Il Nuovo Postiglione - South Africa teen Pretorius hits century on Test debut against Zimbabwe

South Africa scored 418 for nine, a total which seemed unlikely when Pretorius arrived at the crease with his team in trouble at 23 for three.

Fast bowling all-rounder Corbin Bosch, batting at number eight, made 100 not out, reaching his century in the last over of the day.

Pretorius, a solidly-built left-hander aged 19 years and 93 days, became the youngest South African to hit a Test century and the seventh from his country to make a hundred on Test debut.

Pretorius hit a six off the fourth ball he faced, from left-arm spinner Wellington Masakadza, then smiled broadly at batting partner Wiaan Mulder.

He hit another six and seven fours in reaching his century off 112 balls. He hit a total of four sixes and 11 fours off 160 deliveries before he was caught at mid-on off a top-edged pull against fast bowler Tanaka Chivanga.

Pretorius gave no chances but the Zimbabwean players seemed convinced that he had edged a ball from Chivanga to wicketkeeper Tafadzwa Tsiga when he was on 30. No decision review system is in place for the series.

Chivanga, who took the first three wickets while conceding only eight runs, took four for 83 despite seeming to struggle with a hamstring strain during the afternoon.

Chivanga and fellow fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani, who took two for 59, generated pace and bounce but they were the only specialist seamers in the team and Zimbabwe's four spin bowlers proved expensive.

"We knew they had only two seamers so we tried to take the spinners out of the attack," said Pretorius.

"It was doing quite a bit early in the morning and the situation when I came in was quite tough.

"Wiaan kept me quite calm and I just tried to enjoy the moment and play with a smile on my face."

Pretorius, Dewald Brevis and fast bowler Codi Yusuf were new caps in a South African team containing only four of the players who clinched the World Test Championship against Australia at Lord's two weeks ago.

The team also had a new captain in veteran left-arm spin bowler Keshav Maharaj.

- Powerful partnership revives South Africa -

Mulder was run out for 17 and South Africa were still in trouble when Brevis, 22, joined Pretorius at 55 for four.

Pretorius and Brevis put on 95 off 88 balls for the fifth wicket. Brevis slammed 51 off 41 deliveries, hitting four sixes and three fours. He reached his half-century with the third of three sixes in an over off leg-spinner Vincent Masekesa.

Bosch, who was stranded on 81 not out batting at number nine in his only previous Test, against Pakistan at Centurion in December, helped Pretorius add 108 for the seventh wicket.

He was on 84 when the ninth wicket fell but last man Kwena Maphaka shepherded him to his maiden first-class century.

South Africa's previous youngest centurion was Graeme Pollock, who was aged 19 years and 317 days when he made 120 against Australia in Sydney in 1963/64.

Pretorius became the 10th youngest Test centurion of all time in a list headed by Mohammad Ashraful of Bangladesh, who was 17 years and 61 days old when he made a hundred against Sri Lanka in 2001.

It continued a meteoric rise to prominence for Pretorius, who made a century on his first-class debut last December when he was 18 and has now hit four centuries in eight matches.

"Obviously the domestic performances helped with the confidence but that is in the past. This is also in the past now. Hopefully I can do it again and again. I just love batting," said Pretorius.

Q.Bernardi--INP