When Dane Piedt last played Test cricket for South Africa, at Ranchi in 2019, he was taken apart for over 100 runs in just 18 overs. That performance against a marauding Rohit Sharma seemed to ring the death knell on his career. Yet, more than four years later, in conditions far less conducive to spin, the 33-year-old off-spinner came back with a defining performance. Piedt’s career-best 5 for 89 on the second day of the Hamilton Test gave the visitors an unlikely 31-run first-innings lead.

Such a thought seemed far-fetched at the start of the day’s play as the Proteas seemed destined to concede their first-ever series to New Zealand after losing four wickets for just 22 runs in the morning session to fold for 242. Shaun von Berg, who displayed admirable resistance on the opening day, fell to the first ball from William O’Rourke to hasten the end of the first-innings. O’Rourke added the wickets of half-centurion Ruan de Swardt and Dane Paterson off successive deliveries to finish with a four-fer on debut.

But South Africa were unwilling to surrender the initiative to their hosts. Off just the fourth ball of the innings, Paterson produced a stunning delivery that came in with the angle and straightened after pitching to find Devon Conway’s outside edge. Both Paterson and Tshepo Moreki continued to produce an excellent burst going into Lunch, which while unrewarding in the wickets column, kept the Black Caps down to just 27 runs from 16 overs of play.

In Kane Williamson and Tom Latham, New Zealand had enough experience to wade out of all the early South African pressure and the batting pair did just that in a 75-run stand for the second wicket that began sedately but slowly grew in confidence. Half way through the second session of play, the signs were ominous for South Africa. But the drinks break brought both respite and rewards.

Straight after the short break, Piedt produced a classical off-spinner’s dismissal when he got a ball to drift into the left-handed Latham. It pitched on a full length but the batter misjudged it and stayed rooted to his crease, allowing it to pitch, break away and hit the top of off. Two overs later, he dismissed Williamson with one that jumped up on the former captain and the ensuing bat-pad was taken by the fielder at forward short leg. Both set batters were dismissed in the 40s.

Will Young and Rachin Ravindra then got together for a brisk partnership, combining to add 59 runs but once again South Africa were able to nip the danger in the bud. After beating Ravindra multiple times with the angle across him, Moreki managed to draw an inside edge onto the stumps from the left-hander. By Drinks in the final session, New Zealand were six down as Paterson castled Tom Blundell while Piedt returned to take out Glenn Philipps via another bat-pad.

Young, who had eased himself to 36, then displayed a lack of patience as he charged out to hit the off-spinner but was beaten in the air and mistimed the ball to long-on. When Tim Southee fell to the short-ball ploy from Paterson, New Zealand had lost 5 wickets for 25 runs.

Neil Wagner cut into the deficit by slamming two sixes and three fours in a 27-ball knock for 33 but he became the Piedt’s fifth scalp as he charged out and missed the ball and was dismissed stumped, leaving the visitors in the ascendancy after two innings of the Test match.

Brief scores:
South Africa 242 in 97.2 overs ((Neil Brand 25, Raynord van Tonder 32, Zubayr Hamza 20, Ruan de Swardt 64, David Bedingham 39, Shaun von Berg 38; Rachin Ravindra 3/33, William ORouke 4-59) lead  New Zealand 211 in 77.3 overs  (Kane Williamson 43, Tom Latham 40, Rachin Ravindra 29, Will Young 36, Neil Wagner 33; Dane Piedt 5-89, Dane Paterson 3-39) by 31 runs