Wiaan Mulder's willingness to do the hard yards makes him priceless to the Proteas

AUSTRALIA TOUR TO SA

The Proteas' ultimate team man: Wiaan Mulder

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Need someone to walk out at No. 3 in a World Test Championship Final against the vaunted pace attack of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins?

"Yes, coach."

Need someone to take the new ball when Kagiso Rabada is unavailable?

"Yes, coach."

Whatever the assignment, Wiaan Mulder simply gets on with it.

The 28-year-old has built a reputation as South Africa's dependable utility cricketer, a player willing to fill any role and more often than not deliver under pressure.

That reliability was on full display at Kingsmead, where Mulder claimed 4/68 to keep the Proteas in the contest for long periods, even if Australia's eventual total of 390 suggested otherwise.

What made the effort all the more impressive was that Mulder only discovered on the morning of the match that he would be leading the attack in Rabada's absence.

"I didn't know until the morning of the game. I think it suits my skill set, as long as the ball is moving," Mulder said.

"I was quite chuffed to get the opportunity, to be honest, and I'm glad I grabbed it."

There were moments when Mulder looked every bit the strike bowler South Africa needed. None more so than his dismissal of Mitchell Starc on the second morning, when he jagged the second new ball away just enough to beat the left-hander's outside edge and rattle the stumps.

The delivery was straight out of the Vernon Philander playbook, showcasing the control and seam movement that have become Mulder's greatest weapons.

The all-rounder believes adding a little extra pace has strengthened his game.

"I've always tried to bowl faster, and I'm pretty sure most of the media have always written about me not bowling fast enough, so that's something I've always carried with me," he said.

"But there have been very successful bowlers at my pace.

"It's about accepting who you are and giving your best every time. That's pretty much what I'm trying to do."

A maiden five-wicket haul ultimately slipped through his fingers as Australia staged a remarkable rescue act from 124/6.

Matt Renshaw's superb 190, coupled with Nathan Lyon's stubborn resistance, transformed the innings through a record ninth-wicket partnership that ripped momentum away from the Proteas and carried Australia to a commanding 390.

Yet Mulder was reluctant to dwell on what South Africa got wrong.

"I don't think anything went wrong," he said.

"I think they played well. We executed most of our plans. Maybe we could have bowled a little fuller, but we spoke about that before Matt Renshaw got in.

"Maybe here and there we got some tactical things wrong, or things could have been different, but in the end it was just a very good innings."

With his work with the ball done, Mulder may still have a major say in the match with the bat as South Africa seek to erase Australia's advantage.

The all-rounder believes the pitch still offers opportunities for run-scoring, provided the Proteas can survive the periods when conditions favour the seamers.

"The toughest session is generally the last one when the clouds come over and it gets a little darker," he said.

"The lights come on and that's when the ball moves the most.

"As a team, we're going to need good game plans tomorrow. All of us want to be permanent fixtures in this side, so there's plenty of motivation and commitment to what we want to achieve.

"If the pitch plays the way it did for most of today, it's going to be a very good Test match."