeel alongside him on 16

South Africa will be looking forward to getting hold of the new ball which will be available three overs after lunch. 

The current one has brought much success on a pitch, that is still relatively easy for batting, although Keshav Maharaj, who bowled a lengthy spell from the Kelvin Grove End, got the odd delivery to spin. 

Pakistan resumed on 213/1 with Shan in the company of nightwatchman Khurram Shahzad, and but for a couple of occasions when Marco Jansen beat Khurram’s outside edge, there was little to trouble the tourists.

Jansen eventually made the breakthrough 36 minutes after play started when Khurram’s concentration lapsed and he drove the ball to Maharaj at point after making 18. 

David Bedingham, who’s had a good match in the field after failing with the bat, then made a dreadful error dropping Pakistan’s new batter Kamran Ghulam when he had yet to score. It was a simple chance, but Bedingham, fielding at slip, seemed to lose track of the ball’s trajectory, eventually reaching for it with one hand, and dropping it. 

That’s opportunity came off Rabada, who in a five over spell, bowled four no balls, continuing a problem that has afflicted him all season. He’s bowled14 no balls in this match, and for this season has bowled 48 — an extra eight overs. 

Fortunately his front foot was behind the line, when he got a beautiful delivery to nip back between Ghulam’s bat and pad, smacking his off stump. 

Rabada was fired up, most likely angry at Bedingham’s earlier miss, but also the continuing issues with no balls. Somewhat unnecessarily, Umpire Kumar Dharmasena got involved, appearing to issue a warning to Rabada, although the SA bowler, didn’t get anywhere close to the Ghulam. 

It was Rabada’s 50th wicket at Newlands. He is the fifth bowler after Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander, Makhaya Ntini and Shaun Pollock to reach that landmark at this venue. 

There was further drama, shortly before lunch when Kwena Maphaka, who’d not bowled at all in the session, appealed for lbw against Saud — with a lovely delivery that slanted into the left-hander — but SA chose not to review, Umpire Nitin Menon’s ‘not out’ decision. However Hawkeye showed the ball would have hit the stumps, leaving SA to pore over their error in judgment at the break. 

*Meanwhile Ryan Rickelton has been diagnosed with a right hamstring strain and won't be fielding for the remainder of Pakistan's innings. The Proteas team management confirmed that he would bat if needed.