Pat Cummins shines at Lord's but South Africa seamers hit back
Australia were in the ascendancy after captain Cummins collected six for 28 to move to exactly 300 Test wickets, with South Africa lurching from 94 for four and 126 for five to 138 all out in reply to 212.
But this Lord's showpiece still hangs in the balance as Rabada's double strike was followed by Ngidi dismissing talisman Steve Smith, plus Beau Webster and Cummins, to leave Australia shell-shocked.
A special day of Test cricket.
See you tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/gOgxQIywAt
— Lord's Cricket Ground (@HomeOfCricket) June 12, 2025
Fortunes continued to fluctuate as Alex Carey's 43 led a brief revival before he was lbw to Rabada late on as Australia closed on 144 for eight, 218 ahead, after another 14 wickets on day two.
All but three of the 28 wickets so far have fallen to fast bowlers, with plenty of movement through the air and off the pitch to expose the soft underbelly of both batting sides.
Rabada found enough to take the edges of Usman Khawaja and Cameron Green for the second time in the match, while Marnus Labuschagne nicked off to Marco Jansen as Australia's makeshift top three failed again.
Smith had led Australia's revival in the first innings at a ground where he has two double hundreds but he was lbw for 13. He looked to have shuffled enough to off but threw his head back in despair when a review showed he was in line with the stumps and the ball would have clattered off stump.
Next level stuff from captain Cummins! He finishes the innings by collecting the 300th Test wicket of his career #WTC25 pic.twitter.com/zwlHuDsGRu
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) June 12, 2025
Webster was also trapped in front by Ngidi, who castled Cummins via his pad in his next over, while Wiaan Mulder bowled Travis Head in between as Australia slipped from 44 for two to 73 for seven.
With 13 wickets having fallen in the day and still more than an hour's play left, Carey and Starc dug in well. Carey overturned being given lbw on 19 while Starc (16 not out) was put down on 12 and 14.
Wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne and Jansen at gully were the guilty parties but with several edges bouncing short towards the end of the day, the cordon had crept ever closer in a bid to snap up half-chances.
Rabada took the fielders out of the equation when Carey, pantomime villain here in the 2023 Ashes for his controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow, was leg-before in the penultimate over.
As the day's play winds down, Lungi Ngidi's impressive spell of 3 for 35 has shifted the momentum in South Africa's favour. 🔥🇿🇦
The Proteas have dominated the final session on Day 2 with the ball, making crucial breakthroughs and tightening their grip on the contest. 👏🏏
🇦🇺… pic.twitter.com/bjQBvQx6K2
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) June 12, 2025
A breathless finish was in contrast to the start of the day, when just one wicket fell before lunch, with South Africa captain Temba Bavuma uppishly driving opposite number Cummins to Labuschagne on 36.
Bavuma, alongside David Bedingham (45), had led the recovery well from an overnight 43 for four before Cummins ran amok with a four-wicket burst in the second session.
Hitting a hard length and bowling with good pace, Cummins beat the attempted flick of Verreynne, who was lbw on review, before taking a return chance off Jansen later in the over.
He had his fifth when Bedingham's defensive push was snaffled by Carey before the Proteas were all out when Rabada pulled into the deep, as Cummins became the eighth Australian bowler to join the 300 club.
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