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SA vs SL 2024/25, South Africa vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test, Day 4, Gqeberha Match Report, December 05 – 09, 2024

South Africa 358 and 318 (Bavuma 66, Markram 55, Jayasuriya 5-129) lead Sri Lanka 328 by 347 runs

Sri Lanka took seven wickets for 126 on day three, but are now faced with making 348 for victory. This would not only be a ground record, but a record in South Africa, beating the 340 the hosts made against Australia in Durban, in 2002.

Prabath Jayasuriya was Sri Lanka’s primary weapon, completing a 10th career five-wicket haul, and his first overseas, before lunch. He bowled yet another long spell into the rough that has developed outside the right-hander’s leg stump. Through the course of his 14 overs on day four, he dismissed Temba Bavuma, David Bedingham, and Marco Jansen, and finished with figures of 5 for 129.

Though Sri Lanka made serious strides in the first session, taking five wickets to work their way back into a Test that had been at risk of slipping away, they lost some momentum against the tail. Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, and Dane Paterson collectively crashed two sixes and five fours after lunch. The four overs they faced after lunch brought South Africa 35 runs in all.

The seamers toiled on a slowing surface for large parts of the morning, while Jayasuriya struck, but each of them picked up a wicket during the day. Vishwa, who had also had Aiden Markram nicking behind on the third evening, finished with the best figures among them, taking 2 for 47 from his 19 overs.

Of all the dismissals South Africa will rue Tristan Stubbs’ run out the most. He and overnight partner Bavuma had begun the day brightly, and had extended their fourth-wicket stand to 103, when Bavuma clubbed a Lahiru Kumara ball to deep midwicket, and took off for a tight two. Stubbs hesitated upon turning for the second, however, and attempted to turn Bavuma back, but the ball-watching earlier meant it was too late. The pair were caught mid-pitch for long enough that Kumara could get back to the non-striker’s stumps and run Stubbs out with ease. He was out for 47.

Bavuma, who early in the day completed his fourth half-century of the series (one of these is a hundred), then put on a 41-run stand with Bedingham, whom Sri Lanka tested with the short ball with a stacked leg-side field (he had been dropped twice trying to pull in the first innings). They got through that period, but Bavuma could not defy Jayasuriya forever. He was bowled trying to sweep the spinner, the ball leaping out of the rough. With this 66, Bavuma has 327 runs for the series.

Bedingham batted with much more caution than he had displayed in the first innings for his 35, but edged Jayasuriya to slip, the ball once again kicking off the surface to take the outside edge. Vishwa Fernando then zipped one off the surface in the channel to have Kyle Verreynne caught behind for nine. Jansen had attempted to hit out against Jayasuriya, and was caught on the deep-midwicket boundary.

The tail came out of the lunch break swinging. Rabada clobbered two fours in the first over of the session, and was also struck in the helmet by a Kumara short ball. Paterson too, wore a Kumara bouncer on the helmet. But Paterson and Maharaj smashed sixes off Jayasuriya, and more boundaries came off the seamers before an Asitha yorker to Paterson finally ended the innings.

Andrew Fidel Fernando is a senior writer at ESPNcricinfo. @afidelf

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