Jansen blows Sri Lanka away as Proteas take unlikely first innings lead

Sri Lanka suffered a dramatic meltdown, as they were bowled out for 42, the lowest Test total at Kingsmead, in just 13.5 overs to hand South Africa a 149-run lead on Thursday. 

Marco Jansen led the way, with career best figures of 7/13, in a spell that lasted only 41 balls. South Africa, dismissed for 191 in the first session would not have anticipated such a substantial lead, which by tea they’d stretched to 177, without the loss of a second innings wicket. 

Although day two’s been hot and sunny, the pitch retains sufficient help for the quicks, which SA’s trio, particularly Jansen, relished. 

Having been away from the game for 12 weeks to complete a strength and conditioning programme, Jansen produced a dreamy spell from the Old Fort Road End, in which he got the ball to move off the surface, while the bounce also caused Sri Lanka’s batters significant discomfort. 

That said, Sri Lanka’s strategy — if that’s what it can be called — was not conducive to Test match batting. More of that anon. 

The carnage started at the end of the third over, when Kagiso Rabada claimed his 314th wicket — moving him passed Australia’s Mitchell Johnson — finding the outside edge of a shaky Dimuth Karunaratne, with David Bedingham taking a good catch low at first slip. 

Then Jansen got stuck into the tourists. The other opener Pathum Nissanka drove at a delivery he should have left, with Tristan Stubbs grabbing the edge at third slip, Dinesh Chandimal was bowled off the inside edge for nought and Angelo Mathews wafted at wide ball, giving Bedingham the second of three catches. Skipper Dhananjaya de Silva also drove loosely and was bowled for seven 

The Sri Lankans were attracted to the ball like flies to a pile of poo, and the outcome of their approach certainly stank. 

Kamindu Mendis arrived for this series with a big reputation and an even bigger average — 91.27 — after a stream of stellar performances in 2024, but chose to combat the moving ball by swinging wildly.

It brought him three fours but also led to his dismissal giving Gerald Coetzee, who like Jansen had been on a 12 week conditioning programme, the first of his two wickets.

Jansen returned to clean up the rest. He took his seven wickets in 41 balls, matching Australia’s Hugh Trumble, for the fewest number of deliveries needed to take seven wickets. 

Sri Lanka’s innings lasted just 83 balls, the second fewest for a Test innings, beaten only by South Africa, who were bowled out for 30 in 75 balls by England 100 years ago. 

The only bad news for the home team was confirmation that all-rounder Wiaan Mulder has a fractured right middle finger. Mulder sustained the injury after being struck on the bottom hand by Lahiru Kumara while batting. He left the field after facing just seven balls, but returned at the fall of the ninth wicket, hit a six off Dhananjaya and finished on nine not out. 

Mulder won’t bowl or field for the remainder of the match, and a decision on whether he needs to bat will be determined by the match situation.