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| April 30, 2006 | Sunday | Rabi-us-Sani 1, 1427 |
Franklin, Patel keep South Africa under pressure
CAPE TOWN, April 29: New Zealand lower-order batsman James Franklin completed a maiden Test century and new cap Jeetan Patel took two wickets before bad light brought respite to South Africa on the third day of the first Test at Newlands on Saturday.
South Africa were 155 for two in reply to New Zealand's first innings total of 593 for eight declared when bad light stopped play half an hour after tea.
South Africa still needed another 239 to avoid the follow-on. Hashim Amla, playing in his fourth Test, led South Africa's reply with 50 not out.
New Zealand batted on for an hour on Saturday before declaring, with Franklin unbeaten on 122.
Patel, who had to wait until the third morning to step on to the field in his first Test, batted confidently to make 27 not out, then captured the wicket of South African captain Graeme Smith with his third ball in Test cricket.
The off-spinner later bowled Boeta Dippenaar to have figures of two for 58.
Patel and Franklin added 58 in 13 overs before the declaration.
Franklin, who resumed on 93 after sharing a record eighth wicket stand of 256 with captain Stephen Fleming Friday, took 40 minutes and 35 balls to add the seven runs he needed for his century, reaching the landmark with an off-drive for four off Dale Steyn.
With his hundred completed, the left-handed Franklin hammered two more boundaries in the same Steyn over and lofted Makhaya Ntini, South Africa's leading bowler, over wide mid-on for six.
Franklin, who had previously made two first-class centuries, including a double hundred, faced 268 balls in his six-hour innings, hitting 14 fours and a six.
South Africa's bowlers largely looked powerless to stop the runs on an easy-paced pitch, although Patel on six edged Ntini dangerously close to Dippenaar at first slip.
Dippenaar made the match's most significant error on Friday when he dropped Fleming on 136, with the New Zealand captain going on to score a ground record 262.
Fleming quickly introduced his spinners into the attack after Smith and Dippenaar made a confident start to the South African innings, with left-armer Daniel Vettori bowling the tenth over and Patel joining him three overs later.
Smith pushed forward at Patel's third ball and the ball looped off the toe of his bat for Patel to take a return catch. Smith stood his ground but television umpire Marais Erasmus confirmed the ball went to Patel on the full.
Dippenaar and Hashim Amla put on 72 for the second wicket before Dippenaar tried to cut an off-break from Patel and was bowled off a bottom edge.
Amla, who played in three Tests during the 2004-05 season with a highest score of 25, batted soundly to make his maiden Test half-century, reaching the mark off 132 balls with a cover drive for four off Patel.
Kallis, South Africa's leading batsman, was unbeaten on 25 after helping Amla put on 47.
Heavy cloud shrouded the ground by tea and the floodlights were on during the last half hour of play before the umpires decided the light was too bad to continue despite New Zealand using two spin bowlers.
Scoreboard
NEW ZEALAND (1st Innings, overnight 535-8):
M.W.H. Papps b Nel 22
P.G. Fulton c Boucher b Steyn 36
S.P. Fleming b Prince 262
S.B. Styris c Dippenaar b Ntini 11
N.J. Astle lbw b Ntini 50
J.D.P. Oram run out 13
B.B. McCullum lbw b Ntini 5
D.L. Vettori c Nel b Ntini 11
J.E.C. Franklin not out 122
J.S. Patel not out 27
EXTRAS (B-4, LB-14, W-1, NB-15) 34
TOTAL (for eight wkts decl, 165 overs) 593
FALL OF WKTS: 1-50, 2-62, 3-82, 4-188, 5-237, 6-259, 7-279, 8-535.
DID NOT BAT: C.S. Martin.
BOWLING: Ntini 43-5-162-4 (2nb); Steyn 31-4-114-1 (11nb, 1w); Nel 27-3-98-1 (1nb); Kallis 15-4-45-0 (1nb); Boje 29-4-89-0; Smith 17-2-61-0; Amla 1-0-4-0; Prince 2-0-2-1.
SOUTH AFRICA (1st Innings):
G.C. Smith c and b Patel 25
H.H. Dippenaar b Patel 47
H.M. Amla not out 50
J.H. Kallis not out 25
EXTRAS (B-8) 8
TOTAL (for two wkts, 61.5 overs) 155
FALL OF WKTS: 1-36, 2-108.
TO BAT: A.G. Prince, A.B. de Villiers, M.V. Boucher, N. Boje, A. Nel, D.W. Steyn, M. Ntini.
BOWLING (to-date): Martin 7-3-19-0; Franklin 10-2-22-0; Vettori 21-3-40-0; Patel 20.5-4-58-2; Styris 3-0-8-0.—Agencies
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