Mitchell Starc yesterday offered Australia a lifeline with an inspired spell after a record-low home total against South Africa on an opening day of carnage in the second Test in Hobart.
The left-arm pace spearhead put the brakes on the Proteas with three wickets in 10 balls post-tea after the Australians were skittled for 85 off 32.5 overs.
The tourists reached stumps at 171-5 and a lead of 86. Temba Bavuma was unbeaten on 38, with Quinton de Kock on 28.
Photo: AP
Up until Starc’s intervention, South Africa had seized control of the first day with a total of 15 wickets tumbling for a combined 256 runs under cloudy skies.
Vernon Philander powered the Proteas with 5-21 as Australia folded to their lowest total at home against South Africa to revive memories of recent catastrophic batting collapses.
The capitulation revisited the nightmares of their miserable 47 in Cape Town in 2011 and England’s demolition for 60 at Trent Bridge last year.
Only skipper Steve Smith provided any backbone with his unbeaten knock of 48 as the Australians failed to back up their talk of rebounding from their comprehensive 177-run thrashing by the Proteas in the Perth series opener.
Just as South Africa looked well on the way to emulating the intimidating West Indies teams of the 1980s and 1990s with three straight series wins in Australia, Starc struck.
He toe-capped Dean Elgar with a lethal yorker in front of the stumps with his first ball after tea then removed Stephen Cook with his penultimate delivery of the over.
Starc then had Perth centurion J.P. Duminy snapped up by Smith at second slip reducing the Proteas to 46-3.
South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis followed LBW to Hazlewood for 7 and Hashim Amla was caught behind off the same bowler.
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