Boland strikes twice as rain ruins opening day in Gqeberha

Scott Boland took two wickets as Australia reduced South Africa to 20 for 2 on a rain-ruined opening day of the second Test in Gqeberha.

Only 12.2 overs were possible at St George's Park on 18 October. An over is a set of six balls, so that is barely an hour of cricket. South Africa closed that short passage two batters down, with Australia on top in a three-match series they already lead 1-0.

Boland made both breakthroughs. He dismissed opener Aiden Markram and David Bedingham during the brief windows of play, as reported by The Guardian.

Rain shaped the whole day. The start was delayed, play stopped again in the middle, and bad weather then forced an early finish. South Africa were 20 for 2 at tea, and no further play was possible afterwards, according to ESPN.

The outing was Boland's return after a seven-month lay-off. Australia picked him in an all-pace attack for this match and left out frontline spinner Nathan Lyon. Lyon bowls slow, turning deliveries rather than fast seam bowling. Rain had cleared in time for the toss on Sunday morning to allow that selection call, Cricket Australia reported.

What makes this stand out is Boland's record for making little go a long way. He arrived at this Test with 20 caps, 84 wickets at an average of 18.2 runs each and a strike rate of a wicket every 38.2 balls.

For fans, this means the series picture is still simple. Australia won the first Test in Durban by 214 runs on 9-13 October. The second Test runs from 18-22 October in Gqeberha, formerly known as Port Elizabeth, with the third to follow in Cape Town on 27-31 October, the ICC confirmed. A Test lasts up to five days, with each team batting twice, so four days remain for this game to move.

Australia, captained by Pat Cummins, are also playing their first Test series in South Africa since the 2018 ball-tampering scandal, Reuters noted. Weather won day one. Boland won what little cricket there was.