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Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood changed the record books with his brilliance and a memorable opening stand with his predecessor Babar Azam on Day 3 of the second Test against South Africa.
On a bright day in Cape Town, records fell like a house of cards with Babar and Shan effortlessly rekindling Pakistan's hopes in the direst of the situations. After failing miserably in the first innings in pursuit of 615, South Africa decided to impose a follow-on. The Proteas became the first team to enforce the follow-on twice in this World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. The previous instance when South Africa imposed a follow-on was against Bangladesh in Chattogram. The outcome of the decision that South Africa expected wasn't a fruitful affair. Shan and Babar defied the odds and redefined the art of batting on a benign Newlands surface. It was a batting masterclass from the left and right-handed duo, making Pakistan's lost cause something to fight for. They stitched up a 201-run opening partnership, the highest by any opening pair during a follow-on. While Babar fell on 81, Shan ended the day unbeaten with 102, becoming the first Pakistan captain to score a Test century in South Africa. Before Shan, Salim Malik was dismissed for 99 in Johannesburg in 1995. Another Pakistan batting legend, Inzamam-ul-Haq, was left hanging on 92 when he came out to bat at number eight in Gqeberha in 2007. Babar, who found his groove in Test cricket in South Africa, was on a spree of scoring fifties. In the second inning in Centurion, Babar struck a fifty and went on to hammer two more in consecutive innings. This marked the first time in his career when Babar went on to garner three consecutive fifties without converting any one of them into a century. Young speedster Kwena Maphaka, at the age of 18 years 272 days, became the youngest debutant for South Africa. On Day 3, he became the youngest South African to take a wicket in the Test format. (ANI)
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