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A historic double ton by Ryan Rickelton and an attacking century from wicketkeeper-batter Kyle Verreyne helped South Africa strengthen their grip on the second Test against Pakistan on Saturday, with pacers taking some early wickets to end the second day on a dominant note.
Having compiled 615 runs in their first innings, the Proteas managed to claim three wickets in the final session as Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada continued leading the charge of the pace attack, Pakistan was left 64/3, with Babar Azam (31*) and Mohammed Rizwan (9*) unbeaten. Resuming their innings at 316/4 on Saturday, South Africa continued their march to a big total as Ryan Rickelton (259 in 343 balls, with 29 fours and three sixes) and Kyle Verreynne (100 in 147 balls, with nine fours and five sixes) build a commanding partnership. Rickelton reached his maiden Test double century, while Verreynne brought up his half-century as South Africa went into Lunch at 429-5. The duo continued their attacking approach post-lunch, stitching together a brilliant 148-run stand. Verreynne went on to score his third Test century. The keeper-batter, however, fell shortly after reaching his century, attempting a slog sweep off Salman Agha that was miscued to Aamer Jamal. Rickelton, undeterred, continued his run-scoring spree alongside Marco Jansen (62 in 54 balls, with eight fours and three sixes). The pair added 86 runs before Pakistan finally broke their stand for the seventh wicket. Batting at 259, Rickelton attempted to hit a delivery from Mir Hamza over long-on, but the ball went straight into the hands of Mohammad Abbas as South Africa went into Tea placed at 566-7. The hosts added another 49 runs in the final session, thanks to a rapid 42-run partnership off just 32 balls between Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj (40 in 35 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes) before they were eventually restricted for 615. Mohammad Abbas (3/94) and Salman Agha (3/148) were top wicket-takers for SA. With a mammoth total on the board, Kagiso Rabada struck early for South Africa, dismissing Shan Masood in the very first over for two. The Proteas bagged two more wickets inside the first 10 overs, leaving Pakistan struggling at 20-3. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan though, saw off the rest of the final session as Pakistan closed Day 2 at 64-3, trailing by 551 runs. The hosts, leading 1-0 in the two-Test series, had won the toss and opted to bat first on Friday. South Africa had taken the lead after a thrilling victory in Centurion, where tailenders Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada held their nerve with the bat to secure the win. That triumph not only gave Temba Bavuma and his team a 1-0 series advantage but also confirmed their place in this year's ICC World Test Championship Final. (ANI)
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