Australian batting 'not good enough' says Michael Clarke



Michael Clarke, the Australia captain, said his team's batsmen were to blame for the team's collapse to 47 all out in their second innings on a frenetic second day of the first Test against South Africa at Newlands on Thursday.

Twenty-three wickets fell for 294 runs on a day which ended with South Africa on 81 for one, 155 runs short of victory with nine wickets standing.

"The top seven as a batting unit need to take full responsibility for what occurred," Clarke said. "It's not good enough and me, as the leader, coming off a good first innings total, need to take the blame. Our shot selection was horrible and South Africa bowled well, but we shouldn't have been all out for 47."

Australia's extraordinary collapse came after they had seemed to be in a dominant position, bowling out South Africa for 96 to take a first innings lead of 188.

"I've never had a day like this in my career and I hope I never will again," said Clarke, whose day started brightly enough as he took his first-innings score from 107 to 151 before he was last man out, with Australia's last two wickets adding 70 runs in a respectable total of 284.

It got even better for the Australian skipper. Shane Watson took five wickets in 20 balls as South Africa were shot out for 96, losing their last nine wickets for 47 runs in 11.3 overs. Watson finished with five for 17, while Ryan Harris took four for 33.

But Watson was out to Dale Steyn's third ball when he opened the batting in the second innings and Australia collapsed to 21 for nine.

Australia had the last-wicket pair Peter Siddle and Nathan Lyon to thank for avoiding being dismissed for less than the world-record low of 26, by New Zealand against England in Auckland in 1954/55.

Siddle (12 not out) and Lyon (14) put on 26 for the last wicket, more than doubling their team's total and taking them past the world record and Australia's all-time low, 36 against England at Birmingham in 1902.

The previous lowest against South Africa was 75 in Durban in 1949/50.

The new cap Vernon Philander took five for 15 on a pitch which offered plenty of seam movement and had more pace than on the first day but which, as Clarke conceded, was by no means unplayable.

"The wicket quickened up a little bit and they [the South African bowlers] executed well. We can't blame the wicket," said Clarke.

The day ended with the South Africa captain Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla putting on an unbeaten 54 and batting with a freedom matched only by Clarke in the first innings to swing the odds back in the home team's favour.

Clarke admitted that Australia will need to produce another exceptional bowling performance on Friday to regain the advantage.

But he remained positive. "We're a good chance to win this Test match. As we've seen, things can change very quickly in this match." Jacques Rudolph, the South African opening batsman, playing in his first Test for five years, was the only man out in his team's second innings.

"It must be some sort of record. I've finished my batting and my fielding within two days - and we had rain yesterday," he said.

Meanwhile, Rod Marsh and Andy Bichel have been appointed part-time selectors by Cricket Australia, the cricket board said on Thursday.

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The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

'The worst thing you can eat'

Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.

Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines: 

Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.

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Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.

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The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

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