At a hot Newlands stadium, Ryan Rickelton did something amazing in the second test against Pakistan: he scored 213 runs without getting out! This was his highest score ever in first-class cricket. Rickelton, who is 28 years old, stepped in to open the batting after Tony de Zorzi got hurt.
When the players broke for lunch on the second day, South Africa had scored 429 runs for 5 wickets. Along with Kyle Verreynne, who hit 74 runs off 88 balls, Rickelton formed a strong partnership of 106 runs for the sixth wicket.
Rickelton started the day on 176 and carefully faced Pakistan’s bowlers, especially when they tried to use their new ball. Unfortunately for Pakistan, David Bedingham, who was batting with him, got out early for just 5 runs, caught by keeper Mohammad Rizwan off Mohammad Abbas.
Rickelton had a fantastic day yesterday too, scoring 235 runs alongside team captain Temba Bavuma. The pitch is great for batting now, but it might get tricky as it heats up later.
On the downside for Pakistan, they lost their key opener, Saim Ayub, due to an ankle injury. He will be out for about six weeks which is a big loss. This means the team is down to just nine players for batting.
South Africa has already qualified for the World Test Championship final at Lord’s in June, and they want to win this series 2-0 after a thrilling two-wicket victory in the first test.
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