South Africa: 178/7
(Bavuma 51, De Kock 53*, Starc 3/42, Hazelwood 2/47)
Perth - Mitchell Starc just kept coming at the South Africans on the first day of this opening Test here at the WACA.
He requiring just four balls to send a chilling message to the Proteas dressing room in the morning session when he removed Stephen Cook. He was at it again during the middle session of an absorbing day’s play.
The left-arm swing bowler delivered a hammer blow to South Africa’s fightback when he induced a false shot from Proteas captain Faf du Plessis in the first over after the lunch interval.
Du Plessis would have hoped to be the glue around which youngsters Temba Bavuma and Quinton de Kock could build their innings around, but it was not to be.
Having been so tight in defence and attack before the break, the skipper played an out-of-character loose backfoot drive to a delivery that was too close to his body and only managed a flying edge to his counterpart Steve Smith at first slip.
There was a lot of talk about Starc being used in short, sharp bursts to ease him back into Test cricket after sustaining a deep laceration to his leg, but the Australian talisman showed great stamina to come back into the attack shortly before the tea interval.
It had the desired effect for Smith and the Australian team with Proteas all-rounder Vernon Philander misjudging a pull shot which ricocheted off his bottom edge and into the stumps.
This late blow took the edge off a session South Africa had actually clawed their way back into the contest after being reduced to 32/4 at one stage.
De Kock and Bavuma took the fight to the Aussies with a solid 71-run partnership for the sixth wicket with both players showing there were no demons in the pitch if the required application and grit is shown.
Bavuma brought up a well-deserved half-century off 84 balls (7x4), but just when he seemed to be taking control, the little right-hander from Langa fell victim to a superb one-handed diving catch by Shaun Marsh at short leg off Nathan Lyon.
De Kock, though, was unperturbed with his partner’s dismissal and moved to his fifth Test match half-century through positive strokeplay. The left-hander was certainly finding the conditions a lot easier to navigate than his teammates Cook (0), Dean Elgar (12), Hashim Amla (0) and JP Duminy (11) in the morning session.
Starc, who missed the ODI whitewash in South Africa last month, was in cracking form - his opening over was timed at nothing less than 140km/h - with the left-armer managing to shape one away from Cook just enough to induce the outside edge that flew head high to Mitchell Marsh in the gully.
Due to the good bounce this WACA pitch was offering, Marsh had to fling himself acrobatically to his left with both feet off the ground to pull off a breathtaking catch.
The partisan home supporters were in full voice just a couple of overs later again when another returnee Josh Hazelwood claimed South Africa’s premier batsmen Amla and Elgar, while Peter Siddle chipped in with Duminy’s despite the left-hander reviewing umpire Nigel Llong’s original decision.
TEAMS FOR THE WACA
Australia: David Warner, Shaun Marsh, Usman Khawaja, Steven Smith (capt), Adam Voges, Mitchell Marsh, Peter Nevill (wk), Mitchell Starc, Peter Siddle, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon.
South Africa: Stephen Cook, Dean Elgar, Hashim Amla, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis (capt), Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock (wk), Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj.