Scott Boland’s double strike rocks South Africa in Gqeberha Test

Scott Boland produced a delivery that nipped back sharply off the pitch, took the inside edge of Aiden Markram’s bat and flattened middle stump in the second Test between South Africa and Australia at St George’s Park, Gqeberha, on October 18, 2026. Markram had contributed 11 runs off 28 deliveries, striking two boundaries, before the dismissal brought his innings to an end.

Boland then removed David Bedingham off the very next ball in the same over, placing himself on a hat-trick. The two wickets arrived in his second over of the innings, and South Africa were left reeling at 20 for 2. Rain returned during the afternoon session, and play was abandoned at 4:15pm on day one, leaving the match with only a handful of overs completed.

Marques Ackerman, who opened the batting on the Test debut, was unbeaten on 5 runs when the weather intervened. His appearance at the top of the order was one of three changes South Africa made to their side for this match.

Why did Australia pick Boland over Nathan Lyon for second Test?

Australia’s selection panel opted to drop off-spinner Nathan Lyon from the XI and hand Scott Boland a place in the side ahead of the Gqeberha Test. The decision was driven by the conditions at St George’s Park and the expectation of a weather-affected match, with forecasts pointing to significant interruptions throughout the game.

Boland, who is 37 years old and captained by Pat Cummins in this series, wasted no time in justifying that call. His second over produced two wickets in successive deliveries, immediately shifting the balance of the opening day in Australia’s favour before rain brought proceedings to a halt.

“You leave some training sessions shaking your head at how that bloke is [not] in your first XI,” Pat Cummins said at the end of day’s play.

What changes did South Africa make for the second Test?

South Africa named three changes to their XI for the match at Gqeberha. Ackerman was brought in at the top of the order for his Test debut, Matthew Breetzke replaced Tristan Stubbs in the middle order, and Ryan Rickelton took over wicketkeeping duties from Kyle Verreynne. Simon Harmer was retained in the XI ahead of Keshav Maharaj.

There was also a notable development in the officiating panel. Arno Jacobs made his Test umpiring debut in this match, stepping in for Chris Gaffney, who fell ill before the game could begin.

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