Mitch Marsh had fire in the belly on day two of the second Test.
Thankfully for Marsh it was a burning desire to make up for his poor dismissal on day one, not the gastro bug that floored the allrounder at the start of the match in Port Elizabeth.
Marsh's reverse-swing skills played a pivotal role in Australia's fightback on Saturday, when he claimed the prized scalp of South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis then trapped Theunis de Bruyn lbw.
It was in sharp contrast to Marsh's output on day one, when he batted at No.7 instead of No.6 because of illness.
Marsh clearly wasn't well on Friday and his innings lasted just three minutes, falling smack bang in the middle of Kagiso Rabada's five-wicket rampage.
"It was tough ... it was a pretty long day," the West Australian told reporters.
"I was a little disappointed that I put my hand up to play and wasn't necessarily fit to perform ... although that's no excuse for chasing a wide one.
"But in saying that I felt good during the warm-up and pretty much went downhill from there at a rapid pace. It was unfortunate, but I was good to go today and happy to contribute."
Coach Darren Lehmann, reserve spinner Jon Holland and several support staff have also been bothered by a stomach bug in Port Elizabeth, while umpire Chris Gaffaney suffered its effects on Saturday.
Gaffaney was unable to take his place in the middle on day two. Third umpire Sundaram Ravi entered the fray in place of Gaffaney, while Rabada's hearing was delayed until Sunday night because the New Zealand official was too sick.
"I wouldn't say I was 100 per cent this morning but I was a lot better," Marsh said.
"I really wanted to bounce back today."
The 26-year-old, who underwent shoulder surgery last year, dominated with the bat during the Ashes but not with the ball.
Marsh has since worked hard on his bowling.
He claimed a key wicket in Australia's win over the Proteas in Durban, ending Aiden Markram's classy knock of 143.
"It certainly took a fair while for me to find a bit of rhythm. I was quite impatient with my bowling when I came back," Marsh said.
"I thought I'd done a lot of hard work and it was going to be all good when I came back, but I was bowling powder puffs for a few months and that was quite frustrating."
Share
