Port Elizabeth: South Africa crushed Zimbabwe by an innings and 120
runs inside two days in their one-off Day-Night Test at St George’s Park here late on Wednesday.
Forced to follow on, after being bowled out for 68 in their first innings, Zimbabwe were shot out for just 121
runs in their second innings. The match ended before the scheduled dinner break on the second day.
Fast bowler Morne Morkel was the destroyer in the first innings, taking 5 for 21, but medium-pacer Andile Phehlukwayo and left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj engineered the second-innings collapse.
Phehlukwayo took 3 for 13 and Maharaj claimed 5 for 59, with stand-in captain AB de Villiers seemingly using
his front-line fast bowlers sparingly, so that they could take advantage of the helpful conditions under
floodlights.
Zimbabwe put up a fight at the start of their second innings, reaching 54 before they lost their first wicket,
although opening batsman Hamilton Masakadza was forced to retire hurt after being struck on the right elbow
by a bouncer from Morkel.
The total reached 75 for one before the innings imploded, with four wickets falling in 14 balls. The last nine
wickets fell for 46 runs in just 15.4 overs. South Africa needed just 68 minutes and 14.1 overs on Wednesday to take Zimbabwe’s remaining six first- innings wickets after they resumed on 30 for four. Nightwatchman Kyle Jarvis was the top scorer for Zimbabwe, making 23.
Morkel, who took the first three wickets under floodlights on Tuesday, again made the first breakthroughs. With
his seventh ball of the morning, Morkel bowled left-hander Ryan Burl for 16, beating the batsman for pace with
a ball angled in from around the wicket. Four balls later he had Sikandar Raza caught behind after softening
him up with a vicious bouncer, which Raza fended off the splice of his bat just short of gully.
Faced with almost an hour to bat before tea, Zimbabwe showed greater resistance in their second innings but
Morkel remained a threat. Chamu Chibhabha and Craig Ervine saw their team through to tea but the fight soon
evaporated.
South Africa were again without wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock, who suffered a low-grade hamstring strain
while batting on Monday. De Kock was ruled out of the rest of the match, with captain AB de Villiers keeping
wicket and took three catches. De Kock is expected to be fit for the first Test against India, starting in Cape
Town on January 5. (ANI)