7th over: England 49-1 (Root 32, Duckett 8) Root is finding it hard to middle the pull shot, but a miscue still brings him two. He’s nailing it when the ball goes full, though – a cover drive off Burger is followed by a push through point for another four. And then a third successive boundary: the cut shot delivers.
6th over: England 34-1 (Root 17, Duckett 8) It feels slightly surreal that Root was batting at Lord’s just four days ago in the Hundred final – it really is a ridiculous calendar. Duckett is slowly getting himself in, tucking Ngidi behind square leg for four.
5th over: England 28-1 (Root 16, Duckett 4) Burger brings some quiet after the noise of the previous over, conceding a single off Duckett.
4th over: England 27-1 (Root 16, Duckett 3) That’s classic Root, with England’s No 3 punching Ngidi off the back foot through point for four, a piece of glorious timing. Root chases a cover drive later in the over, with a thick edge flying to the third-man rope. He does lace the cover drive with the next ball, a half volley sent where it belongs.
3rd over: England 15-1 (Root 4, Duckett 3) Burger loses his radar, sending the ball down the leg-side, all the way to the boundary. He quickly rediscovers the channel outside off-stump and threatens Duckett’s edge. He’s got a lovely, whippy action … and is that another one caught behind? It’s down the leg side but South Africa think Duckett has got a tickle. They go for a review … and umps called it right. Not out. Duckett clips away the final delivery for a couple.
2nd over: England 7-1 (Root 4, Duckett 1) Lungi Ngidi takes the ball from the Nursery End. I wonder if he’s thinking about his WTC second-innings display on this ground in June – three crucial wickets to rip apart the Australian middle order. Back to reality: Ngidi drops short and Root is away with a pull to the ropes.
1st over: England 1-1 (Root 0, Duckett 0) Burger is moving it both ways, with Root kept quiet. Settle in, Joe, you’ve got a proper job on your hands.
It’s a corker from Burger, the left-arm quick going full and nipping it into Smith to catch the inside-edge, with Rickelton cleaning up behind the stumps. It was an awkward push from Smith first up, a nightmare start to a hefty chase.
WICKET! Smith c Rickelton b Burger 0 (England 0-1)
And we’re off. With Jamie Smith gone first ball!
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John Starbuck writes in:
Whom would you pick as England’s fifth ODI bowler who could bat well enough to be a 6 or 7? They really do have to make positive changes, don’t they?
I’d have Sam Curran. He offers a fourth seam option but I wouldn’t necessarily see him needing to bowl 10 overs every game. He’s a proper batter who could do a serious job at six, used in a similar way to Ben Stokes during the 2015-2019 glory days.
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Afternoon, lovely people. England need to pull off a serious chase to avoid their fifth ODI series defeat in six since the last 50-over World Cup. That doesn’t include their dreadful time at the Champions Trophy. A few years ago this target wouldn’t have looked all that imposing – England’s recent form makes it feel way out of reach. All I want is a proper, edgy contest, unlike that dreadful series opener at Headingley. Here’s to a final-ball thriller under lights.
South Africa post 330-8
That is how you pace a 50 over innings. After a great start South Africa stumbled with Rashid and Archer taking back control with three quick wickets. But then a century stand between Breetzke (85) and Stubbs (58) provided the stability for Brevis to clatter 42 from 20 and Bosch end unbeaten with 32 from 29.
England’s part-timers – acting as their fifth bowler – went for a combined 112 from their 10 overs. And though Bethell bagged the bonus wicket of Brevis, him and Jacks were pounded by the Saffas.
Can England match haul them in? Taha will be with you through to the close.
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WICKET! Maharaj b Archer 1 (South Africa 330-8)
Kesh goes for a scoop and gets castled! It was the last ball of the innings. Worth a go. Still, scooping one of the fastest bowlers in the world takes doing and Maharaj wasn’t up to it.
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WICKET! Muthusamy lbw Archer 7 (South Africa 326-7)
Full, straight, out! Archer is too good for Muthusamy with this searing yorker that looks as out as out can be. The finger goes up immediately and the batter doesn’t bother with a review. Suggestions it could have hit him outside the line but that felt stone dead.
49th over: South Africa 326-6 (Bosch 29, Muthusamy 7) Both batters are searching for reverse scoops off Mahmood. Muthusamy can only get a single to short third but Bosch lifts it over Buttler and gets four off the penultimate ball. A wide and another single off Mahmood’s final over means he closes his account with 1-53 from his 10. A hopeful lbw review off the last over from a full bunger is unsuccessful.
48th over: South Africa 319-6 (Bosch 24, Mutusamy 6) Sharp running from Muthusamy towards the danger end means Bosch collects consecutive twos through midwicket at the start of Jacks’ over. Bosch then gets four when he beats long on with a chip down the ground. A single keeps him on strike. Quality batting by the bowling all-rounder.
47th over: South Africa 310-6 (Bosch 15, Muthusamy 6) Mahmood’s ninth over goes for seven. Four of those runs are boshed by Bosch through extra cover. The ball before he tried an audacious revers pull off the back foot to a slower ball but couldn’t grab hold of it. Scampered running keeps things ticking.
46th over: South Africa 303-6 (Bosch 9, Muthusamy 5) The wicket of Brevis has shaved off a chunk off the total, but after being put into bat on a ground where chasing is difficult, South Africa will be delighted to have passed 300. Muthusamy collects four with a reverse sweep and trades singles with Bosch. Everything from here is just icing on the cake though they’ll want to heap it high.
WICKET! Brevis c Rashid b Bethell 42 (South Africa 297-6)
What a bonus! Well then, Bethell has bagged a massive wicket! It’s a drag down angling into Brevis who makes room to lift it over cover. He throws everything at it but doesn’t time it, spooning it towards backward point where Rashid takes a comfortable tumbling dive. That wicket might be worth 50 more runs the way Brevis was going.
45th over: South Africa 295-5 (Brevis 40, Bosch 8) Rashid signs off with 2-33 from his 10. He played his part with some lovely bowling that bagged two big wickets early doors. Brevis shapes to clobber him but sees reason and recognises that the part-timers still have two overs between them. Just four singles off this over. Well bowled Rash.
44th over: South Africa 291-5 (Brevis 38, Bosch 6) Brevis is hitting sixes at will. Carse was tidy until his last ball, conceding just seven runs, all run. But the final ball is a half-tracker with pace off and Brevis can pick his spot in the stands. He leans back and hoiks a pull that comfortably clears the man in the deep. He’s 38 from 16 with three sixes and three fours.
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43rd over: South Africa 278-5 (Brevis 29, Bosch 2) Brevis has smashed the final two balls of this Bethell over for back to back sixes. The first was hammered straight and hard, causing the members to duck for cover. The next was a superb slog sweep that landed on top of the scorer’s box. That must have travelled 100m in the air. What timing! He’s some player. They don’t call him Baby AB for nothing.
Andrew Pechey has written in wondering about my use of ‘set’ for an over.
He’s not complaining, but he’s not the first to pull me up on it. I’m no Hundred devotee, I just like the variety.
Any thoughts?
42nd over: South Africa 263-5 (Brevis 16, Bosch 0) That is a big wicket for England as they’re into the bowlers. All on Brevis who must bat the remaining overs. He closes the Archer over by lifting an uppercut for four down to deep third. Such a needless run-out. No wonder Stubbs was livid. He was playing so well.
WICKET! Stubbs run-out Jacks/Archer 58 (South Africa 259-4)
Calamity in the middle! Stubbs is furious! It was his call as Brevis had steered the ball behind sqaure to backward point. Jacks collected and threw towards Archer who dropped it. But Stubbs was a long way down so Archer had enough time to pick it up, run towards the wicket and knock off the bails with a dive. Stubbs couldn’t make his ground with a dive of his own and thwacks his bat on the ground as he gets up before marching towards the pavilion .
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41st over: South Africa 256-4 (Stubbs 57, Brevis 11) Dewald Brevis has walked to the crease and almost hit his first ball for six. His slow sweep off Bethell is just a metre short of the rope at cow corner. His next ball is a genuine edge but races away fine for four. Bethell then sprays three consecutive wides to go with the four runs that are run between the batters. That all addds up to 17. England’s part-timers have been taken apart. Bethell is going at 12.6. Jacks at 10.5. Could that be the difference?
WICKET! Breetzke lbw Archer 85 (South Africa 240-4)
Archer gets the breakthrough! Oh how England needed that. Jof returns to the scene and, after conceding eight runs in the set, angles in a yorker with the final ball that beats Breetzke with pace off. He’s bang in front but it’s worth a review. Three reds, though, and he has to depart after a wonderful knock.
40th over: South Africa 240-4 (Stubbs 55, Brevis 0)
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39th over: South Africa 232-3 (Breetzke 83, Stubbs 50) Carnage. Breetzke smokes a flat one down the ground for four, almost taking Stubbs’ head off. He then climbs into Carse, pulling him for a monster six in front of square. A clipped two and single brings Stubbs on strike who reachea 50 with a single of his own. Breetzke completes the set with a steer past a diving short third man for four. 19 off that one. The Saffas are motoring.
38th over: South Africa 213-3 (Breetzke 66, Stubbs 49) Another Rashid over is safely navigated. He’s got just one left. This one is only worth three singles but that’ll do as far as the Saffas are concerned.
37th over: South Africa 210-3 (Breetkze 64, Stubbs 48) Stubbs will not let Jacks settle. He nails a sweep for four then heaves a mighty six over cow corner. A reverse sweep gets him another four before a single brings Breetkze on strike. One more single and a wide add up to 17 from the set. South Africa are on the charge and eying up something meaty.
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36th over: South Africa 193-3 (Breetzke 63, Stubbs 33) A dabbed single down to deep third from Stubbs brings up the 100 run partnership. Excellent graft from these two who have given the English a lesson on how to build through the gears after a collapse. Just three from this over which included a clipped two through midwicket from Stubbs. Sharp fielding from Bethell at cover and Duckett at midwicket helped Carse keep get through his set without too much damage.
35th over: South Africa 189-3 (Breetzke 63, Stubbs 30) Brook chucks the ball to Rashid in the hope of putting the skids on this partnership. But now the batters are set and they’re far more comfortable against Rashid. Three singles and a two for Breetzke who whips it off his pads past a diving midwicket. That was uppish, but was hit firm enough to beat the fielder.
34th over: South Africa 185-3 (Breetzke 60, Stubbs 27) Breetzke is purring now. A gorgeous lofted drive with barely any follow through easily clears the rope over Jacks’ head. It’s an expensive over from the part-timer, worth 15 as it includes three wides down the leg side and runs off every other ball.
33rd over: South Africa 170-3 (Breetzke 50, Stubbs 26) Breetzke reaches 50 and makes history. He becomes the first player EVER to pass 50 in all five of his first five ODI matches. There are seven runs – all run – off this Mahmood over. South Africa, after a wobble, are cruising now thanks to a fourth wicket stand of 78.
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32nd over: South Africa 163-3 (Breetzke 47, Stubbs 22) Jacks continues and does well, keeping things tight, bowling to his field. I do wonder though if Brook could be a little more defensive/a little less attacking. He’s still got catchers either side of the wicket which means there are gaps for singles. South Africa’s set batters trade four of them before Stubbs stoops low and slog sweeps towards cow corner. He doesn’t catch all of it so has to settle for two as long on runs round to cut it off.
Time for a drinks break. These two have done well in a rebuilding stand of 70 from 78 balls.
31st over: South Africa 157-3 (Breetzke 45, Stubbs 18) Stubbs is almost out hit wicket! It’s a bizarre sequence of events as he presses forward to Mahmood and tries to drive down the ground. He bat flies up in the air and almost loops back onto his stumps behind him. He panics and dives backwards, doing his best to divert his spiralling blade. That would have been one of the weirdest dismissals of all time. The next ball Stubbs gets off strike and then Breetzke steers one very fine, just past Buttler for four. Was that an edge? Mahmood certainly thought so. A leg bye and a single for Stubbs brings an eventful over to a close.
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30th over: South Africa 150-3 (Breetzke 41, Stubbs 16) The lights are switched on as Will Jacks enters the attack for the first time. He’s not just darting his spinners in but getting his fingers over the ball, trying to give it a rip. Four singles, all into the off-side, is a decent return for Jacks. Brook needs his supporting cast to keep things tidy.
Do we double it from 30? South Africa would more than happily take 300.
29th over: South Africa 146-3 (Breetkze 39, Stubbs 14) Mahmood returns from the Pavilion End as dark clouds gather overhead. The ground staff are getting busy below mme which suggests they think rain is on the way. South Africa tick along in the meantime with Breetzke forcing a four off the back foot behind square. Three singles elsewhere and a leg-bye off the final ball add up to eight off the set.
28th over: South Africa 138-3 (Breetzke 34, Stubbs 12) They’re showing Rashid the respect he deserves. Just four singles from that over. Rashid only has three more. If South Africa can navigate them safely without losing any wickets they won’t mind how many runs they take from them. Brook needs eight overs from part-timers. The Saffas can cash in then.
27th over: South Africa 134-3 (Breetzke 32, Stubbs 10) Breetzke might be struggling against Rashid but he’s having no trouble against Bethell. A full ball is spanked behind square on the leg side for four before a lofted drive clears the rope at deep extra cover. Breetzke then takes a well scampered two past point and keeps the strike with a bunt down the ground. Two different games taking place from either end.
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26th over: South Africa 120-3 (Breetzke 19, Stubbs 9) Brilliant from Rashid. He’s bowled a maiden that could have removed Breetzke twice. First with the overturned decision for caiught behind, then with a googly that beat the drive and almost took the off stump. He’s got 2-17 from six overs. South Africa are struggling at the minute.
Breetzke survives a review!
It’s a peach from Rashid who has changed ends. A delicious leggie that jags past Breetzke’s bat. There’s a noise which is why he’s given out, but the replays showed he clipped his pad with his bat. The merest of daylight between bat and ball is what saved him.
25th over: South Africa 120-3 (Breetzke 19, Stubbs 9) Brook must be reading the OBO as here comes Bethell’s part-time finger spin. He’s darting them in and keeps the batters to a single apiece off his first four balls before Breetzke swishes across the line and squirts an ugly sweep past the man at 45 for four. A single off the final ball means it’s a decent haul from the Saffas. A reminder that they don’t bat that deep today with Muthusamy coming in at 7.
24th over: South Africa 113-3 (Breetzke 13, Stubbs 8) Brook is playing an intersting game here. Not only is he keeping close catchers around the bat, he’s also holding off from bowling his part-timers. This Carse over goes for three singles and a leg-side wide. I’d bring in the fifth bowler now how he has control. Not sure he’ll want to chuck them the ball if both these batters get going.
23rd over: South Africa 109-3 (Breetkze 11, Stubbs 7) Brook has an attacking field for Rashind. For both batters there’s a short extra cover as well as a short midwicket. For Breetzke he has a leg slip but for Stubbs there’s an extra man catching on the off side. So thre close fielders. That means there are gaps in the ring and the Saffas pick up for singles across the over.
22nd over: South Africa 105-3 (Breetzke 9, Stubbs 5) Carse is hammering a shortish length, asking Breetzke to force the issue. He can’t beat point from the first two balls but climbs into the third, swatting it well in front of square for four. That was almost like a double forehand in tennis. He then picks up a single with a dab into the covers, bringing out a knowing applause from the crowd. Stubbs is squared up but gets enough on the edge to collect two behind point. He’ll keep the strike with a bunted single towards mid-off.
21st over: South Africa 97-3 (Breetzke 4, Stubbs 2) South Africa’s usually fluent batters are consolidating. Not that they can let loose against the miserly Rashid. Two runs off that over. The last five have been worth a mere 14.
20th over: South Africa 95-3 (Breetzke 3, Stubbs 1) Carse is back and he’s looking handy. One is pushed a little fuller and beats the forward press of Stubbs. The new man could do with a score and he’s underway with a bunt to the right of mid-on. Earlier in the set Breetzke picked up a single of his own. Just two from it. South Afrifa were 73-0 after 13 overs. They’ve added 22 and lost three wickets since.
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WICKET! Markram c&b Rashid 49 (South Africa 93-3)
Another gimme! Markram will be sick with himself. After spanking a four down the ground, and then surviving a stumping chance from a googly, South Africa’s opener has spooned a simple catch back to Rashid. Beaten in the air I think, he wasn’t at the pitch of it and so pulled out of the shot. The ball ballooned off his bat and Aiden has to go one short of his half century. England have done superbly to fight their way back into this.
19th over: South Africa 93-3 (Breetzke 2, Stubbs 0)
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18th over: South Africa 87-2 (Markram 44, Breetzke 1) Breetzke is off the mark with a tip and run into the off side off Archer. Markram clips a single of his own down to deep sqaure and swats another finer. Both shots were uppish, but in gaps. Archer is finding lift off the surface, forcing Breetzke to duck under a bouncer to see out the over. The last five overs belong to England as they’ve conceded just 14 runs while picking up two wickets. Plenty of time, though, to rebuild for the Saffas.
17th over: South Africa 84-2 (Markram 42, Breetzke 0) Tidy again from Rashid. Just a single to Markram off that set. England are definitely finding a bit of control in these middle overs.
A correction from the previous set. Breetzke didn’t scamper a single. He’s yet to get off the mark off seven deliveries.
16th over: South Africa 83-2 (Markram 41, Breetzke 0) Archer lands a steepling bouncer that rushes Markram who swats it it. The ball catches the edge but there’s enough wood on it to take it past Buttler and behind square for four. Archer lets out a laugh, he knows he had the beating of the batter on that occasion. Markram then shows great control to drive a single to the right of the sweeper on the off side.
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15th over: South Africa 78-2 (Markram 35, Breetzke 0) Rashid’s first over is a successful one. Bavuma scooped his first ball for three down to fine leg before Markram comfortably clipped a single. But Rashid is England’s best ever white ball bowler for a reason and he landed a gem to find Bavuma’s edge. South Africa need to rebuild here. What an opportunity for young Breetzke playing in his fourth ODI.
WICKET! Bavuma c Buttler b Rashid 4 (South Africa 78-2)
Ripper from Rashid! Success in his first over. That’s a lovely delivery, full with a bit of flight, he brings the South African skipper forward and gets it to turn away, nabbing a thin outside edge on its way through the Buttler. After things threatened to drift away from them England are roaring back.
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14th over: South Africa 74-1 (Markram 35, Bavuma 1) Archer snares the first wicket against the run of play. England needed that. Rickelton was looking set. The new man Bavuma is watchful before steering a single for a single into the covers off the last ball of the set. South Africa are 3-1 from the last two overs. A small sample size, but England are mounting a fightback.
WICKET! Rickelton c Buttler b Archer 35 (South Africa 73-1)
From nowhere! Rickelton tries to thwack Archer for six over square leg but catches a big top edge with his swishing blade. The ball goes very high and swirls in the air, but Buttler, circling under it, always looked assured. He snaffles it with a slight tumble forward and England finally get the breakthrough.
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13th over: South Africa 73-0 (Markram 35, Rickelton 35) Tidy over from Carse. Just two off it. Markram picks up a single thanks to a misfield from Bethell at point before Rickelton tapped one into the gap in the covers. Otherwise it was on the money, targeting the stumps.
12th over: South Africa 71-0 (Markram 34, Rickelton 34) Markram has struggled so far but he looks a dream as he presses forward and smokes the returning Archer for four through the covers. Markram then clips four down to fine leg before forcing another boundary off the back foot through cover point. He almost makes it four fours from four balls with a push down the ground, but Brook scampered after it and hauled it in before the rope. Markram comes back for three which means the over is worth 16.
11th over: South Africa 55-0 (Markram 19, Rickelton 33) Four singles off the first four balls means the Proteas are ticking along nicely. Markram’s first was a thick edge down to deep third but his second was a gorgeous back foot punch to the sweeper. Rickelton continues to accumulate with control. After winning the toss and choosing to bowl, Brook could do with a wicket.
10th over: South Africa 51-0 (Markram 17, Rickelton 31) Rickelton looks in great nick. He leans into a slightly over-pitched ball from Mahmood and drives him past mid-on for four. Brook moves a catcher in front of square exactly where the ball went but Rickelton flashes another one through the off-side to bag four more.
9th over: South Africa 43-0 (Markram 17, Rickelton 17) Rickelton bags nine streaky runs from that Carse over. First he chips a four down the ground but with little control, fortunate that he didn’t pick out a fielder. Then a simple run to mid-off has four more added to it after Archer’s direct hit side-stepped Bethell who was backing up. They all count.
8th over: South Africa 34-0 (Markram 17, Rickelton 14) Markram isn’t nearly as fluent as he was on Tuesday. He faces a tight over from Mahmood that ends in a maiden. Lovely bowling, good lines, good lengths, to a set field. No runs there.
7th over: South Africa 34-0 (Markram 17, Rickelton 14) There’s a bowling change. Carse replaces Archer. Rickelton welcomes him by lifting a flick over square leg for four. Carse adjusts his line and length and Rickelton bunts a few to the fielder at mid-off before he’s beaten by a beauty that straightens off a good length to beat the bat. There’s just one slip with the second catcher at a short point position. Rickelton is aware of the danger and plays the final ball with soft hands.
6th over: South Africa 30-0 (Markram 17, Rickelton 10) Mahmood changes angles to bowl from round the wicket angling into the left hander Rickleton. He wants to avoid offering any width and also has a leg slip in place. His first ball beats the outside edge before Rickelton scampers a single down the ground with a straight bat. Mahmood then causes Markram some trouble with a lifter than spoons into space on the off-side and a fuller ball that thwacks the opener’s pads. Good contest out there.
5th over: South Africa 29-0 (Markram 17, Rickelton 9) Markram has been kept in a cage so far but he climbs into a short ball from Archer and belts it for a flat six behind square leg. That followed a clipped double and then a single from Rickleton. Next came a wide down the leg side and suddenly Brook felt the need to tweak things – out goes the slip and in comes a catcher at short midwicket. Markram has now faced as many balls as he needed to reach 50 on Tuesday. Different sort of game here.
4th over: South Africa 19-0 (Markram 11, Rickelton 6) ‘OOOOOH’ rings around Lord’s as Mahmood shoots one past Markram’s stiff back foot drive. Lift and a bit of nip off the deck. Markram isn’t finding it as easy as he did a couple of days ago. A wide down the leg side is followed by a late cut that is kept down to two thanks to a diving Carse at deep third.
Brook then burns a review with a howler. It was a full ball that jagged back into Markram, but the replay showed it was missing by a mile down leg. Mahmood closes out the over by beating Markram’s outside edge again.
What a busy over.
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3rd over: South Africa 16-0 (Markram 9, Rickelton 6) Markram picks up his first boundary of the day with a little nudge off his hips. Despite the rain it skittles along the deck and beats Smith to the midwicket rope. Archer drags his line a little wider and gets one to shoot back into Markram, causing him a little discomfort from back-of-a-length. Markram then gets on the front foot and though he doesn’t time his straight drive, gathers three past mid-on.
2nd over: South Africa 9-0 (Markram 2, Rickelton 6) It’s Mahmood from the Nursery End. He’s pretty tight with his length for the first five balls but struggles a touch with his line. Markram tucks him for a single and Rickelton nudges a couple. Then the left hander climbs into some wide dross and smears a cut for four past point.
1st over: South Africa 2-0 (Markram 1, Rickelton 0) Archer beats Markram with a full ball that angles in and shapes away. The rest of the over is banged in around a goodish length. One strays wide down the leg side and the final ball of the set is tickled down to fine leg for a single.
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The players are making their way out to the middle.
Jonathan Agnew and Alastair Cook on TMS are expressing their sympathy for Sonny Baker who coughed up the most expensive ever figures by an English debutant. he’s been dropped, but it still feels a little harsh given the team lost because of their batters.
Anyway, we move on. Jofra Archer will bowl from the Pavilion End. Aiden Markram will face up.
Lord’s is mostly full. Two slips in place, fielders in the deep fine behind square either side of the wicket.
Worth reminding everyone what happened the last time the Proteas were on this ground.
Why not, eh?
The sun is shining though the hovercraft cover is still hanging about on the pitch.
It’s been one of those London days where they weather constantly gaslights you. It’s gloomy, it’s sunny, it’s wet, it’s dry, it’s balmy, it’s fresh. Make up your mind!
On TMS the gang reckon England should have batted first after winning the toss. Hmmm, both skippers were dead keen on a bowl.
Our first email of the day is from regular correspondent John Starbuck:
Daniel. Good afternoon,
Well, that didn’t go well, did it? A prediction that the match would start at 13:00 already overturned by events. Just goes to show that very little is predictable in international cricket, especially when England are involved. Let’s all cross our fingers, except when emailing you; though typing an email with crossed fingers might well become a rite of passage for OBOers.
According to Harry Brook, and Stuart Broad on comms, Sonny Baker hasn’t been dropped because of the pasting he received two days ago.
The argument is that on this pitch Saqib Mahmood’s fuller length will be a handful.
South Africa have two spinners. Which is…interesting. Lord’s isn’t really a grippy sort of surface. The bowlers in reserve are Kagiso Rabada (being rested) as well as young Kwena Maphaka and Codi Yusuf. But not of them can bat. So Senuran Muthusamy comes in as much for his willow-wielding as his orb-tweaking (just go with it).
Teams
England: Duckett, Smith, Root, Brook (c), Buttler (wk), Bethell, Jacks, Carse, Archer, Rashid, Mahmood.
South Africa: Markram, Rickelton (wk), Bavuma (c), Breetzke, Stubbs, Brevis, Bosch, Muthusamy, Maharaj, Burger, Ngidi.
England win the toss, have a bowl
“We think it’ll hopefully have a bit in it from thje start,” says Harry Brook.
He says it’s a “new day” and that the “series starts today”. It actually started on Tuesday, but we know what he means.
Sonny Baker, after getting loads of tap, misses out and is replaced by Saqib Mahmood.
Temba Bavuma also wanted to bowl. “We’ll just have to do a job with the bat,” he says.
The injured Tony de Zorzi, as well as the unwell Wiaan Mulder are absent from the team that did the job on Tuesday. Mathew Breetzke and Sunaren Muthusamy enter the fray.
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Matt Hughes has been doing his best Tillakaratne Dilshan impression by getting loads of scoops for us.
Here he lifts the lid on on a dispute over signings in the Hundred:
And here’s a yarn on the County Championship’s restructure:
Delayed start
The sun may be shining but the outfield is still a little wet.
That means we’ll have the toss at 12:45 with play underway at 13:15.
What did you make of Harry Brook’s seemingly blasé comments after their heavy defeat on Tuesday?
The skipper said: “Not ideal. Not a great start to the series – one of those bad days and we have to move on as soon as possible.”
Look, I get that players shouldn’t dwell on disappointing results. And that looking forward is healthy. But wouldn’t a little apology to the paying public have been welcome? Couldn’t he have acknowledge that an international game is expensive and time consuming, that many people would have taken a day off work, that some kids might have been watching England live for the first time?
I’m not saying Brook should serve jail time. It’s only cricket after all. But some sort of recognition for their abject show would have been welcome.
This week's Spin
The covers are on after some heavy, but brief showers. So while we wait for things to get underway, why not tuck into this week’s Spin.
It’s from yours truly on the magic of cricket scorecards. I’ve always loved them. I love looking at them. I love filling them with little names and numbers. So I decided to write about them with the help of two legends of the craft.
Hope you enjoy it:
Preamble
Ready or not, here comes another one! England were rubbish two days ago. After getting bowled out for 131, they got tonked by Aiden Markram in a seven-wicket rout.
The good news is that there’s little time to contemplate that result as the boys are back. It’s a mad schedule, one that flogs players, tests journalists and asks so much from the paying public. But that’s the modern game and on we go.
England need to improve in just about every department at the Home of Cricket today but its their batting that needs a serious rethink. As Mark Butcher said at Headingley on Tuesday, they fail to recognise that putting the brakes on for a little bit in the innings isn’t a sign of weakness but is often the sensible thing to do. When they’re rolling they look unstoppable. But when they need to take stock and consolidate they’re a shambles.
Can they rectify their mistakes today? If not they’ll lose the series with a game to spare.
There’s a bit of mizzle in the air around west London but we should get a full game on.
I’m excited to kick things off today. If you’d like to get in touch please drop me a mail. Reckon this England team can show a bit of humility and common sense? Or is that just woke nonsense in the age of Baz? Let me know.
Play gets underway at 1pm BST.
Toss, team news and other bits to come.
