McKenzie and Boucher guide South Africa home on tense final day
Charlie Austin - 19 November 2002
Middle order batsman Neil McKenzie and vice-captain Mark Boucher guided South Africa to a tense and acrimonious three-wicket win against Sri Lanka in the second Test to win the series 2-0 at SuperSport Park on Tuesday.
McKenzie, playing for his place after three failures in the series, rescued his side after a dramatic afternoon collapse saw a nervy South Africa slip to 44 for five and then 73 for six chasing a paltry 121 for victory.
The 26-year-old scored 39 from 53 deliveries in crucial partnerships of 29 with Andrew Hall and 39-run with Boucher. When McKenzie was bowled by Muralitharan with nine runs still needed another twist appeared to be on the cards but skipper Shaun Pollock finished the game with a lofted straight boundary.
Earlier in the day, the Sri Lankans had also collapsed, losing their last seven wickets for just 65 runs as they were bowled out for 245. South Africa looked certain winners with 77 overs to chase down the target but Sri Lanka produced a fighting performance in the field as they tried to win only their fourth Test outside the sub-continent in two decades.
Chaminda Vaas led the way, trapping opener Graeme Smith lbw with the first ball of South Africa's innings, before fast bowler Dilhara Fernando conjured up an inspired four-wicket burst after the luncheon interval. Herschelle Gibbs (7) miscued an attempted pull and was well-caught by a scampering Kumar Sangakkara and then Gary Kirsten (11) fended off a sharply rising short delivery into the hands of Jehan Mubarak at gully.
With South Africa tottering on 23 for three the stakes had been raised, and the needle between the two sides that had been sparked by Pollock grabbing Mahela Jayawardene's helmet last night was once again evident. Short leg fieldsman Russel Arnold and wicket-keeper Sangakkara traded verbals liberally with Jacques Kallis. The wound-up right-hander responded in kind after a powerful cover drive for four. Arnold bowed sarcastically.
Kallis, who had reprieve when palpably lbw earlier in the over, lost his cool after dragging a short delivery on to his stumps, directing an extended volley of expletives at the celebrating Sri Lankans on his way back to the dressing room.
Ashwell Prince (5), another batsman playing for his place, was then snared down the leg-side by Fernando, umpire Russell Tiffen taking a long time before deciding that the left-hander had gloved the ball. Prince looked distraught with the decision.
Fernando, who had taken four wickets for 33 runs in his eight over burst, was then replaced by Vaas. The left-armer proved expensive as Hall (16), promoted up the order, and McKenzie wrested back the initiative.
But 25 minutes before the tea interval Muralitharan struck for the first time in the innings - somewhat fortuitously - as umpire Darryl Harper upheld a bat-pad appeal off Hall. Television showed that the ball had missed the right-handers bat. But McKenzie and Hall counter-attacked and the match soon drifted away from the visitors, who will have rued their collapse this morning.
The day started disastrously as their premier batsman Mahela Jayawardene (40) was wrongly adjudged lbw by umpire Russell Tiffen off the first ball of the day, the right-hander hitting outside the line of off-stump. Arnold's wretched series then continued. He started brightly with an aerial square cut to the boundary but was then trapped lbw by Pollock in the second over of the day.
The left-hander had scored just six runs in four innings in the two Tests, and with an unacceptable Test average of 29 he will struggle to retain his place in the next series against New Zealand at home in April. He may also be dropped from the one-day side after the selectors' last-minute decision to draft in left-hander Hashan Tillakaratne for five-match series that follows this Test.
Hasantha Fernando scored three boundaries in his 14 before being suckered into an ill-advised hook off the lively Makhaya Ntini, who tore into bowl like a man still seeking redemption from his captain.
South Africa went for the jugular, attacking the Sri Lankan lower order with
a barrage of short deliveries. But the visitors profited as 12 runs were
collected with boundaries that flew over the head of wicket-keeper Boucher.
When Tillakaratne, who occupied the crease for 80 minutes for his six runs, was seventh man out with the score of 209, caught behind off an inside edge, Sri Lanka's chances looked to have evaporated. Chamila Gamage (0) was caught behind next ball before Vaas fought back with a series of pulls to add 36 runs for the ninth wicket with Dilhara Fernando, taking the lead into three figures.
However, Steve Elworthy eventually broke through as Fernando edged to Boucher, the wicket-keeper's fifth catch, and in the next over Vaas was trapped lbw by Kallis to end the innings. Nitini finished with four for 52 meaning a match haul of eight for 138.
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