Scott Boland's four wickets have dragged South Africa's batting flaws back into the spotlight and left the hosts battling in the second Test.
South Africa's batting problems are back under the microscope, and on home soil. Australia's Scott Boland took four wickets in the second Test, leaving the hosts in real trouble and fighting to stay in the contest.
It is a familiar story for the Proteas. Australia have found the cracks in this batting order before, and Boland went straight back to them. His discipline and relentless pressure made scoring hard and mistakes inevitable, and wickets kept falling when South Africa needed someone to hold firm.
The damage goes beyond one bad session. When a top order keeps struggling against accurate, patient seam bowling, other opponents take notice, and Boland's work doubles as a blueprint for any attack looking to rattle South Africa. The hosts need answers on shot selection, temperament and partnership-building, and they need them quickly.
The Test is not over, and South Africa have a history of fighting back when cornered. But the next phase of this match will test whether the batting group can show the resilience it has lacked so far. For a cricket-mad nation watching at home, that is what everyone is waiting to see.
