The moment came on the fourth afternoon of the second Test. Labuschagne had built a partnership with Travis Head and survived a tight lbw review when he faced off-spinner Simon Harmer. Harmer, an Eastern Province local who has played many times at St George's Park, recognised that the gap between the western stand and the Duck Pond End terrace was a trap for airborne shots. With Marco Jansen stationed at deepish mid-on, he tossed the ball higher and dared the shot.
"I don't know what he was thinking," Harmer said with a laugh. "Obviously I've played a lot of cricket at St George's Park and it funnels through that corner ... a lot of times you think you've got enough of it, but it just gets held up in the wind."
Bavuma, who made a sublime 179 to rescue his side from 6-110, spoke with empathy about Labuschagne's run of handy but insubstantial scores. "I think I'm probably the last person to speak ... he's doing all the hard work," Bavuma said. "From what I've learned, it's more a mental thing, and I think only he will know what's happening in his head."
The South African captain also acknowledged that his team had been more aggressive in Gqeberha. "We were just probably just looking at things a lot more internally ... part of it is being aggressive in situations," he said. "There's obviously certain individuals within the team who enjoy a little argy bargy, and I mean, you allow those guys to go about doing that within the rules."
Bavuma said the Proteas had embraced the target of being world No.1 after losing the first Test in Durban. "I think sometimes, as a team, we forget that the target is on our back," he said. "We've definitely strengthened that by being able to perform like that from a pressure point of view."