Cricket: Wessels in a battle for fitness

Australia 342-7 dec

South Africa 59-1

KEPLER WESSELS' participation in the remainder of the series has been threatened by a serious knee injury he sustained in Melbourne yesterday as the rain-affected first Test dribbled towards stalemate.

The South African captain, who aggravated a strain in his right knee in the field, will see a specialist today to determine whether he can play in the second Test against Australia, beginning in Sydney on Sunday.

Australia owed their first-innings substance almost entirely to Mark Taylor, whose 170 was his highest score in a home Test. Spanning four days, the innings enabled the opener to become the first batsman to score centuries on his debut against four countries, and only the second player after New Zealand's Martin Crowe to hit hundreds against seven members of the Test circuit.

AUSTRALIA - First Innings

(Overnight: 140 for 3)

M A Taylor b Symcox 170 M E Waugh lbw b Matthews 84 * A R Border c Richardson b Matthews 2 D R Martyn b Symcox 8 I A Healy not out 7 Extras (b2 lb7 nb5) 14 Total (for 7 dec, 115.5 overs) 342

Fall (cont): 4-296 5-300 6-327 7-342.

Bowling: Donald 30-4-108-1; de Villiers 32-6- 83-1; Matthews 24-5-68-3; Cronje 13-4-25-0; Symcox 16.5-3-49-2.

SOUTH AFRICA - First Innings

A C Hudson not out 35 G Kirsten c Taylor b M Waugh 16 W J Cronje not out 3 Extras (lb1 nb4) 5 Total (for 1, 28 overs) 59

Fall: 1-49.

To bat: * K C Wessels, D J Cullinan, J N Rhodes, D J Richardson, C R Matthews, P LSymcox, P S de Villiers, A A Donald.

Bowling: McDermott 5-1-18-0; Reiffel 9-3-20-0; M E Waugh 6-1-10-0; May 5-2-5-0; Warne 3-1-5-0.