Temba Bavuma basking in glory after heroic Gqeberha class act

Bavuma came to the crease with his team in a spot of bother on Sunday morning, and despite the elements eating away a huge chunk of the first two days, he actively batted for a massive 552 minutes and went on to post his highest Test score of 179 having faced 334 balls at St. George’s Park – his fifth Test century.

He says he’s had to go on a rescue mission a few times in his career, and relishes the pressure moments when he’s needed to score runs.

"Yeah, I mean I obviously walked into a tricky situation. I think everything was in the bowler's favor. The conditions, overheads, the wicket itself –  we just lost two early wickets. I think ordinarily I find myself in those situations quite a number of times, and I guess it seems to bring out the best in me," said Bavuma.

READ: Proteas batting coach praises Temba Bavuma’s resilience

While the top order kept falling around him, he found two key unlikely partnerships in the lower order.

First a 132-run stand with Marco Jansen who posted 85, then a record-breaking 183-run eighth wicket stand with Simon Harmer as the off-spinner also fell for 82 – an individual career best.

While Bavuma holds dear his maiden Test ton which came against England at Newlands ten years ago, he admits that getting one against Australia is a huge psychological boost for him.

He also explained how he kept a steady mental fortitude against a fearsome Australian bowling attack, batting for virtually the entire day on Day 3.