Sri Lanka set an unwanted record by being bowled out for a mere 42 runs. This is a piece of history that Angelo Mathews, Kusal Mendis, and the team would rather forget. In Durban, they suffered a humiliating collapse against South Africa, managing only 42 runs in their first innings.
On Thursday, November 28, in the first Test of the two-match series in Durban, Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to field first. Their bowlers performed well, restricting the hosts to just 191 runs in 49.4 overs.
However, Sri Lanka’s joy was short-lived. When they came to bat, their performance was even more dismal. They couldn’t even cross the 50-run mark, being bowled out for 42 in just 13.5 overs. This marks Sri Lanka’s lowest-ever total in Test history and the lowest score by any team against South Africa.
Previously, South Africa had bowled New Zealand out for 45 runs in 2013. Additionally, Sri Lanka’s innings was remarkably brief, lasting only 83 balls, making it the shortest in over a century and the second-shortest in Test history. The record for the fewest balls faced in an innings remains with South Africa, who scored 30 runs in 75 balls against England in 1924.
Five Sri Lankan batters were dismissed for ducks. Only two players managed to reach double digits: Kamindu Mendis (13) and Lahiru Kumara (10).
Kagiso Rabada started the collapse by dismissing Dimuth Karunaratne for 2 runs. Then Marco Jansen took over, claiming the wickets of Pathum Nissanka (3), Dinesh Chandimal (0), and Angelo Mathews (1) in quick succession.
A brief partnership between Kamindu Mendis and Dhananjaya de Silva added 16 runs, bringing the score to 32. However, four more wickets fell without a single run being added. Lahiru Kumara’s 10 runs pushed the total to 42.
South African pacer Marco Jansen delivered a career-best performance, taking 7 wickets for just 13 runs in 6.5 overs, the best bowling figure by a South African pacer in this century. Coetzee contributed with two wickets.
Earlier, South Africa managed to score 191 runs in their first innings, thanks to captain Temba Bavuma’s 70 and Keshav Maharaj’s 24. Asitha Fernando and Lahiru Kumara picked up 3 wickets each.
With Sri Lanka bowled out for 42, South Africa gained a lead of 149 runs. In their second innings, South Africa is currently at 68/1 after 18 overs.
