When South Africa won the heroic Lord’s Test in 1994, a popular sports magazine in India ran a cover story calling Kepler Wessels ‘captain courageous’ for his invaluable century that made victory possible for the touring visitors and helped South Africa to make their mark, having only entered the international fold.

Graeme Smith managed to take it one step further for South Africa at Edgbaston fourteen years on. His century will now be counted amongst the special ones that actually won South Africa the series in England since readmission.

This is one for the history books. What Graeme Smith pulled off in the company of his deputy is something that needs to be seen to be believed. South Africa had been all but buried. Then came something that only fairy tales are perhaps made of. The day held many twists and turns. But this one tops them all. What Smith and Boucher did for the team is something that can only be appreciated when put in perspective of the history and the circumstances in which they achieved.
South Africa were in deep trouble going into tea on day four. Four wickets down, Smith could only watch the parade that made England’s target of 281 seem larger still. The wickets fell in a heap and England were boisterous on the field. The atmosphere was charged and it appeared only one team could win in that enclosure that became the cricket ground. In fact, one wondered how long it would be before South Africa would cave in to the foreboding.
After the tea interval, Smith lost AB de Villiers and now it seemed that even for the likes of Smith and Mark Boucher, this was too much. After all the bowlers had let them down in the field last evening and with such a stupendous performance from Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood, it seemed the match could only go one way.
But in the midst of despair came a revival. Smith led the way. No frills, no thrills, simple straight batted cricket. The tide began to recede; the atmosphere began to cool. Boucher was perhaps the best man for the situation. The two laid the ground, sowed the seeds of hard work, and stayed gritty. The pay off worked against England. Shoulders began to relax; the intensity dulled and South Africa was slowly gaining ground.
Even as Smith raised his sxiteenth Test century, there was a terseness about it. It showed in Smith’s modest celebration. He had done a tremendous job of scoring a determined century under the circumstances. But as marvelous as the century was, it would mean next to nothing if he could not use it to turn South Africa’s rocking boat around and bring it back to shore.
Smith, it has to be remembered, has not particularly been in scintillating form. Having said that, the man with a thousand runs in Test cricket in 2008 knew just how to work his way in one of the most dire situations South Africa would ever find themselves in after putting in such a terrific performance over two and a half days.
Edgbastion saw the first of many. South Africa won a series in England after more than three decades. To be more precise, they have not won a series since 1965. They have come close on three of the four tours since readmission. But often they frittered away the advantage. They nearly did it at Edgbaston.
There could not have been a more difficult time for the skipper and his deputy. But there could not have been a better pair for the situation. Smith relied on his confidence, Boucher on his fighting abilities. It is easy to appreciate Smith on a day when he is setting the benchmark. But today brought a whole newfound respect for Smith for the manner in which he controlled the innings from one end, steadily peeled off the runs without apparent flamboyance but with a calm authority and administered the soothing balm on South Africa’s much troubled soul.
The 112 run partnership is a lot more than the 112 runs. It was about never believing it is over until the fat lady sings. It was about he grit that achieves success like this that history will look upon in fifty years’ and look back in disbelief. It was about defying the odds and about not giving into the pressure of the time. It was about being unfazed and the lessons learn tonight in South Africa’s gritty performance takes away the rather harsh tag of ‘chokers’ that has been unfairly thrust upon them. The innings was resuscitated and what followed thereafter silenced the England crowds.
Smith has risen by notches on the basis of this performance alone. Cramping in conditions and knowing that everything depended on him, he was very alert to the demands of the situation as also to the fact that the England bowlers were not only tired but the England faces revealed that they had lost the belief that less than three hours ago, they were on the road to victory and that they could find it again.
The temptation to rest on his own laurels and count on the morrow to fetch the twenty-three runs did not appeal to him. Yet he asked his partner and Boucher gave his affirmative. The way the two knocked their fists against each other showed just how keen they were to work for the team cause. The extra half hour was taken knowing that another day would be fresher England team and an opportunity for them to escape the misery of the long drawn evening and wake up with hope. Knowing that one was more tired than the other but than the other held less chance of getting will to climb the wall, Smith took the extra half hour option and took South Africa to a win that would have had to wait tantalizingly otherwise.
It was simple; bat for the team; fight for the team. It had nothing to do with trashing the ball around or doing something dramatic. This was about putting the nose to the grindstone and Smith was perhaps the better example simply because he is used to usually setting the tone of the innings, not having to change gears like a batsman in the middle order.
From defensive, defiant batsman, he became anchor and then, the finisher. The transformation of the man was complete. And in his grit will be written one of the greatest series victory in the history of South African cricket. The man who made 150 will be remembered but an asterisk will, also, stand out for his brave deputy who suffered the battering from Andrew Flintoff not two evenings ago and yet came back with his chest filled up with the cause for his team.
This victory will take time to sink in. This is not a score that is overhauled everyday. It has never been done in Edgbaston before. The sheer manner in which the turbulent thunderstorms of the hour before tea were forced to blow away by South Africa’s gutsy duo to open up to clear skies, is a tale few will believe except for those that have been truly privileged to witness.
It was pure cricket on display and a great exhibition why Test cricket can be an enthralling five day affair. No Hollywood/Bollywood script can match this. It was a thrill to the finish and the heroics of the day and events that led to it were not lost on the true cricket aficionados.
Take a bow, Smith. And you too, Boucher, You deserve it. South African fans could not have been prouder!290164