South Africa Seizes Control After Markram and Bosch Shine in Opening Test
South Africa gained a significant upper hand in the opening Test as Aiden Markram (89) and debutant Corbin Bosch (81*) guided the hosts to a solid 301, establishing a 90-run lead at the innings break. Despite a promising 49-run opening partnership between Saim Ayub and Shan Masood, the South African bowlers struck late in the day, reducing Pakistan to 88/3 at stumps, just two runs behind.
Pakistan started their chase with aggressive intent, as Ayub flicked a boundary and Masood followed suit, driving through the point off Kagiso Rabada. Bosch, given the new ball, was immediately challenged by Ayub, who hit him for two boundaries. However, the tide turned when Rabada dismissed Ayub, cleaning up his off-stump with a perfect delivery.
Masood and Babar Azam resisted, with the former lucky to survive a few edges. But Masood couldn’t escape Marco Jansen’s precision, nicking one to slip and leaving Pakistan with both openers gone. Kamran Ghulam followed soon after, edging to gully. Saud Shakeel responded with a couple of boundaries, but with bad light stopping play, Pakistan’s chase was faltering.
Earlier, South Africa’s strong position was built on Bosch’s counter-attacking debut knock, where he blasted a couple of early boundaries off Khurram Shahzad and Naseem Shah, before bringing up his half-century. Bosch became the first South African debutant to record both a four-wicket haul and a 50+ score in a Test match, an impressive feat.
Pakistan's bowling, especially early on, was wayward, with Markram and Temba Bavuma capitalizing on the looseners. However, a breakthrough came as Aamer Jamal got Bavuma for 31. David Bedingham found the boundary with ease, but his innings ended against the run of play, with him edging to slip just before lunch.
At the close of Day 2, Pakistan needed 91 more runs to avoid a hefty deficit, with South Africa holding all the momentum.
