On this day in 1911, South Africa scripted history by claiming their first-ever Test win over Australia. The Proteas have a rich history in cricket. They were the third team to make an international debut after Australia and England. It took them over 17 years to win their maiden Test win over England. They took 9 years to claim their first Test win over Australia.
It was the third Test of the series between Australia and South Africa at the Adelaide Oval. The home side was leading the series 2-0. The visiting side was in a must-win situation to stay alive in the series. SA batted first and posted a good total of 482 runs on the board. Billy Zulch and Tip Snooke scored 105 and 103 respectively for the Proteas.
In reply to it, Australia posted 465 runs on the board to nearly nullify the first innings. They were mostly carried by the batting efforts of Victor Trumper. The star batter played an aggressive knock of an unbeaten 214*(247) which included 16 boundaries. A lead of 17 runs was not huge. But SA batted well even in the second innings.
Aubrey Faulkner, one of the greatest All-rounders in Tests, came to the party. After scoring a fifty in the first innings, Faulkner was the main act in the second innings as he scored 115 runs in 245 balls which included 10 fours. SA posted 360 runs on the back of his knock. Australia had to chase 378 runs to win the match, a target that wasn’t chased before.
Mark Whitty claimed a total of 8 wickets in the match for the home side. With the bat, many batters got good starts. But they could not convert them into big ones. The South African bowlers gave their best and dismissed the home side for 339 runs. Reggie Schwartz claimed 4 wickets and starred with the ball. In the process, SA claimed their first-ever Test win over Australia.
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