On a rain-wrecked opening day in Gqeberha, Scott Boland needed barely 12 overs to leave a mark on the Proteas.
Gqeberha set the stage for another South African Test against Australia, and the weather nearly stole the show. Only 12.2 overs were possible on day one of the second Test, but Scott Boland made them count, putting the Proteas under early pressure.
Boland, a proud Indigenous Australian, wasn't even meant to be in this XI. That has been the story of his Test career. He broke into the side in 2021 when his chance looked gone, and he has since sat fourth in line for three bowling spots, getting picked only when someone else is missing. Each time he gets the ball, he tends to make it hurt.
His record shows a habit of sudden strikes: clusters of wickets, early breakthroughs, and the odd hat-trick threat, which he has completed once. In Gqeberha he did it again. He found a gap in the short passage of play between the showers and left South Africa on 20 for two.
With so little cricket bowled, the contest is still wide open. Whenever the covers come off, South Africa's batters will have to rebuild against a seamer who has made a career out of small windows. Boland, once again, is ready to take the next one.
