Australia's Batting Collapses as South Africa Close In on Victory
Listen to the story
Australia's cricket team had a very bad day with the bat.
The team lost many wickets quickly. This is called a collapse.
South Africa's bowler Jansen played a big part in the collapse. He took important wickets.
Another South African player, Steyn, said something bold before the match. He said Australia's score was not safe.
After the collapse, people agreed with Steyn. Australia could not defend their total.
Now South Africa are close to winning the match.
Australia's batting problems were clear for everyone to see.
The team's weak batting let South Africa take control of the game.
Fans and experts talked about why Australia batted so badly.
This loss shows Australia still has work to do with its batting.
Vocabulary8 words
- wickets
- times a batter is out in cricket
- collapse
- when a team loses many players very fast
- defend
- to protect; to stop the other team from winning
- batting
- hitting the ball in cricket
- bowler
- the player who throws the ball in cricket
- total
- the full number of runs a team makes
- deficiencies
- weak points; problems
- exposed
- shown clearly; made visible
📚 Ready to use these words in a real conversation?
Practice live with a real tutor on Preply.
Quiz
Answer key
1. It collapsed 2. Jansen 3. True
✅ Nice work on the quiz!
Keep the momentum going — book a live English lesson with a Preply tutor.
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Australia's cricket team had a very bad day with the _____.
The team lost many _____ quickly. This is called a _____.
South Africa's bowler Jansen played a big part in the _____.
Another South African player, Steyn, said Australia's score was not _____.
After the collapse, people agreed Australia could not _____ their total.
Now South Africa are close to _____ the match.
Australia's _____ problems were clear for everyone to see.
The team's weak batting let South Africa take _____ of the game.
🎓 Enjoyed this story?
Turn today's reading into real speaking practice with a live Preply tutor.
