Close of play: South Africa 136-4 (need 280 more runs to win)
That has the feel of a match-winning breakthrough from Steven Finn – not quite as dramatic as Merv Hughes bowling Mike Gatting off the last ball at Old Trafford in 1993, but not far off. South Africa have a vulnerable lower middle-order, and with du Plessis gone it is hard to see who can hang around long enough to help AB de Villiers secure a draw or a miraculous win.
This would probably be England’s most unlikely in the opening match of an overseas series since the miracle of Jamaica 26 years ago. They are six wickets away. One way or another, tomorrow will be memorable. I’ll be watching it at home in my undercrackers, but please join John Ashdown and Nick Miller from 7.30am. Happy new year!
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46th over: South Africa 136-4 (target: 416; de Villiers 37, Steyn 0) Dale Steyn is the nightwatchman, and will have three balls to survive before the close. Finn has three for 27 from eight overs and has been superb. His Test strike rate is the best of any England bowler with 50 wickets or more since the great Frank Tyson in the 1950s. I know that is partly because life and Test cricket move pretty fast these days, but it also reflects his wonderful habit of taking wickets.
Steyn just about survives the over, although the last ball beat the outside edge, and that’s the end of another terrific day’s play.
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WICKET! South Africa 136-4 (Du Plessis c Cook b Finn 9)
This is a snorter from Steven Finn! Whether he’s bowling brilliantly or poorly, he can’t help but take wickets. That was a beautiful delivery, which roared from a length to take the outside edge high on the bat, and Cook took an extremely sharp catch at first slip. What a time to strike, with only four minutes’ play remaining.
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45th over: South Africa 136-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 37, du Plessis 9) Moeen has changed ends. In a risibly juvenile effort to tempt fate, I’m going to observe that England don’t look remotely like taking a wicket. It’s true though. This is surely shaping up for a long, miserable, wonderful final day. England have had so many famous rearguards in recent times, from Cardiff 2009 to Auckland 2013. Tomorrow we are going to see experience the exquisite torture of the last-day rearguard from the other side.
1/2 Barstow’s hamfistedness raises another question, @robsmyth0 (I’m a mine of them, I know). With so many batsmen, why don’t England revert
— Robert Wolf Petersen (@robwolfpetersen) December 29, 2015
2/2 to a specialist keeper? Chris Read could bat at 8 in this line-up, with Moeen at 7. @robsmyth0
— Robert Wolf Petersen (@robwolfpetersen) December 29, 2015
I agree that, theoretically, the presence of Stokes and Moeen gives England that option. But it isn’t going to happen; the culture is too entrenched. High-class wicketkeeping has gone the same way as high-class sports writing: it’s a nice bonus but not essential or a USP. The other thing is, what happens if you pick a keeper who is not good enough to bat higher than No8 and then Moeen is replaced by Monty Panesar?
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45th over: South Africa 135-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 36, du Plessis 9) Finn will have one last burst in place of Moeen Ali. There is probably only time for him to bowl a couple of overs. The only alarm comes from an iffy run, with De Villiers stretching to make his ground. He might have been in trouble with a direct hit, though we haven’t seen a replay.
“As a massive Bairstow fan, even I can’t claim his keeping is of international standard, but to describe that ABdV stumping chance as ‘routine’ is very harsh,” says Tom. “It turned a mile and came through a charging batsman so he can’t have seen it until very late. He should have taken it but it wasn’t that straightforward! If you pick a keeper based primarily on their batting then unfortunately this will often happen.” I agree with the last point. I think it was routine for a proper Test keeper though. Matt Prior would have taken that, what, 19 times out of 20? I don’t really blame Bairstow; as you say, England know the risks. But it’s still bloody irritating.
44th over: South Africa 133-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 35, du Plessis 8) Broad is reversing the ball and has a number of men on the drive for du Plessis on both sides of the wicket. Du Plessis is almost entirely strokeless – Shutters Up mode for those who had the pleasure of playing Test matches through the medium of Lambourne Games – and the result is an inevitable maiden. He has 8 from 61 balls. Broad is trying everything, including running from behind the umpire, Colin Croft style. Let’s hope he doesn’t run into the umpire by accident like Crofty did!!!
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43rd over: South Africa 133-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 35, du Plessis 8) There are just over 20 minutes remaining, so England won’t be able to get all eight overs in. Moeen bowls six dot balls to de Villiers, who no longer has any inclination to leave his crease.
“SA 342-9, match drawn anyone?” writes Graham Onions Simon McMahon.
42nd over: South Africa 133-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 35, du Plessis 8) Bairstow gave the ground a bunch of fives, not once but twice, such was his frustration at letting de Villiers off. All of which makes it even more surprising that Bairstow is the chosen keeper in The Guardian’s Test team of the year. You can read all about it in this week’s Spin.
Since you asked, I think this might be the best piece of wicket-keeping I’ve ever seen.
Anyway, Broad is bowling extremely well here. England pride themselves on bowling with the same intensity in the final hour as the first, and Broad is doing that despite cheeks that make Falstaff look pale by comparison. One from the over.
BAIRSTOW MISSES A STUMPING CHANCE TO DISMISS DE VILLIERS
41st over: South Africa 132-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 34, du Plessis 8) This has been an accident waiting to happen. In fact it’s already happened, and now it’s happened again, and this time it’s an even bigger accident. De Villiers charges Moeen, bowling around the wicket, but is done in the flight and beaten when the ball rips through the gate. It’s a routine stumping chance for Bairstow, but he can only punch it for two byes. Ach!
Bairstow batted beautifully earlier but that has undone all his earlier work, certainly in terms of public perception. You have to feel a bit sorry for him. He’s a good human being, doing his best, but his best standing up to the spinners isn’t good enough. In the long term you’d think he will have to establish himself as a batsman if he is to stay in the team.
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40th over: South Africa 129-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 33, du Plessis 8) England, as Mike Selvey suggested earlier on Twitter, have bowled a lot straighter in this innings. South Africa have had to defend a lot of deliveries.“Come on lads, 150 for five tonight!” growls Jonny Bairstow. There’s some reverse inswing to du Plessis, prompting a hopeful LBW shout. It was going miles down the leg side, though that inswing is a good sign for England. An excellent maiden from Broad.
39th over: South Africa 129-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 33, du Plessis 8) There are many statistics that sum up the unique genius of AB de Villiers, but nothing better reflects his chameleonic nature than the back-to-back Tests against Australia in 2012-13. At Adelaide he made a boundaryless 33 from 220 balls to help save the match. A few days later at Perth he scorched 169 from 184 balls, with 21 fours and three sixes, to win the series. He has a level of talent that is completely beyond comprehension.
He is so good that he’s extremely dangerous even when he’s barely playing a shot. He is still playing the occasional shot here, and he gives Moeen the charge before driving beautifully through mid-on for four. Who knows, maybe this will be his masterpiece, a match-winning 211 not out.
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38th over: South Africa 124-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 29, du Plessis 7) South Africa were 85 for one after 20 overs. Then Amla was dismissed, and since then they have scored 35 in 18 overs. An unashamed blockathon is developing, and nobody does it better than South Africa. England have returned to Stuart Broad in an attempt to take the wicket that would expose a vulnerable lower middle-order. He tries a yorker to De Villiers, who blasts it whence it came for four.
37th over: South Africa 120-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 25, du Plessis 7) This is a good move, with Moeen returning in place of Ben Stokes. There’s a fairly big shout for LBW against du Plessis; he was outside the line and Alastair Cook has no interest in a review. There is already a greater sense of menace, though. You could maybe crowd du Plessis a bit more; at the moment there’s a slip, short leg and leg slip.
36th over: South Africa 119-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 24, du Plessis 7) This is an important little spell for Woakes, a chance to show he can dismiss proper Test batsmen with an old ball. It’s been a good spell, no more or less than that, but the two batsmen do look secure at the crease. Woakes’s figures in this spell are 4-2-2-0.
Haha! Thanks for that oracular insight, @robsmyth0! A quick search says his FC av is 33.85 (Bavuma 38.6), but List A 35 (Bavuma 27.79).
— Robert Wolf Petersen (@robwolfpetersen) December 29, 2015
There you go. An open-and-shut case, like Steven Avery’s.
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35th over: South Africa 118-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 24, du Plessis 7) When Stokes drops short, du Plessis’s bat comes back from the dead and flick-pulls a beautiful boundary. That’s his first four – and his first really attacking stroke – from his 33rd delivery.
34th over: South Africa 114-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 24, du Plessis 3) If the ball does reverse swing it would be, in the lamentable parlance of our time, a game-changer. There have just been a couple of hints of it in the last five minutes. A maiden from Woakes to de Villiers. South Africa are now playing very defensively, with only 11 runs from the seven overs. There are 16 overs remaining. One more wicket and England will enjoy their Gatorade.
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33rd over: South Africa 114-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 24, du Plessis 3) I would definitely go back to Moeen here, probably at Woakes’s end because Stokes is more likely to take a wicket through force of personality. Was there a first hint of reverse there? The penultimate delivery, well wide of off stump, kept low but it also came back a little. A maiden. Du Plessis has 3 from 30 balls.
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32nd over: South Africa 114-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 24, du Plessis 3) Woakes continues to the becalmed du Plessis. Graeme Smith makes the point that, after his recent struggles, du Plessis is probably much happier to be facing seam at both ends. Nothing is really happening for Woakes, although his pace is still in the high 80s.
“Shouldn’t the ball be reversing by now?” says John Starbuck. “I know the make of ball and the conditions are factors, but we ought to be seeing Broad and Finn on again in the next ten overs or so. We seem to have forgotten about that in all the debate about whether or not the pitch will turn enough.” I don’t know if it should – 32 overs is a bit early, no – but either way it isn’t.
31st over: South Africa 113-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 24, du Plessis 2) Stokes still isn’t quite right, and had a chat with the physio before the start of the over. De Villiers cuts him extravagantly for four, with both feet off the ground just before he makes contact. He looks in great touch. That doesn’t need saying, does it? I might as well tell you that he’s wearing white clothes and imbibing oxygen.
“I can’t be the only poor sap who has chosen to come in to the office today and is therefore sat all on my own, soothed by the dulcet tones of Boycott for hours on end and utterly failing to resist demolishing a large bag of Mini Eggs (in December. I know),” says Lewis Cooper. “And yet - I’d quite like the light in Durban to improve please. The memories of the 2008 Lord’s Test – where SA saved a draw despite following on - are still too fresh...”
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Does David Miller ever get mentioned for a Test spot, @robsmyth0? I rate him highly in ODIs, and he surely can’t be worse than, say, Bavuma.
— Robert Wolf Petersen (@robwolfpetersen) December 29, 2015
I have no idea. You’re welcome! (His first-class record isn’t great, I know that.)
30th over: South Africa 109-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 20, du Plessis 2) A double change, with Woakes replacing Moeen (10-1-29-0). Faf du Plessis has eschewed all attacking strokes so far, which is fair enough in view of both the match and his personal situation. After five defensive strokes off Woakes, he has 2 from 20 balls; de Villiers has 20 from 30.
29th over: South Africa 108-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 19, du Plessis 2) Finn has been replaced by Ben Stokes. Chris Woakes has only bowled two overs in the innings, interestingly. Stokes was struggling a bit earlier, although he doesn’t mind bowling through pain. On his debut, at Adelaide in 2013-14, he wore the wrong size trainers and kept bowling despite doing all sorts of damage to his toe. There’s a bit of an appeal for caught behind, though not from Stokes, when du Plessis chases a wide yorker. He dragged his bat on the ground but the ball missed the outside edge.
28th over: South Africa 105-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 16, du Plessis 2) Moeen is bowling around the wicket to both batsmen, with a slip, leg slip and short leg waiting. Leg slip is a good position for the right-handers, given the occasional steep bounce. Just two singles from the over.
27th over: South Africa 103-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 15, du Plessis 1) de Villiers rocks back to steer a short ball from Finn between gully and point for four, a gorgeous stroke. He gets four more later in the over, crunching a drive wide of mid-off. There are still 23 overs remaining today, time and light permitting.
26th over: South Africa 95-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 7, du Plessis 1) du Plessis gets off the mark with a single off Moeen. He could well be playing for his place. At the start of that India series he had a Test average of 52. Two months later his average is 42, the lowest it has ever been. It’s scary how quickly Test cricket can turn on a man. It makes Joe Pesci in Goodfellas seem tolerant by comparison.
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25th over: South Africa 93-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 6, du Plessis 0) Finn strays onto de Villiers’ pads, with inevitable consequences. That’s his first boundary.
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24th over: South Africa 89-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 2, du Plessis 0) Faf du Plessis is under enormous pressure, having made only 61 runs in his last eight innings. In the last two months he has handled spin like a marmot in the bath. Cook keeps mid-off and mid-on up, a smart move, but du Plessis is not tempted for now and settles for defending the last five deliveries of Moeen’s over.
23rd over: South Africa 88-3 (target: 416; de Villiers 1, du Plessis 0) Now, surely, South Africa will employ catenaccio tactics. They should have done it from the start in truth; they have needlessly lost wickets to attacking strokes.
WICKET! South Africa 88-3 (Elgar c Root b Finn 40)
Finn strikes again! Dean Elgar, who carried his bat in the first innings, has finally been dismissed by his 317th delivery of the match. He reached instinctively for a wide, very full delivery that gripped in the footmarks. It flew off the edge towards second slip, where Root took a sharp catch above his head. That was a really smart catch you know. Elgar stood his ground, wondering whether it was a bump ball. It wasn’t.
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22nd over: South Africa 88-2 (target: 416; Elgar 41, de Villiers 1) It’ll be interesting to see how de Villiers plays here, how aggressive he is, particularly against Moeen. I don’t think he’ll bolt the door just yet, not while they are two down.
“I’m very happy to see Steven Finn contributing to the South African collapse after mopping up the tail so efficiently in their first innings,” says Sara Torvalds. “#FinnsForFinn and all that!” Yep, I think I might cry with happiness if Steven Finn fulfils his potential after all he’s been through. He’s not quite at his 2011-12 level yet, but he’s done extremely well since his comeback. Obviously there won’t be an actual moment at which it becomes apparent that he has incontrovertibly fulfilled his potential, at which point I’ll start haemorrhaging happy tears, but you know what I mean.
21st over: South Africa 85-2 (target: 416; Elgar 38, de Villiers 0) In his last seven Tests, Amla has made 150 runs at 15. He hasn’t looked so vulnerable since the beginning of his Test career against England 11 years ago, when most of us erroneously dismissed him as a quota selection.
The new batsman is AB de Villiers, who is beaten first up by the most beautiful leg-cutter from Finn. That was a ripper. The light has really closed in in the last 10 minutes; we can use the floodlights, though a reading of 10.1 was taken on the first day, so that will instruct whether they go off today. 10.1 what, I have no idea.
WICKET! South Africa 85-2 (Amla c Bairstow b Finn 12)
Steven Finn strikes with the second ball of a new spell! Amla played a flashing cut at a wide delivery that took the top edge on its way through to Bairstow. That was a poor shot really, a reflection of Amla’s dreadful recent form.
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20th over: South Africa 85-1 (target: 416; Elgar 38, Amla 12) “That’s unbelievable bowling,” lies Jonny Bairstow in an attempt to further boost Moeen’s confidence. He is looking dangerous, though, certainly to the left-handed Elgar, who plays out a challenging maiden. An early wicket would do wonders for his fragile confidence.
Not nervous yet @robsmyth0. But I am - of course - conjuring every nightmare scenario possible. Moeen just needs to stick to his guns here.
— Guy Hornsby (@GuyHornsby) December 29, 2015
19th over: South Africa 85-1 (target: 416; Elgar 38, Amla 12) Amla plays a few confident drives off Broad without piercing the off-side ring. In a strange way these early runs might help England, because they have postponed the blockathon and thus increased the chance of wickets. Obviously there’s a danger South Africa might win the bloody thing but let’s not go there just yet. England are still strong favourites, even if it wouldn’t be an entirely underwhelming experience were Broad to dismiss Amla and de Villiers with consecutive deliveries.
18th over: South Africa 85-1 (target: 416; Elgar 38, Amla 12) Elgar works Moeen fine for a couple. It’s important England keep their nerve. There have been literally hundreds of big fourth-innings chases where the batting team have reached around 100 for one and the supporters of the bowling have thought, oh eff, but history tells us it’s almost impossible to chase this many in the fourth innings, certainly on a worn pitch. There was a recent example involving England in fact.
“You’ve officially pressed the ‘Don’t Panic’ button then,” says Adam Hirst. “The England Cricket equivalent of the Chairman’s Vote of Confidence. Doomed I tell ye! Two Dad’s Army references in one email. The iPad generation will be lapping this up.” Like they’re reading this. Words? Whatever grandad.
17th over: South Africa 82-1 (target: 416; Elgar 36, Amla 11) Broad is around the wicket to Elgar, who pushes a single to point. This ball is doing very little for the seamers.
16th over: South Africa 80-1 (target: 416; Elgar 35, Amla 10) I think South Africa’s intent has caught England a bit cold. It’s a plot twist few of us expected. There’s no need to worry yet, but there will be soon if this continues: Elgar makes it three boundaries in as many overs since tea with a hearty slog-sweep off Moeen.
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15th over: South Africa 75-1 (target: 416; Elgar 30, Amla 10) The arrival of Amla means the return to Broad, who gave him a delicious working-over in the first innings. Amla is in dreadful form, as all batsman-captains are at some stage, but he knows how to bat time in situations like this: his rearguard innings include 25 from 244 balls and 25 from 159. That said, there is no rearguard at the moment: South Africa are going at five an over, and Amla ends the over with a cracking pull for four.
“He’s probably hoping that it slipped under the radar but did anyone see Sid Lowe on University Challenge last night representing the University of Sheffield?” says David Wall. “It’s one thing to go on and not actually answer any questions (lots of people have done that) but it’s another to fail to get an easy starter about cricket when you’re a sports journalist.”
What was the question? Who’s the attack leader? Fray Bentos?
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14th over: South Africa 69-1 (target: 416; Elgar 30, Amla 4) Moeen Ali begins a long evening session, with 37 overs remaining. There’s a half shout for LBW against Elgar, who got an inside edge. This looks really tricky against Moeen, particularly for the left-handers, although Elgar ends the over with a quite brilliant cover drive for four. There have been two Moeens in his Test career, and at the moment he looks more India 2014 than Pakistan 2015.
Interesting views from Nasser on Moeen: https://t.co/hJSIxorbUD Lot required of him here.
— George Dobell (@GeorgeDobell1) December 29, 2015
Hello boys! We know Ben Stokes’s burgenoning Test bowling average of 40.43 doesn’t do him justice, and that he is a player who transcends statistics, but there is one number that reflects both his talent and personality. In England victories he averages 15.90 in the second innings. That includes six for 36 to clinch the Ashes at Trent Bridge, and that magical afternoon against New Zealand at Lord’s when he dismissed Kane Williamson and Brendon McCullum with consecutive deliveries.
Stokes’s stats will level out as his career progresses, but you suspect those fourth-innings numbers will remain one of his strengths. He is a matchwinner, who is addicted to glory, and if he stays fit he might just be England’s most important seamer as they try to force victory. Most eyes, of course, will be on Moeen Ali. There is a perception that he gets a bit nervous when asked to bowl England to victory. That undoubtedly happened at Barbados in May, but against that he took six-for against India in 2014 and overall his fourth-innings record is strong: 11 wickets at 23.54. He should – should – be England’s match-winner here. But Stokes might have something to say about that.
Tea: South Africa 65-1
South Africa have scored well in that hour, but England won’t be too concerned given the form of the hosts’ middle order. England need nine wickets in the remaining four sessions of the match; South Africa need 351 runs.
Rob Smyth will take you through to the close. Cheers for reading. Bye!
13th over: South Africa 65-1 (Elgar 26, Amla 4) Stokes squares Amla up and beats him with a lovely ball that’s angled in and straightens up. The South Africa captain survives though and gets off the mark with a brilliant drive, feet off the ground and through cover for four.
Pessimism’s Robin Hazlehurst takes us to tea with this missive: “My maths is probably a bit dodgy and I’m a rubbish captain, but if South Africa batted for 150 overs for the draw and scored at well below 3 an over they’d win by accident. So why bat for the draw. Now they have built a base so the draw is taken out of the equation and SA can just coast to victory. Got to make them favourites now.”
12th over: South Africa 61-1 (Elgar 26, Amla 0) We should get a couple of overs in before the tea break. Elgar backs away and slashes hard, sending a thick edge absolutely flying between the two slips and down to third man for four. He’s much more convincing two balls later, sending a wonderful cut through cover point for another boundary.
11th over: South Africa 53-1 (Elgar 18, Amla 0) Stokes is looking increasingly uncomfortable out there, grimacing after every ball and checking his foot. Elgar cuts a short one hard behind point, but a palm from the diving fielder ensures it doesn’t quite get to the rope. The very next ball though Stokes gets the perfect tonic! Pretty ropey from Van Zyl that.
Wicket! Van Zyl b Stokes 33
A bog standard ball on a length that does little and Van Zyl plays down the wrong line. It takes a very faint inside edge and crashes into the stumps! Nine to go...
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10th over: South Africa 50-0 (Elgar 15, Van Zyl 33) Ah here’s Moeen. England aren’t in trouble at all, but they could certainly do with stemming the flow of runs. He’s getting a good amount of turn straight away too, beating Elgar with a lovely ball that spits away sharply. A single from the fourth ball brings up the 50 stand.
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9th over: South Africa 49-0 (Elgar 14, Van Zyl 33) Stokes comes on for Broad. On the TV, Bumble is surprised that Moeen isn’t coming on for an early go and I agree that England should have a look at him with the hard ball, especially with so many runs to work with. Stokes looks to be in very mild discomfort, too. Van Zyl digs out a yorker and, in doing so, inadvertently sends the ball running down to fine leg for four. And four more next ball - a thick outside edge that flies along the ground, wide of gully and down to third man.
8th over: South Africa 40-0 (Elgar 14, Van Zyl 25) Finn is the quickest bowler we’ve seen in this Test, I reckon. He’s in the very high 80s here. Two singles, then Van Zyl hooks a short one nicely, along the turf for four more. He might not be the most convincing opener, but Van Zyl does look very nice when he’s scoring runs. Two balls later he’s at it again, murdering another short one through midwicket for his fourth boundary.
7th over: South Africa 30-0 (Elgar 13, Van Zyl 16) It’s clouding over a touch in Durban. There’s no rain forecast but bad light could be a factor later on today. Elgar picks up his second boundary with a second exquisite bit of timing, pushing through midwicket and sending the ball racing on its merry way to the fence. Elgar has a very unusual leave; ducking down very low, getting his bat up high and almost falling over.
6th over: South Africa 26-0 (Elgar 9, Van Zyl 16) Somehow I don’t think it’ll be 30 for one at tea. South Africa have shown pleasing, surprising positivity at the top of this innings. Woakes, having leaked 15 from his first two overs, is hooked in favour of Finn, who is bowling round the wicket to Van Zyl. He bangs one in and the batsman glances it just past Taylor’s grab at short leg. Two runs.
5th over: South Africa 24-0 (Elgar 9, Van Zyl 14) As Cricinfo has kindly pointed out, this is now the best opening stand of the match. They add a couple more runs to the total, before Broad goes up for lbw after sending a full one tailing into Van Zyl’s pads. He asks Cook for the review, but it’s going miles down leg and the captain sensibly declines. Oh and then SHOT from Elgar, who shows perfect timing to whistle a drive along the floor and back past the bowler for four.
4th over: South Africa 17-0 (Elgar 4, Van Zyl 13) My apologies, it was Van Zyl who was dropped in that previous over. Elgar is on strike now and he drives through cover for one. Van Zyl improves on that though, getting up high on the back foot and driving elegantly through a similar region for four. He adds three more with a back foot punch down the ground. That takes him beyond his average for the series in India.
3rd over: South Africa 9-0 (Elgar 3, Van Zyl 6) Broad comes round the wicket now to Van Zyl, who left one from this angle in the first innings and got himself castled. England have three slips and a gully in for him, by the way, as well as a shortish square leg. The latter is called into play as Elgar clips one firmly at him, but it’s hit very hard and Taylor drops a very tough chance down by his ankles. You can’t really blame him much there.
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2nd over: South Africa 9-0 (Elgar 3, Van Zyl 6) Woakes is sharing new ball duties, bowling from the Old Fort End. He overpitches to Van Zyl and the off-colour opener drives very nicely through cover for four. Not so nice next ball though, as he goes fishing and misses one that, like a crap Oasis song, slides away. He gets one more thanks to a misfield at point then Elgar times one down the ground for a couple. South Africa are motoring towards that target.
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1st over: South Africa 2-0 (Elgar 1, Van Zyl 1) One ball down and South Africa are 1/416th of their way to the target, Elgar pushing a single to mid off. Make that one 208th, as Van Zyl does the same. I’m not going to carry on in this vein, don’t worry. There’s an aborted appeal as Elgar follows one down the leg side, but the noise came from bat on pad.
Stuart Broad has the ball. England have four and a half sessions precisely. JUST LIKE MY PREAMBLE SAID.
Hello again folks. Right, who fancies a prediction on the score at tea? 30 for one is my guess.
What an innings that was from Bairstow though, not flawless in execution but perfectly judged. I have a bet with my colleague Will Macpherson that Bairstow will finish his career with no more than two Test centuries; if moral hundreds counted then he’d be halfway there.
WICKET! England 326 (Bairstow c Duminy b van Zyl 79)
No Test century for Bairstow, at least not yet. He falls 21 short after carting Van Zyl to Duminy at long-off. That was such a good innings, 79 from 76 balls in a slowish-scoring game. The upshot is that South Africa will need 416 to win. More likely, they have to survive around 150 overs. If recent history is anything to go by, they’ll give it a shot. Or, rather, they won’t play any shots.
Dan Lucas will be here for the start of their rearguard. See you after tea!
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102nd over: England 326-9 (Bairstow 79, Finn 0) Bairstow charges the new bowler Elgar and belabours a boundary over cover. That’s a storming stroke. The next one is even better, an effortless slog-sweep for six. Bairstow is now 21 away from a long overdue maiden Test hundred. South Africa are jeered for some timewasting, and then Finn survives an LBW shout after missing a big slog sweep. That was pretty close, though it might have missed leg. England turn down a single off the last delivery so that Bairstow can keep the strike. England want him to get the hundred. I can understand that given that it would be his first.
“No way does Geoffrey Boycott make his own sandwiches on tour,” says Thomas Jenkins. “He takes his big plate down to the breakfast buffet, wearing his big coat with the big pockets. Scrambled eggs on the plate. Sausage rolls in the pockets. Textbook.” What do you think he’s hiding under his grandma’s pinny?
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101st over: England 315-9 (Bairstow 68, Finn 0) van Zyl now has more wickets in this innings than Morne Morkel, which is the dictionary definition of injustice.
WICKET! England 315-9 (Broad c de Villiers b van Zyl 0)
Broad goes second ball, caught behind off the inside edge as he tries to drive van Zyl. Although they lead by 404, England are going to bat on and on and on and on and on and on anonanononononon. I’m not sure about this approach. Might post an outraged tweet in a minute.
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IR Bell: 7727 runs at 42.69
@robsmyth0 I hate to do this, but Ian who?
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) December 29, 2015
You wash your mouth out! But yes, there’s something rather sad and predictable about his career having such a muted ending. He deserves better. Ultimately, I think he had too much talent for his own good.
WICKET! England 315-8 (Woakes c Duminy b Van Zyl 23)
Woakes has gone, caught beautifully by Duminy at short cover off Van Zyl. It was a fierce drive from Woakes, and Duminy plucked it almost nonchalantly with both hands as he swooped to his left. No declaration, England are going to bat on. I think this is a mistake, though I can certainly understand the reasoning.
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100th over: England 315-7 (Bairstow 68, Woakes 23) Bairstow cuffs Piedt for a huge six over midwicket to take the lead past 400. I’m really pleased for Bairstow, who has been a bit of a patsy for much of his Test career; even now many people think he is just keeping the seat warm for Jos Buttler. That may well be true, but he is seriously talented.
“I always thought Vaughan was a good part-time bowler,” says Amelia. “Highlight of the morning Aggers and Boycott talking about Spam sandwiches on TMS.” I bet Geoffrey still does his own packed lunch every day, his natural perspiration moistening the clingfilm as he lovingly wraps his precisely quartered Spam sandwiches.
99th over: England 304-7 (Bairstow 60, Woakes 20) South Africa have started their rearguard already, with Piedt and Van Zyl chasing dots rather than wickets. Bairstow chips Van Zyl jauntily over mid-on for four to take the lead to 393. It’s enough. I do think there’s scope to change the culture of declarations and take significantly more risks than is currently the case. You would lose the odd game, but you’d win far more.
“The potential of the batting lineup lies in knowing that most of them have a reputation in the short form not just for big scores, but in recognising when to accelerate, Taylor especially,” says John Starbuck. “If they can translate that into dealing with test-level fielding they should be very good.
Yes, there’s a number of potential match-winners, and also a good balance between attack and defence. It’s coming together quite nicely, unless you’re Ian Bell.
98th over: England 298-7 (Bairstow 55, Woakes 19) Piedt hurries through an over at a cost of just two. England could perhaps get a slight move on – this partnership of 26 has taken eight overs.
“As someone mentioned darts on the telly,” says Adam Simpson, “and in particular Jocky Wilson, any chance of showing this?”
On the subject of Jocky, Merry Christmas! Happy nightmares!
97th over: England 296-7 (Bairstow 54, Woakes 18) Stiaan van Zyl is going to come on to bowl, the latest attempt to justify his place in the side. He has bowled tightly in the match – nine overs for 14 – and can be difficult to get away. Just a couple from that over. England lead by 385. I would declare at 400 but I suspect they will go on a bit longer.
@robsmyth0 With Moeen, Woakes and Broad at 8, 9, 10, one of them should get 30 odd with another 30 odd at the other end. Very handy.
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) December 29, 2015
It’s a huge bonus, and still feels a bit weird for those of us who grew up with Caddick, Tufnell, Mullally and Giddins. The balance of this side is far from classical, but it kind of works, certainly while they wait for a proper spinner and for players like Stokes, Buttler or Bairstow and Moeen to become more comfortable at Test level.
96th over: England 294-7 (Bairstow 53, Woakes 17) “Think AB de Villiers might qualify as a bit of a Sehwag?” says Mike Selvey in reference to Chennai 2008. I was thinking of him for the Tendulkar role, if they had a Sehwag. In that innings Sehwag set the tone straight away whereas de Villiers would be coming in later. I suppose it’s possible if he comes in at, say, 100 for two after 40 overs.
95th over: England 293-7 (Bairstow 52, Woakes 17) Woakes shows his class with two boundaries off Abbott, a flick through midwicket followed by a gorgeous on-drive. A No9 batsmen has no right to play a shot like that.
“This England batting line-up is a strange beast that seems to be more than the sum of its parts,” says Andrew Hewitt. “I’d consider it to be pretty strong, but there are only two players who average over 40. If this were a team I knew nothing about I’d expect them to be far flakier than they are. Do you think that some of the players are better than their averages suggest (especially Taylor), or am I overrating them, much like I try to convince myself that some Aston Villa players are not useless fools?”
I know what you mean. Taylor’s average should soon be in the forties, and Compton’s might. I don’t think Stokes or Moeen will ever average much more than low 30s, though they will win games, Stokes in particular. Hales we don’t know about and Bairstow’s career has been very stop-start. But it’s true that Cook and Root are currently streets ahead of the rest, and that there is an element of safety in numbers with Moeen at No8.
94th over: England 285-7 (Bairstow 52, Woakes 9) Piedt is milked for precisely four singles. No more needs to be said.
“Morning Rob,” says Simon McMahon. “Sports wise, this is probably my favourite time of year, what with cricket, football and darts all on the telly box. Maybe a beer or two (and the occasional malt) to wash it all down in honour of Beefy, Bestie, Jocky, Eric et al. Very excited about the darts this year. I think it compares with the great tennis era of recent years, with Van Gerwen as Djokovic, Taylor as Federer, Anderson as Murray and Van Barneveld as Nadal. Plus a supporting cast of Lewis, Wright, Wade, Chisnall as Wawrinka, Ferrer, Nishikori, Tsonga... I could go on, but I think it really does bear comparison.”
I’d say its better; there is more depth, less predictability, the same mind-boggling excellence and almost ceaseless dramatic tension. It’s the best sport in the world right now, by a distance, in my spasmodically humble opinion.
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93rd over: England 281-7 (Bairstow 50, Woakes 7) Woakes, who must be one of the better Test No9s England have had since the war, clatters Abbott through point for four.
“Ah, Rob, what are we to do?” says Ian Copestake. “Can life and sport really be this easy? You will oversee the securng of a very healthy lead followed by a rapid fall of Saffer wickets (with the odd stubborn pause). This is how it should be, and not some Test in a desert with no one watching.” You do realise this is going to the final over tomorrow, with South Africa nine-down, don’t you?
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92nd over: England 277-7 (Bairstow 50, Woakes 3) Bairstow gets to a run-a-ball half-century from the first delivery of the session with a single off Piedt. That is a really splendid innings. There are still concerns over whether he will make it at Test level but there should be no doubts that he is an excellent team man who never plays for his average. That average is not great at this stage: 28.36. In his defence, his career has been very stop-start, with a number of slights to endure. He has already been dropped or left out five times in a 21-Test career.
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An email “Has any dobbler ever had more dobbler-like figures than Gower?” says Adam Hirst. “His second-innings figures put young Gooch’s two first innings maidens to shame.”
Surely the ultimate dobber figures are something like 12-6-11-0? Actually, these are great figures from the dobber’s dobber, Gavin Larsen.
Also you know the story of those Gower figures, right? These days he’d probably be fined for disrespecting the Bing Test cricket after a social-media campaign.
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Good morning one, good morning all. Rob Smyth here, your liveblog host for the next hour and also the final session. Hope y’all still bursting with Christmas spirit!
Right, enough of the pleasantries. England are in a fine position in Durban thanks to an impressive innings from Jonny Bairstow, whose selflessness is hugely underrated, and will resume with a lead of 364. I suppose they will want to extend that to at least 400 before they declare. Alastair Cook will remember Chennai 2008, a match that has a lot of similarities with this one, when India easily chased down 387 in the final innings after being outplayed for the first three and a half days.
The difference is that South Africa have nobody to tonk 83 from 68 balls like Virender Sehwag, so I think England’s declaration should err on the side of risk. South Africa are the modern masters of fourth-innings catenaccio, and therefore England need as many overs as possible.
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Lunch
South Africa have taken four wickets, but they’ve been far too expensive and the bowling has been too loose. England, and Jonny Bairstow especially, have batted solidly and lead by 364. I imagine they’ll bat for no more than an hour after lunch and look to get that lead well past 400.
Rob Smyth is, I think, helming the OBO for the first hour of that session. Bye for now.
91st over: England 275-7 (Woakes 2, Bairstow 49) A change of bowling: Abbott comes on for what I assume will be the final over before lunch. The new batsman, Woakes, will face after Bairstow takes a single behind square on the leg side and he’s beaten by a quicker one. There was a noise as he flashed at it, but there was no reaction from anyone on the field. And then the same again a couple of balls later; I can’t see anything that might be causing it and there’s nowt on UltraEdge, so that’s weird. Woakes gets a couple with a nice cover drive as an awkward bounce takes it past the fielder.
Robert Wilson writes to claim he has Marion Cotillard’s phone number. I don’t believe him unless he gives it to me.
90th over: England 272-7 (Bairstow 48) South Africa look tired. Bairstow gets forward and smacks a lovely sweep through midwicket for an easy boundary, then top edges another effort over the keeper’s head for the same. A single takes him to 48 from just 47 balls; this has been just about a perfect innings from him and he’s proved a lot of people - me included - wrong. They go up for an lbw when Moeen misses out on a sweep - it’s given not out but they have some joy with the review.
Wicket! Moeen lbw b Piedt 16
The decision is overturned. It was a good ball, pitching on middle and off and straightening. Piedt has a career-best five for 133.
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Review! Is Moeen out?
He misses out when sweeping a straight one. It’s been given not out but Amla uses his second review...
89th over: England 263-6 (Moeen 16, Bairstow 39) We’re not going to see the new ball, as Dean Elgar is on for a bit of left-arm spin. That’s probably a poor bit of captaincy from Amla, a wasted chance that’s almost certainly let the match slip. It shows a real lack of trust in Kyle Abbott, too. Two singles from the over, each pushed effortlessly down the ground.
88th over: England 261-6 (Moeen 15, Bairstow 38) Already this would have to be the highest ever successful chase at Kingsmead - 340 against Australia in 2002 is the record - as England lead by 342. Make that 343 as Moeen hammers a sweep out to deep square for one. One more to Bairstow, then cries of “catch it” as Moeen sweeps in the air, but it arrives at Morkel in the deep on the bouncer. Bairstow then offers a chance, inside edging between keeper and leg slip for four down to fine leg. Should have been taken, that, but England lead by 350.
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87th over: England 253-6 (Moeen 13, Bairstow 32) Moeen now faces Morkel for the first time and looks to drive his first ball, getting nowt for it as he skews it along the ground to point. The second effort is much better though, a floated half volley driven with Cotillardesque beauty through extra cover for four. Morkel switches to round the wicket but offers little threat.
86th over: England 249-6 (Moeen 9, Bairstow 32) One more to Moeen, before Bairstow misses out with a wild attempt at a reverse sweep. Chastened, he reverts to the more orthodox with a hard pull out to mid on for a single. Moeen drives off the back foot for one more.
85th over: England 246-6 (Moeen 7, Bairstow 31) Still Morkel uses the old ball, which is surely now only good for being a dog’s chew toy. He drifts on to the pads and Bairstow thumps him effortlessly through midwicket for four more.
Also a couple of nominations in for Ricky Ponting, for having Michael Vaughan caught behind in 2005 at Old Trafford. All of which reminded me of this:
Selve clarifies his earlier email was about favourite Scots. It doesn’t really work now that I changed his original “Cameron Akmal” to Kamran. I fear I’ve done a wrecking job on your joke, somewhat, Selve. Sorry.
84th over: England 242-6 (Moeen 7, Bairstow 27) Piedt has bowled unchanged for more than an hour now. He finds Moeen’s edge, but the ball squirts away along the ground and all that comes of it is a single. Bairstow then leans into one and drives it nicely through cover for three more to move to 27 from 28 balls. England lead by 331.
@DanLucas86 Lots of dobblers in the 70s - Bob Woolmer, Clive Lloyd (12-1-38-1 in the World Cup Final!), Greg Chappell, Doug Walters.
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) December 29, 2015
83rd over: England 238-6 (Moeen 6, Bairstow 24) Surely now South Africa have to take the new ball? Morkel drops short and wide with the old one and Bairstow cuts hard through point for four glorious runs. “Take the new ball, you don’t have to pay for it,” says Mikey Holding to howls of laughter from Atherton. Morkel gets another one to reverse in, but Bairstow is untroubled enough. The bowler then goes up for one that d
Peter Salmon nominates: “I was always a big fan of Greg Chappell’s medium pace. He was as upright bowling as he was batting. You always had the sense he was there to restore order. here’s him winning a match for Australia, which has the added bonus of watching Vic Marks and Norman Cowans trying to build a partnership of the the abyss of their mutual incomprehension.”
Bairstow is not even close to out
This is a poor review. The ball flicks the pocket and De Villiers takes an outstanding catch diving to his left, but there was about a foot between bat and ball.
Review! Is Bairstow out?
He follows one down the leg side and Morkel goes up alone. Given not out but he persuades Amla to review.
82nd over: England 234-6 (Moeen 6, Bairstow 20) Piedt continues and Moeen gets off the mark by paddling him round the corner for four. A couple of balls later he looks to dump the bowler into the ocean over mid off, but mistimes it and the ball drops just beyond the retreating Abbott out in the field. They run a couple.
“I read that Viv Richards thought Boycott the most intimidating bowler he ever faced,” writes Steve Hudson. “The thought of getting out to a dobber bowled by a crowing, jeering Sit Geoffrey was, he said, more frightening than facing Thommo.”
81st over: England 228-6 (Moeen 0, Bairstow 20) Morkel returns after a good spell from Abbott, still bowling with the old ball. Bairstow gets four with a very well timed drive through extra cover, the ball beating McAmla’s chase.
On Butcher (see below) I remember him finally ending Gary Kirsten’s vigil, where the South African opener made a brilliant, boring as hell 275, in 1999. Robin Hazlehurst writes: “Most impressive part time bowling performance was surely when MS Dhoni took off his pads and brought himself on against England a couple of years ago. Not really for the bowling itself, more for the cojones required to actually do that. Best record as a part timer might be Alastair Cook, who has an average of 7 and a strike rate of 18 or something ludicrous (over an admittedly small sample). Presumably he doesn’t bowl more because he doesn’t want to mess his figures up.”
Nominations coming in, too, for Marcus Trescothick, Jonathan Trott and Mudassar Nazar.
80th over: England 224-6 (Bairstow 16) Bairstow gets the final hour of the session underway with a neat swivel pull through square for four. This is definitely the right way for the hard-handed Yorkshireman to play the spinner. He knocks the next ball out to mid on for one more. Piedt then gets a touch more bounce to Taylor and it loops up off the inside edge and pad and over the keeper’s head. The batsmen exchange singles, then Taylor is out off the final ball for a well-made 41. England lead by 313.
Wicket! Taylor st De Villiers b Piedt 42
This is great bowling. Piedt pushes it through a bit quicker and Taylor, coming down the wicket, misses it. De Villiers completes the job nicely.
More part-timer nominations:
@DanLucas86 Part-time bowlers? I saw Geoffrey Boycott take wickets against Australia at Lord's,bowling while still wearing his cap.
— Justin Horton (@ejhchess) December 29, 2015
@DanLucas86 Old skool part-time trundler nomination: Gooch's wobbly medium pace. Pinned Mark Waugh with a bouncer in Brisbane aged 41 too...
— Chris Langmead (@chrislangmead) December 29, 2015
@DanLucas86 part time bowlers? Never played a ODI but Mark Butcher was an occasionally great partnership breaker in tests. Wobbly swing
— Paddy Blewer (@Padsky) December 29, 2015
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79th over: England 217-5 (Taylor 41, Bairstow 10) A single apiece from the last over before drinks, with England seemingly happy to see off the seamers. They lead by 306.
Mike Selvey sends his nominations for the part-time dobbler hall of fame: “Rather fond of Kamran Akmal. And those wealthy people who own Highland Spring, the McTombs.”
78th over: England 215-5 (Taylor 40, Bairstow 9) Steyn currently sits on 406 Test wickets, 15 behind Shaun Pollock’s record. You do wonder now if he’s going to make it. Piedt finds the edge as Bairstow flicks down the leg side, but the ball ricochets away off the gloves and away for a couple to fine leg. Bairstow brings out the slog sweep next and sends it sailing miles over midwicket for a glorious six! England’s lead goes past 300.
“Gooch was the occasional dibbler-dobbler sans pareil,” notes Robert Wilson. “Face like thunder when he bowled and a run-up that carried the weight of the world. Also did surprisingly high-quality bowling impressions if a match was petering out. His Willis and Boycott were unforgettable.”
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77th over: England 206-5 (Taylor 39, Bairstow 1) Everyone’s favourite Scot, Hamish Amla, makes a nice diving stop at mid off to prevent a Taylor drive from earning any reward. He gets one with a nurdle off the hips, the only run of the over.
76th over: England 205-5 (Taylor 38, Bairstow 1) Taylor adds one more to his total with a pull out to deep square. That brings Bairstow on strike and it’ll be interesting to see how his hard hands go on a spinning pitch. He gets off the mark with a nudge into the on side, then Taylor backs away and drives to cover for one more.
A fun question, this, from Derek Walmsley: “Given that South Africa are now a team getting by with part time bowlers, I wondered what your favourite occasional trundlers were? I always liked seeing Ian Bell taking his cap off, so you could see his gentle, teasing away swing. Perhaps most underused of all was Forest Gate hero Ravi Bopara, who could always be depended upon whenever you needed six balls just outside off stump coming in a touch, and never doing anything else.”
Bopara, in ODIs especially, is a great shout. Like anyone with a soul, I have a soft spot for Paul Collingwood.
75th over: England 202-5 (Taylor 36, Bairstow 0) The new man is Jonny Bairstow, starting at the non-striker’s end, and you imagine he and England will be ever so slightly nervous as this is South Africa’s morning so far. I’d say England are still on top, but they need to beware a patented middle order collapse here. Abbott serves up a juicy half volley for Taylor, who clips it uppishly through square leg but nowhere near a fielder and away for four. Nicely played and that’s the 200 up for England. A single behind square on the leg side takes the lead to 291.
I bloody knew it @DanLucas86. A classic jinxing. It's not like I don't have form. Guess we'll be nurdling then.
— Guy Hornsby (@GuyHornsby) December 29, 2015
74th over: England 197-5 (Taylor 31) Ah here we go, Stokes gets out the reverse sweep and plays it immaculately, backward of square for four. He tries it again from the final ball, doesn’t play it anywhere near as well and gets himself out.
Here’s Ali Martin with the full story on Dale Steyn:
Wicket! Stokes c Elgar b Piedt 5
Stokes goes for the reverse sweep but it’s too straight for the shot. It loops up off his gloves and Elgar, treading backwards from leg slip, takes an easy catch.
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73rd over: England 193-4 (Taylor 31, Stokes 1) A second maiden on the spin, which makes this a neatly timed email from Guy Hornsby:
“Surely this situation is custom made for England’s lower order and particularly Ben Stokes? Sure, there’s some reverse swing and Abbott and Piedt are bowling decently, but this should be us putting our boot on the Saffers throat. We should be trying accelerate, with the batting we have, so we can declare before tea, giving ourselves a good 130+ over to bowl them out. I fear we’ll nurdle to a 400 lead and run out of time tomorrow.”
Yes I tend to agree. South Africa may have lost the final Test in India but there is surely no side in the world so adept at blocking out for an age.
72nd over: England 193-4 (Taylor 31, Stokes 1) From round the wicket Piedt finds some very sharp turn that takes the ball past Stokes’ outside edge when the batsman goes fishing. A couple of balls later he drops short, but Stokes misreads the pace of it as he looks to slog it out the ground and connects with naught but air.
71st over: England 193-4 (Taylor 31, Stokes 1) A change of bowling now as Abbott comes on. There’s a bit of reverse for him too and a full one finds Root’s inside edge on its way to the pads. Much better from the batsman next ball though as he drives to mid on, where only a good dive to parry the ball keeps them to two rather than the four that shot probably deserved on aesthetics. He’s gone a couple of balls later, succumbing to the reverse swing. He finishes with 1,379 runs for 2015: the second highest for England in a calendar year behind Michael Vaughan.
“Enough of this dabbing nonsense, could someone come in and just blast this game away from the saffers?” asks Ian Copestake, who will be delighted to hear Ben Stokes is the new man.
Wicket! Root c Van Zyl b Abbott 73
A wicket out of nowhere almost. The ball moves away a touch and Root looks to dab it down to third man with an angled bat. He gets a top edge on it though and finally a catch sticks at slip.
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70th over: England 190-3 (Taylor 31, Root 71) Piedt comes round the wicket now and Root paddle sweeps from outside leg, wide of the fielder, away for the first boundary of the day. He repeats the trick a couple of balls later, but the long leg fielder keeps them to a single. Taylor then misses out on a filthy full bunger (is there any other kind?) that the bowler half stops on its way out to mid on for one. A sharp single of the final ball makes it a very good over for England; they’re not letting the spinner settle.
69th over: England 183-3 (Taylor 30, Root 65) A rare couple of runs off Morkel as Taylor nudges one that keeps low off his pads and past a misfield at square leg. The new ball is 11 overs away and you’d think South Africa would be keen to take it, but the uneven bounce - Morkel catches the shoulder of Taylor’s bat here effecting an incoming short leg - might mean they go with this one a bit longer.
“Hi Dan.” Hi, Robin Hazlehurst. “I wouldn’t be too harsh on yourself for getting details wrong in the preamble. According to its time stamp it was posted up 21 hours ago, which means you wrote it at lunchtime yesterday. Predicting the match situation so accurately at that point is already uncanny, getting the score right is truly spooky, so a wicket or two more or less is hardly a big miss. Or possibly there is another wrong number floating around there.”
No the way it works is... OK you don’t care about the technical side of the OBO, do you?
68th over: England 181-3 (Taylor 28, Root 65) Root opens the over with a single, before Taylor edges one into his pads. The Notts man hasn’t quite found his timing this morning, but he gets off strike with a push out past the midwicket fielder. Piedt drops short and Root squirts it away for one more, then Taylor nudges a single off the last.
I don’t know why I’m highlighting my own double error, but can we just agree that England have lost three wickets so far and leave me in peace? It’s early.
@DanLucas86 Heh. It's a technicality, though: we have seven batsmen, but only six wickets in hand, I would think...
— Ravi Nair (@palfreyman1414) December 29, 2015
67th over: England 177-3 (Taylor 26, Root 63) Taylor is busy at the crease against pace as well, shuffling across and looking to manoeuvre the ball into a gap. He’s forced to defend by Morkel, bowling just back of a length and getting it to reverse, though, and plays out a maiden.
“The one and only thing I share with Dale Steyn is that like him I also woke up a bit stiff,” writes Ian Copestake. “I do feel for him that his experience actually made headlines, but I guess some of us are just blessed.”
No one is writing about my bad back either, if it helps Ian.
66th over: England 177-3 (Taylor 26, Root 63) Spin from the other end, with Dane Piedt, although I suspect Hashim Amla wouldn’t have wanted to bring him on this early normally. Root uses his feet to come down the track and work him to midwicket for a single, then Taylor does the same to mid on. Half a shout for lbw as Root gets hit on the pad, but he was outside the line. Root then sweeps for another single, before Taylor comes down the track again and works another single to mid on.
65th over: England 173-3 (Taylor 24, Root 61) It’s Morkel opening up the day’s play, bowling to Root and varying his length. He has figures of one for 19 from his 13 and a bit but bowled so much better than that yesterday. Root nudges the fourth of the over off his hips for a single, then Taylor is beaten by one that reverses back into his pad.
Look it’s really early and I know England have seven wickets in hand, OK?
Pre-play advert watch: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Christoph Waltz, two of my favourite film stars, are advertising rubbish app games for your phone. Nicole Kidman is advertising car insurance with weirdly Russian meerkats. This is miserable.
It’s a long way off yet, but if Joe Root gets another 103 runs today he’ll overtake Steve Smith as the leading Test run scorer in 2015.
15 minutes to go until the start of play. Here’s your pre-match musical interlude.
It’s a hot, clear day in Durban. Unlike here in Manchester, where it’s still dark and I’m coming down with a cold. The pitch is very dry, so (a) spin will play a big part and (b) there will be a bit of uneven bounce, which is dangerous for England given how well Morne Morkel bowled yesterday.
Ah, yes.
@DanLucas86 "261! - with four wickets in hand." Heart in mouth there, until I realised it was a typo! We have six in hand.
— Ravi Nair (@palfreyman1414) December 29, 2015
Dale Steyn news
The scans have come back inconclusive so there is no tear. He woke up very stiff this morning and is unlikely to bowl today, but they are treating it as a simple strain. It’s touch and go whether or not he’ll play in the second Test.
We’re beginning half an hour later than yesterday, you’ll notice, as we have now made up the overs lost to rain on day one. So half an hour or so to go until the start of play.
Well this is a nightmare. I can’t find the remote. Still, when my alarm went off earlier and I heard someone bowling to Taylor on the radio, my heart was in my mouth. Luckily it wasn’t England’s diminutive batsman...
Preamble
Morning/afternoon/evening/whenever, folks. Yesterday I wrote about how finely balanced this Test was. How wonderful it was to see a match so finely poised, with all three outcomes as likely as the other two. Those were the heady days, weren’t they?
If you’re an England fan, this is still a brilliant match, only for different reasons. Two hundred and sixty one runs ahead - yes 261! - with six wickets in hand. The opposition have two bowlers given Dale Steyn’s unfortunate injury and Kyle Abbott’s less unfortunate rubbishness*. South Africa are overly relient on the green Dane Piedt and England have their two best players of spin at the crease.
This England team is an absurdly young one to go on tour to the world’s No1 Test side. OK, South Africa are on the back of a thumping series defeat, have suffered with injuries and only have three batsmen who convince, but they are still one of the toughest sides you can go and visit in world cricket. England should - nay, will - win from here; if/when they do it will be their best victory since Kolkatta 2012 by some distance.
Nick Compton hasn’t quite answered every question over him: his head is still all over the place. Chris Woakes has done nothing to suggest he should be in the side over Liam Plunkett. Alex Hales has failed twice. So has Alastair Cook. Moeen Ali has done very little without assistance from the pitch. Dale Steyn, one of contemporary cricket’s greatest competitors and most fearsome opponents, is injured thus reducing this a touch as a contest. But bugger the lot of it, they are on the verge of doing something very special.
Bat until midway through the afternoon session, build a lead of 400 and give themselves four and a half sessions to bowl South Africa out. That’s the ideal scenario for England. Take six wickets for 15 more runs in the next half hour is what the hosts (probably) have to do to save the match. Cricket is bloody brilliant, isn’t it?
Play begins at 10am local time, which is 8am GMT and an extra half hour’s sleep for me.
*Blame me when he takes five for 15 this morning.
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