Nortje spell the fastest I've faced in my Test career: Warner

In recognition of Anrich Nortje's heroic effort with the ball on day two of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia's opener David Warner doffed his hat to Nortje. Warner rated Nortje's post-lunch spell as the best he has faced.

Prior to the start of day three, Warner paid tribute to his Delhi Capitals teammate in an interview with the official broadcasters, saying it was challenging to keep up with Nortje's pace on a hot day as he reached speeds of more than 150kph.

Although Nortje bowled 16 overs on Day 2 while battling soaring temperatures and dismissed Steve Smith near the end of the day's play, the stats did not accurately reflect the caliber of the spell.

Nortje started things off by making his intentions known early on in the innings by bowling all of the deliveries in the inning's 10th over at or above 150 kilometers per hour, with two of the deliveries reading 155 kilometers per hour on the speed gun.

The South African pacer set the post-lunch session on fire by bowling Steve Smith and David Warner, who was in his nineties, four overs at a breakneck pace.

All day, Nortje used short balls to put Warner to the test. He actually fired a 155 kph thunderbolt in the first session that rattled Warner's helmet. Nortje continued to run in and hit the bat hard during the post-lunch session. He bothered Smith, one of the best batters in the modern game, and Warner in the middle. However, despite his best efforts, Warner went on to score his hundred and later a double hundred while putting together a 239-run partnership with Smith.

"That's the fastest spell I have ever faced in my Test career. That was extra-ordinary," Warner told Fox Cricket.

"To do that in 37-degree heat, to come back and bowl… I think I faced 18 deliveries straight from him. It's not that I didn't know what to do, but it was how was I going to pull it, how was I going to duck it and how was I going to eradicate it - you couldn't.

"The speed was sheer up there. It was the fastest I've ever faced.

"To try and negate that and try and pull it into areas that I could, it was almost impossible. When he 'lidded' me, I was like 'that's obviously very fast'. Credit to him, he kept coming back in this heat," he added.

On Wednesday, Nortje was rewarded for his efforts when he successfully removed Warner and Travis Head in the first session over the course of two deliveries. On day three, Warner walked out to bat but was unsuccessful in digging out a yorker. He reached his third double-hundred in Tests before being forced to leave the game on day two due to cramps.