CAPE TOWN, South Africa // Australia combined aggression and courage to seize control of the third and decisive Test against South Africa at Newlands as they closed Day 1 on 331 for three.
While David Warner attacked with a brisk 135, Michael Clarke withstood a brutal spell of fast bowling from Morne Morkel.
The Australian captain went to stumps with bruises on his hand, elbow, jaw, shoulder and midriff, but also with 92 to his name after a battling return to form.
Steven Smith was not out at the close after scoring 50 in an unbroken 114-run stand with Clarke that left South Africa facing a long road back into the match.
Warner attacked the South African bowlers from the third over of the day, when he took nine runs off Dale Steyn, and rarely let up on his way to a seventh Test century.
“He puts pressure on the opposition so quickly,” said Australian great Shane Warne, who is a consultant to the team.
“But I saw a sign of maturity from David Warner today with his batting. He’s not just about smashing the ball. He thinks about it and he’s quite clever about it too.”
Although he lost opening partner Chris Rogers in the first session and saw Alex Doolan depart just after lunch, Warner’s scoring rate ensured South Africa never gained a real foothold. The hosts were hampered by an injury to Steyn midway through the second session. He will have a fitness test on a hamstring strain this morning.
Steyn was replaced by Morkel, whose spell to Clarke from around the wicket produced a piece of pure theatre as the Australian captain was left ducking and diving and he received regular blows to the body.
Clarke was felled by one ball to his jaw halfway through the 45th over of the day, but he got back to his feet and refused to be cowed even as Morkel peppered him with three more short balls.
“He’s got four or five ice packs on him, so everything will be stiff and sore tonight,” Warne said. “You cop four or five blows like that, it’s not going to tickle, it’s going to hurt at 150kph. But it was nice to see him show that courage.”
The encounter was the defining point of the day. Once Clarke had seen off Morkel, he played his way back into form against South Africa’s part-time spinners, who conceded more than four runs an over.
Warner reached a chanceless century from 104 deliveries during Morkel’s barrage but was eventually caught behind off the bowling of JP Duminy to end a telling 79-run stand with Clarke.
