Bad light interrupted play on Day 1, but New Zealand find themselves in a strong position after the first day of their two-match Test series against South Africa. Join The Roar for live scores of Day 2 at Durban from 6pm (AEST).
The hosts lost wickets at regular intervals during the first day’s play and will be keen to turn things around today with a strong bowling effort.
They closed Day 1 after just 77 overs due to the bad light on 8-236, which, despite the pitch, is probably a below-par score.
Having to bat last, the Kiwis need to build up a first innings lead if they want to perform a successful chase in the fourth innings – and they are in a position to do that with the pitch likely to flatten out over the next day or two.
Hashim Amla was the top scorer for the Proteas, managing 53, as all of their batsmen got starts and reached double figures, which says more about the state of their batting than the pitch – it’s easy enough to score runs with concentration and good decision-making.
Unfortunately, rain is expected on Day 2, so we may not get a full day again.
For that reason, with both teams right in it, the match will probably move on at a reasonable pace, and we should expect to see more assistance for the pace bowlers.
Day 2 prediction
It’s hard to see South Africa putting many more on the board, so if the Kiwi top order can see off the new ball, they could build a big score.
This all depends on what effect rain has on proceedings.
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