In the end, the rain won. The entire third day of the third and final Test between Australia and South Africa was washed out, with play abandoned shortly before 4pm after rain finally stopped falling but left the ground too wet to drain in time.
With Australia still in the first innings of the match at 475-4, the washout narrows their chances of forcing a win to whitewash the series, though a draw should still be enough for them qualify for the World Test Championship final in June.
Remarkably, it didn’t wash out the McGrath Foundation, the breast cancer charity that has turned day three in Sydney into Pink Day as the centre of its annual fundraising push. A few years ago when the foundation mainly collected donations through volunteers at the match, a Pink Day washout would have meant hugely reduced returns. But the pandemic concept of selling “virtual seats” at an imaginary stadium has continued and prospered, and this year saved the day. More than 25,000 were sold to add more than $500,000 to the foundation’s funds, taking the overall the fundraising this year well past $3.3m.
There were also donations from 23,915 people who came to the ground, many of whom stayed all day despite the weather. More than 10,000 pink bandanas were distributed by 280 volunteers, and the Jane McGrath high tea went ahead as planned.
Cricket Australia won’t be as cheerful about the weather, needing to refund tickets for all of those attendees and the thousands more who looked at the sky and stayed at home. This comes after refunding two days’ worth of tickets after the fast-forward Brisbane Test that started this series.
However, it was a great result for South Africa, getting through an entire day without conceding a run or losing a wicket. According to statistical analysts CricViz, it was the only day of this Test summer when the opposition’s percentage chance of losing the match did not increase. A day of rest would have been welcome too, mentally and physically, after two days in the field.
For Australia, it will mean some tactical rethinking. It’s hard to win when the first innings is still going on day four. Usman Khawaja is not out on 195, and it would be rough not to give him at least a couple of overs to have a dash at his first Test double century. But that won’t be the focus. Speaking after play was abandoned, Khawaja said Australia would bat on initially regardless of his milestone.
“Time is the only enemy,” was his formulation, which might seem counterintuitive to continuing to pile up runs. But a tactical consideration for Australia is to set a challenging follow-on mark, so they can aim to bowl out South Africa beneath it and send them back in. Declaring immediately would give South Africa a chance to top 275 and then make Australia bat a second time, or make a risky second declaration. As things stand, a dash towards 550 would set a follow-on mark of 350, and increase the chance of being able to enforce it.
It would be a rare use of the follow-on if that came to pass, with most teams not choosing to enforce it in the modern era. This is mostly about preserving the well-being of bowlers rather than timidity based on historical results. When a captain can rest his bowlers in the third innings and then give the final five sessions of a match to finish off the fourth, there is no reason not to do so. But when time is short, as it is here, the follow-on comes back into calculations.
Two specialist spinners and three part-timers should help Australia bowl plenty of overs, on a pitch that has been getting damp, sitting under covers, and could do anything on the fourth day. The chance of a win is still very much there. South Africa could bat long enough to put that beyond reach. They still have their own chance to take something from the tour, and to follow their only good day so far with another of their own making.
