Key events
119th over: Australia 344-8 (Renshaw 155, Lyon 21) Maharaj replaces Harmer and his first delivery is reverse-swept by Renshaw fine for four, that takes him to 150! He removes his helmet and soaks up the adulation from the Aussies in the crowd and from Lyon in the middle. This knock is taking on more significance with each over. Another reverse, another four. South Africa are hurting and Matt Renshaw is the man inflicting the pain.
118th over: Australia 335-8 (Renshaw 146, Lyon 21) Bavuma hauls in a sweetly timed flick off the pads by Renshaw and saves a couple of runs, in fact it is a reaaaally long single. Lyon then plays a doozy of an on drive down the ground for four. That was on the up too. Hold the pose Garry!
117th over: Australia 330-8 (Renshaw 145, Lyon 17) Renshaw punches Harmer to long on to bring up the 100 partnership from 218 balls. For the ninth wicket. Ouch.
116th over: Australia 329-8 (Renshaw 144, Lyon 17) Kagiso Rabada is shown smiling in the South Africa dugout, the indications are that he’ll be back for the second Test. The camera pans from him to a slightly forlorn looking Anrich Nortje on the boundary edge, he definitely thought he’d be in an ice bath by now.
Close! Lyon gloves Mulder down the leg side but it flies just past the keeper and away for four more. Damaging, damaging, lemon damaging.
To add insult to injury, the PA in the stadium gives a burst of the Backstreet Boys – Tell me why!!
115th over: Australia 324-8 (Renshaw 143, Lyon 13) Harmer is pinged through cover by Renshaw, weary stuff from South Africa now under the beating Durban sun.
114th over: Australia 319-8 (Renshaw 138, Lyon 13) Mulder replaces Nortje and his first ball is sliced past gully for four by Renshaw, that boundary makes this partnership the highest in Test history at Kingsmead. Remember Australia were 124-6 and reeling, South Africa have now been out there for 114 overs and they definitely would have thought that they would be batting by now, that’s always a psychological wounder.
113th over: Australia 314-8 (Renshaw 133, Lyon 13) Renshaw drives Harmer to long on for a single. Every run and further over bowled is a wound to South Africa. The camera pans to some forlorn looking Minions in the crowd, this is Australia’s highest ninth wicket partnership against South Africa – pipping the previous best of 88 between Don Bradman and Bill O’Reilly in 1932. Some going, and Nathan Lyon has just 13 of them. This is a real statement knock from Renshaw.
112th over: Australia 313-8 (Renshaw 132, Lyon 13) Nortje ramps it up from around the wicket. Renshaw is hopping around a little, trying to make room for a cut or a hook. The Aussies move a slip to deep third for just such a thing but there’s just a single off the over to Renshaw as he chalks up 288 balls faced.
James Wallace
111th over: Australia 312-8 (Renshaw 131, Lyon 13) Thanks Geoff and hello all. This is gripping stuff eh, after being hit a few balls ago Renshaw is looking to be a bit more aggressive, we might see him open the shoulders. Lyon picks up two runs off the hubcap handed Harmer with a spawny outside edge that squirts wide of the slip. Here comes Nortje for some more chin music…
Geoff Lemon
110th over: Australia 310-8 (Renshaw 131, Lyon 11) Yowch. Renshaw gets tenderised. Nortje is the mallet, predictably. A rising ball that surprises Renshaw, because it doesn’t get up as much as he expects. It’s straight at the body. He shapes to duck, then realises I think that it’s not bouncing, so his only recourse is to flinch away from it, turning his head and raising his shoulder like he’s about to take a hit in rugby league. The ball bashes that front shoulder and deflects onto his grille, having had some pace taken off it. He’ll have a bruised arm but his head is ok. Nortje immediately checks on him, and Renshaw gives him a nod and a thumbs up. Gets some physio attention for the head knock, but Renshaw’s more preoccupied with that shoulder, wincing while moving it.
Finally he’s back at the crease, and almost plays on! Back of a length ball, angled across, just outside off, and Renshaw’s shot is tentative, inside edge of an angled bat, past leg stump, no run. No run from the over, either!
This has been an entertaining morning. That’s it for me, Jim Wallace to take you through the afternoon.
109th over: Australia 310-8 (Renshaw 131, Lyon 11) You’d be steaming if you were a South African flicking on the game right now, having seen the overnight scores but not caught up. You’d be hoping to see your team on about 80 for 1, perhaps. Instead these other guys are still batting! Jansen, Renshaw, single, fifth ball.
108th over: Australia 309-8 (Renshaw 130, Lyon 11) Finally, after 15 overs, Lyon adds to his score! He can find runs against quick bowling sometimes – remember him repeatedly hooking Mark Wood out of Bellerive Oval during the fifth Ashes Test, after it got moved to Hobart from Perth. This time, Lyon misses his hook shot at the first bouncer, a high one, but the less short ball in at his hip he’s able to deflect with a straight bat, out behind square to the fence. Could have added a single from the last ball, similar shot, but that’s not what Renshaw wants. That’ll do, pig. That’ll do.
107th over: Australia 305-8 (Renshaw 130, Lyon 7) Finally, South Africa have found a way to stop Renshaw from scoring one near the end of the over. Let him score four instead. Final ball of the over, he takes Jansen off his hip through square leg, and it rolls slowly into the rope.
South Africa have an opening. Bavuma immediately signals to Nortje to bowl the next over, with Lyon on strike.
106th over: Australia 301-8 (Renshaw 126, Lyon 7) This is like clockwork. Renshaw, single, fifth ball. Harmer the bowler.
105th over: Australia 300-8 (Renshaw 125, Lyon 7) Bavuma, at a dead end, asks for one more burst from Jansen. Bouncer to start, but well over Renshaw’s front shoulder, not worrying the batter. He’ll step across and defend the next. He’s happy to take the single fourth ball, giving Lyon two to face, and that raises the 300! Lyon repays the faith with some solid defence.
104th over: Australia 299-8 (Renshaw 124, Lyon 7) Renshaw keeps bossing it. Two runs through cover, a single fifth ball. Nathan Lyon hasn’t scored since the 92nd over, and this was the 104th. He’s had to face only 20 balls in that time. What’s that, 20 out of about 84.
103rd over: Australia 296-8 (Renshaw 121, Lyon 7) Now the single fourth ball, against Maharaj. Renshaw is driving South Africa mad.
102nd over: Australia 295-8 (Renshaw 120, Lyon 7) A big slog sweep to start Harmer’s over, but Renshaw doesn’t get all of it, so it plugs near the midwicket rope for two. Then a single fifth ball.
101st over: Australia 292-8 (Renshaw 117, Lyon 7) It’s that thing so many of us hate: the fielders spread around the arena in an attempt to give Renshaw a single and get Lyon on strike. Yuck cricket. “Only one!” someone shouts as Renshaw finds a gap at wide long on, but, to our interlocutor’s chagrin, the batters in fact score two. The single comes fourth ball, and Lyon survives his ration of two.
100th over: Australia 289-8 (Renshaw 114, Lyon 7) Harmer is bowling pretty well, turning the ball away from Renshaw, varying his pace. But they have too many fielders in the deep too late in the over, and Renshaw’s able to find a single fifth ball.
99th over: Australia 288-8 (Renshaw 113, Lyon 7) What a reverse from Renshaw! Nails that one from Maharaj, gets low and hits it very square of the wicket, and flat. Fielder at deep backward point, but he has no chance. Then a single fifth ball. Renshaw is pacing this beautifully.
98th over: Australia 283-8 (Renshaw 108, Lyon 7) South Africa with the field up to tempt Renshaw to go over, and he does against Harmer, reaching out well in front of his body to lift the ball long and high, one bounce to long off. Then a single to keep strike.
97th over: Australia 278-8 (Renshaw 103, Lyon 7) Just the single down the ground for Renshaw in that over.
Getting ready to start again after lunch, and it’ll be Maharaj to Renshaw.
Lunch – Australia 277 for 8 in the first innings
That was a remarkable comeback session from Renshaw and Co. A partnership of 86 with Cummins, 10 more with Starc, then 47 and counting with Lyon. Like Bradley from Sublime, the Australians were screaming 187 overnight, but they’ve added 90 runs for the loss of two wickets today, which is a very good exchange rate this far down the list. If Renshaw can take them to 300 they’ll be in a very competitive spot in this match.
96th over: Australia 277-8 (Renshaw 102, Lyon 7) And now Simon Harmer. South Africa’s spinners have been reduced to peripheral contributors in this first innings, filling in a couple of overs before the new ball and the lunch break. No joy for the home team here, as Renshaw takes one more run to midwicket, and will walk to the break with an unbeaten century to his name, and the chance to return and even further frustrate the home side and the home supporters.
95th over: Australia 276-8 (Renshaw 101, Lyon 7) Back to spin, while has played absolutely no part in the game so far, and Maharaj gives up a run.
94th over: Australia 275-8 (Renshaw 100, Lyon 7) Australia’s No10 survives the over! Not without qualm: Jansen hits him in the body, and beats him while driving lavishly, but at other times Lyon is in control, ducking the short ball, blocking the length ball. No score.
93rd over: Australia 275-8 (Renshaw 100, Lyon 7) Another four runs follow the century immediately, though this time the ball comes off the thigh guard. Nortje’s pace makes that happen.
Century! Matthew Renshaw 100 from 204 balls
He does it again! Same shot, different bowler. Nortje this time, and Renshaw is happy to move towards him, even at high pace, and drive through wide long on, a touch straighter than the previous, for the boundary to raise his hundred.
This is such an impressive innings. One that he’ll be remembered for. What might have happened yesterday had Renshaw opened and Maddinson batted five? Never mind, Renshaw at least has made the best of it.
92nd over: Australia 267-8 (Renshaw 96, Lyon 7) Shot! An on-drive, on the walk! Renshaw saunters down at Jansen, takes the ball from outside the line of off stump, and whips his drive through a wide long on, almost midwicket. Slices through the gaps between a couple of fielders on the way, all along the carpet. That’s a stunner. Takes a single next to keep the strike! One boundary away…
91st over: Australia 261-8 (Renshaw 91, Lyon 6) Another leading edge! Renshaw has had a few of those today, but this one from Nortje has enough pace on it to reach the boundary fine of gully. That takes Renshaw into the 90s. This is already his second-best Test score, by a long way, behind only that big hundred that he made in Australia a million years ago.
90th over: Australia 257-8 (Renshaw 87, Lyon 6) Lovely bowling from Mulder, seam upright and moving away past Lyon’s edge, but Mulder has overstepped. Lyon gets a couple of runs through midwicket to follow.
89th over: Australia 254-8 (Renshaw 87, Lyon 4) Such good temperament that we’re seeing from Renshaw. He took those boundaries from Nortje’s previous over, but this time with accuracy he just makes sure that he sees it off. Looks to manufacture a single with a little pull shot from the sixth ball, or shapes as if to pull but ends up playing a short ball with a straighter bat, trying to ride the bounce and knock it to leg for a single, but it doesn’t work, the ball ends up going to the off side. Lyon with four slips behind him will have to negotiate Mulder on his own.
88th over: Australia 254-8 (Renshaw 87, Lyon 4) First runs for Lyon, glancing Mulder fine to the fence. He could have another run to end the over, maybe off the thigh pad actually, but Renshaw says no thanks. Australia past that 250 mark that we spoke about yesterday.