South Africa vs Australia 2018: 3rd Test, day 1, 5 things we learnt from the day
What was turning out to be a great day for South Africa turned sour as the red cherry started losing sheen and reversing. Dean Elgar and AB de Villiers stitched together a century stand before Cummins struck back with venom to slice through the middle-order with four wickets.
Elgar remained solid amidst the ruins, composing a fine 11th Test hundred as South Africa ended the day at 266/8. The opener was a forlorn figure as others around him failed to come to terms with Cummins' breezy spell.
Earlier, South Africa lost Aiden Markram early before Hashim Amla and Elgar resuscitated the Proteas. Hazlewood had the last laugh against Amla but it only brought de Villiers to the crease and he appeared in ominous touch as he and Elgar ground down Australia. However, most of the hard work was undone after Cummins' spell.
#5 Theunis de Bruyn and Lungi Ngidi dropped
A toe injury to Lungi Ngidi perhaps paved way for Morne Morkel's return to the Test side in his last series. Morkel, who was surprisingly dropped for the Port Elizabeth Test, made a return despite his replacement Ngidi putting up a really good show with the ball in the second Test.
The same cannot be said of Theunis de Bruyn, who showed maturity and technique in a tough second innings at Durban. Runs just seem to not come to him and as such Temba Bavuma, as impressive, if not more, with his grit and temperament came straight back into the Test side after an injury.