Mulder and Rickelton put South Africa in command as Australia face daunting Newlands chase

South Africa ground Australia down on the fourth day of the decisive Test at Newlands, with Wiaan Mulder and Ryan Rickelton centuries putting the hosts in control and leaving the visitors with a daunting chase. Resuming on 140/4, South Africa batted through the day. Australia took only one wicket in the first two sessions before a late burst after tea, but the day still belonged to the home side and set up an intriguing tussle on Saturday. Mulder top-scored with 115, his fourth Test century, while Rickelton made 101. The pair added 154 for the sixth wicket and ensured Australia will need to complete the second-highest successful run chase in 137 years of Test cricket at Newlands. Their stand was built on patience rather than risk, and it forced Australia's bowlers to keep coming back for long spells. Rickelton told reporters that the aim was to win the small moments. He said: 'It was about trying to win the small moments. We knew we were effectively 40 for four this morning and that Australia would come hard at us. It was about spending time at the crease rather than worrying about scoring runs or getting too far ahead of ourselves. We had our plans and needed to stick to them. We knew the longer we batted, the more frustrated Australia would become. Perhaps they expected things to happen quite quickly because of the deteriorating wicket.' South Africa lost only Matthew Breetzke in two sessions. He made 43 before falling to a pull shot and being caught on the boundary, a familiar mode of dismissal for the home side in this Test. After his departure, Rickelton and Mulder took few risks and accumulated runs steadily. Nathan Lyon found considerable turn for his 2-101, while the seamers had to deal with variable bounce. Mulder was the last man out as he tried to up the tempo, caught on the boundary to bring the day to a close. Australia had toiled for much of the day and will now need considerably more than three runs an over against a South African attack that has had its feet up for more than a day and a half. The series is level at 1-1. Australia won the first Test by 214 runs in Durban, and South Africa responded with a victory by an innings and 31 runs in Gqeberha. The winner of this match will occupy the number one spot in the Test world rankings, which is currently held by Australia.