AUS vs SA: SA trail by 371 runs

AUS vs SA, 2nd Test, Day 3:  South Africa 189 and 15 for 1 trail Australia 575 for 8 dec (Warner 200, Carey 111, Smith 85, Green 51*, Head 51) by 371 runs

Australia piled on 189 runs in 54 overs on an overcast day with Alex Carey scoring his first Test hundred at the MCG.

Carey then removed South Africa captain Dean Elgar in the second over before rain brought an early end to the third day. Carey and Cameron Green, who defied a fractured finger, added 117 for the eighth wicket against an increasingly exhausted attack. On a surface that remained conducive to batting, South Africa were kept in the field for more than five sessions and bowled 145 overs, but they were unable to bowl Australia out.

As he gloved Pat Cummins down the leg side off the third ball he faced, Elgar was unable to capitalize on them. Carey lost the edge, but replays showed that he caught Elgar cleanly low down to send him back for a duck. Elgar had been caught down leg in the first innings in Brisbane, making it the second time he had been run out this way in the series.

When Cummins found Theunis de Bruyn’s edge in his next over, Australia could have done more damage, but David Warner couldn’t hold on because it veered away from him at first slip. Mitchell Starc, who bowled however experiencing ligament injury to his finger in the field right from the start, just missed Sarel Erwee’s edge and had two allures for lbw against de Bruyn which were absent. Despite the fact that Starc’s wound opens as he bowls and requires him to wipe the blood off almost every delivery, it was anticipated that he would continue to bowl.

Not only did Starc fight through pain, but many others did as well. Green was hit while batting and also broke his finger, but he came back to the crease to score an unbeaten half-century and play solid defense while Carey attacked back. After a strong start, the two stopped South Africa’s attack. South Africa started the second day with good intentions and scored early, helped by cooler conditions, despite bowling in 40-degree heat. In just six balls, they took three wickets as Anrich Nortje turned up the heat.

Alex Carey's maiden Test century sees Australia pull away on day three@CricketAus https://t.co/F02F6WaK0d#AlexCarey #AUSvSA pic.twitter.com/Zgej1x7eJQ

— Sports Tak (@sports_tak) December 28, 2022

Nortje went full and straight and struck out Travis Head’s off stump after he pulled off a short ball for a 54-ball fifty. The excusal brought Warner, who resigned and was hurt with cramps subsequent to arriving at 200 on day, back for more. He danced to the crease, but he was bowled by a Nortje ball that missed the flick, focused on his leg stump, and bowled him instead. After receiving a standing ovation when he returned, Warner left for another.

Cummins nicked off against Kagiso Rabada after steering a wide Nortje ball through the point to the boundary. South Africa was certain of the advantage but needed to verify it during the review.

Carey and Green quickly closed the gap after South Africa created an opening with a stand that stopped the attack. Carey was strong on the drive and drilled Lungi Ngidi for three consecutive fours, including the one that led to his fifty. Green, on the other hand, was content to wait his turn as he tried to shield his finger from further blows.

With a top-edge off a Rabada bouncer’s hook shot and a three off Jansen, Carey won the Australian 500 and his own hundred. Since Brad Haddin in 2013, he was the first Australian wicketkeeper to score a century in nine years. When he popped a short pitch from Jansen into the air, his innings came to an end.

By then, at that point, Green had confronted 164 balls and assuming there was any aggravation, he wasn’t showing it. He had likewise begun to play a few shots and took on the short ball. With a cut over point, he hit fifty out of 170 attempts. Starc also tucked into the bouncer and top-edged Nortje over square leg to six, adding insult to injury. When Cummins called the batters in, Starc was being checked for concussions after getting hit in the head in the next over.

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Green is unable to bowl, so Australia will use a four-man attack for the remainder of the match. If necessary, Head and Marnus Labuschagne are expected to provide backup.