Cricket: SA series whitewash is beginning to look inevitable

JOHANNESBURG - They might have lost a day to rain, plus one of the world's premier fast bowlers, but South Africa still seem to be on track to win the third cricket test against New Zealand and complete a 3-0 series whitewash.

Notwithstanding a plucky debut from New Zealand batsman Hamish Marshall, South Africa were in a virtually unbeatable position not long before stumps on the second day after they bowled the tourists out for a mere 200 on a sporting pitch at the Wanderers Stadium.

The meagre total means only one team has a realistic chance of winning the test because South Africa's formidable batting line-up is unlikely to be knocked over twice in the space of three days by anyone in the world, never mind New Zealand's unfancied attack.

Far more likely is the chance that the home side will weather the vagaries of the pitch and the enthusiasm of the opposition bowlers to build a useful first-innings lead, after which the New Zealand top-order batsmen will be left facing another challenging assignment to save the test.

Already 0-2 down in the series, New Zealand have opted for some changes to their line-up, with Marshall selected at the expense of Craig Spearman, whose test career now seems to be at the end of the line, and Adam Parore taking on the role of a caretaker opener.

Kerry Walmsley became the eighth bowler to be sidelined because of injury on this tour after suffering an abdominal strain, and was replaced by Daryl Tuffey.

As it happened the batting changes had at least some success, with Parore helping to blunt the new ball for nearly 90 minutes after offering three early chances, and Marshall recovering from a nervous and difficult beginning to start his test career with an unbeaten 40.

The irony was that the only stable sub-group in the entire New Zealand line-up - the middle-order batting - was found wanting against South Africa's pace attack, which featured tearaway fast bowler Mfuneko Ngam as a replacement for Allan Donald, who is nursing a strained stomach muscle.

Parore, who was missed twice by Daryll Cullinan and once by Boeta Dippenaar, was the only wicket to fall before lunch, at which stage New Zealand might have been feeling reasonably happy with proceedings, given that they were put into bat.

However, things fell apart quickly after the resumption, with Mark Richardson and Mathew Sinclair dismissed at the lunch score of 83, and Nathan Astle and Stephen Fleming departing within the space of three overs, both to the bowler of the innings, Makhaya Ntini.

When Craig McMillan was chipped out by Jacques Kallis five overs later, New Zealand were 117 for six and effectively scrapping to rescue the game halfway through the second session.

There is an old saying about the Wanderers' pitch which warns interested parties to "look up, not down," apparently because its characteristics seem to vary only when there is cloud cover, and there was plenty of that yesterday.

Nonetheless, Sinclair again showed all the footwork of a garden gnome, while Astle and McMillan both played down the wrong line and Fleming was undone by a peach of a yorker from Ntini. Marshall had a harrowing time at the start, losing his balance to a first-ball yorker from Ntini, and then being struck all over the body during a stream of short-pitched deliveries, one of which hit him flush on the helmet, and another on the neck.

The 21-year-old took 61 minutes and 38 balls to get off the mark, a world record for a player on debut, but worked industriously at preserving his wicket, and in the end ran out of partners.

"We found the pitch uneven, with variable bounce," coach David Trist said afterwards. "Batting is challenging, but we have to acknowledge that the South Africans produced a very good bowling performance."

Rain delayed the start of play on the third day.