Close of play: England 179-4 (Compton 63*, Stokes 5*)
James Taylor will be radged off at getting out before bad light stopped play, but he has been so convincing since his return to the Test side in Pakistan. Nick Compton also did a faultless impression of Nick Compton on his return, making 63 not out from 179 balls.
It’s hard to know who’s on top in absolute terms, but England would have taken this at 12 for two and 40-odd for three. South Africa will be happy enough too because of that late wicket, and especially because Dale Steyn – another man making his comeback – topped and tailed the day with some majestic bowling. Thanks for your company; goodnight!
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BAD LIGHT STOPS PLAY
That should be it for the day. After one ball from Steyn, the umpires confer and decide it’s not fair to ask people to play 90mph reverse inswing from a maniac genius in this light.
65th over: England 179-4 (Compton 63, Stokes 5) This is a interesting move from Hashim Amla, who has brought the offspinner Piedt into the attack. Stokes has sometimes had problems against spin early in his innings. He blocks a few and then swings a low full toss handsomely over midwicket for four.
64th over: England 175-4 (Compton 63, Stokes 1) There’s no nightwatchman, with Ben Stokes coming in at No6. One more wicket would possibly make this South Africa’s day. Stokes gets off the mark with a push into the off side. Steyn has figures of 15-3-29-3.
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That wicket came through force of personality as much as as anything. It was a good delivery, tempting Taylor into an indecisive fiddle that he edged through to the keeper AB de Villiers. It’s a bit of tame end to an extremely good innings from Taylor, who has been brilliant since his return to the Test team last month. But it’s also wonderful from Steyn, who was asked to rip England from their bubble and did just that.
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WICKET! England 174-4 (Taylor c de Villiers b Steyn 70)
Steyn continues. Throughout his career he has prided himself on his ability to take important wickets at the end of a long, hard day. This would be a great time to do that, and it would change the mood of the match for what looks a crucial second morning. He’s done it! What a champion!
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63rd over: England 174-3 (Compton 63, Taylor 70) England will be really happy to face Elgar at the end of a day on which they were put in to bat. When he drops too short, Taylor pulls him lazily over midwicket for six. Lovely stuff. This has been such a good partnership. In the parlance of our time, their game management has been immaculate.
62nd over: England 164-3 (Compton 60, Taylor 63) This is all a bit low key at the moment, so Hashim Amla invites/encourages/beseeches Dale Steyn to raise hell. He comes back to replace Morkel (15-1-4-44-0) but there’s no real movement and Compton take a quick single to mid-on.
South Africa have a Dean and an Abbott on their side - maybe they're tired after having a lot to do yesterday @robsmyth0
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) December 26, 2015
61st over: England 162-3 (Compton 59, Taylor 63) La la etcetera.
60th over: England 161-3 (Compton 58, Taylor 62) Compton watches another reverse inswinger from Morkel go past his off stump, though that one was a little closer. If England get through the rest of the day without losing any wickets, they will be in a lovely position for their aggressive lower middle order to kick on tomorrow. That kind of crescendoing batting line-up worked very well in 2010-11, when Strauss, Cook and Trott would wear attacks out for KP, Bell, Morgan, Prior, Bresnan, Broad and Swann to destroy them. This team has a similar capacity, on a good day at least.
“Finally got Sky; merry Christmas, me - and goodbye life,” says Joanne Beasley. “Taylor may not intimidate size-wise, but I for one find his Vladimir Putin look in his helmet, rather unnerving.” Oh my goodness, I’d never noticed that before. Look at his face!
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59th over: England 159-3 (Compton 57, Taylor 61) A low full toss from Elgar is clipped wide of midwicket for four by Compton, his fourth boundary. This has been an innings straight outta 1988, and all the better for it. “I would say Elgar is somewhat under the pump in the circumstances,” sniffs Marie Meyer.
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58th over: England 154-3 (Compton 52, Taylor 61) Morkel is getting a bit of reverse inswing to Compton, who watches a couple of deliveries outside off stump and then works a single to leg.
57th over: England 153-3 (Compton 51, Taylor 61) “Eff sake” screams someone, presumably Elgar, when Compton tucks an errant delivery for a single. After a torrid start, this has almost imperceptibly turned into a fine day for England.
56th over: England 152-3 (Compton 50, Taylor 61) Taylor brings up the hundred partnership with an fierce cut for four off the new bowler Morkel. He’s played the fast bowlers really well today, and of course he could play the spinners in his sleep.
55th over: England 146-3 (Compton 50, Taylor 57) Compton squirts Elgar for two to bring up a fine half-century. Well played indeed. He’s faced 146 balls and hit three fours. This was precisely the situation for which he was brought into the side – a bit in the pitch, the loss of an early wicket, Dale Steyn on the prowl – and he played his role immaculately. He almost falls next ball, mind you, when Elgar spits a beauty past the outside edge.
54th over: England 144-3 (Compton 47, Taylor 56) Sometimes we talk about the balance of a batting line-up or bowling attack to the exclusion of what is far important: scoring runs and taking wickets. That is still an issue for England, but this batting line-up does have a really nice balance now: they have dashers, blockers, biffers, counter-attackers and busy accumulators. Taylor and Compton are different batsmen, almost unique, and so they give England excellent variety in their batting. We talk more about variety in bowling but it’s important in a middle order as well. Compton gives England a bit of Tavareity too.
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53rd over: England 142-3 (Compton 46, Taylor 55) A victory for England, with Dale Steyn replaced by ... Dean Elgar. He is a part-time left-arm spinner, though we all know the danger that such bowlers can cause if a batsman loses concentration. Compton doesn’t, diligently playing out a maiden, and that’s drinks.
52nd over: England 142-3 (Compton 46, Taylor 55) A maiden from Abbott to Taylor.
51st over: England 142-3 (Compton 46, Taylor 55) Steyn continues. This is his 13th over of the day, and his bowling doesn’t have the ferocious intensity of his earlier spells. Of course the ball is older and the pitch more docile as well. There’s a staggered appeal for caught behind when Compton is beaten outside off. There was a noise, but it was bat on pad.
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50th over: England 141-3 (Compton 46, Taylor 54) Taylor clouts Abbott through the covers for a couple, taking the partnership to 91. As recently as six months ago you’d have got good odds on Compton and Taylor being anywhere near the Test team. It’s that context, and the previous rejection, that makes their calm performance even more impressive.
49th over: England 138-3 (Compton 46, Taylor 51) Steyn is down to two slips, a reflection of England’s control at this point. One wicket would change everything of course. Taylor, on the walk, works Steyn scruffily to fine leg for a single. I think there was a hint of reverse swing in that over, which would make like more difficult for England before the close.
I hate to flirt with a schoolboy jinxing @robsmyth0, but this has been an excellent recovery. I wonder how Flower feels about it? #ENGvSA
— Guy Hornsby (@GuyHornsby) December 26, 2015
48th over: England 136-3 (Compton 45, Taylor 50) “As Nick Compton adds to his runs and James Taylor milks away, it makes you wonder how uncomplicated things could be if people are selected purely based on merit and not on age, potential, height etc,” says Krishnan Patel.
47th over: England 135-3 (Compton 44, Taylor 50) Compton connects nicely with a couple of cover-drives off Steyn, though he can’t pierce the field. A pull brings him a single, and that’s about it. Not even Steyn can enliven what has been a sleepy session so far.
“Between Steyn and the weather James Taylor has faced fire and rain today,” says Niall Mullen, inexplicably passing up the chance to rhyme ‘rain’ and ‘Steyn’ before high-fiving passers-by in celebration of his own brilliance.
46th over: England 134-3 (Compton 43, Taylor 50) Abbott replaces Piedt, and Compton just about survives an iffy single into the covers. It would have been very close had du Plessis’s throw hit the stumps. Taylor then clunks a pull not too far short of mid-on. He has been keen to take that shot on today.
45th over: England 133-3 (Compton 42, Taylor 50) If you want something done right, ask Dale Steyn to do it. He is returning to the attack in place of Morne Morkel. His pace is good, with the third delivery above 90mph. Taylor defends the first five deliveries and then drives two through mid-on to bring up a quite superb half-century, from only 87 balls. For someone whose Test career has suffered so many slights, he has played with admirable conviction since returning to the side against Pakistan.
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44th over: England 131-3 (Compton 42, Taylor 48) A wide half-volley from Piedt is driven crisply through the covers for four by Taylor. That’s his eighth four, five of which have been off Piedt. He’s playing him with ease.
43rd over: England 126-3 (Compton 42, Taylor 43) Morkel, bowling around the wicket, bangs in a short ball to Taylor, who tries to hook but can’t get on top of the ball and drags it not far wide of the off stump. A quiet start to the session, though that may be about to change: Dale Steyn is free to bowl again.
42nd over: England 122-3 (Compton 41, Taylor 41) The offspinner Piedt continues after tea. Taylor, in particular, played him beautifully in the afternoon session. Compton has been more cautious, as he is during that over. A maiden.
41st over: England 122-3 (Compton 41, Taylor 41) Dale Steyn is back on the field, but he can’t bowl yet so Morne Morkel will start the evening session. He goes around the wicket to Nick Compton, with three men out on the hook. Compton takes the pull on and gloves it to fine leg for a single. Taylor defends the rest of the over, although he’s turned round by one delivery. There are still some doubts about Taylor against top-class seam bowling. In his short Test career he averages over 100 against spin and 12 against seam. But most of those stats come from 2012, and he looks a different player now.
Hello again. That was a terrific session for England. Compton and Taylor, both beginning their second Test careers, played with calm certainty to add 72 for the fourth wicket. Nick Compton, brought in to sex down England’s young, overexuberant batting line-up, has played the most Nick Compton innings of all time: 40 from 104 balls with three fours. He’s been immaculate. He is seen a short-term selection but actually he’s only 32. To put that in context, Chris Rogers was almost 36 when he was recalled by Australia, and he was brilliant for Australia for two and a half years.
Taylor, admittedly aided by the odd decision to feed him the spin of Piedt, has played seriously well to make 41 from 69 balls. There is so much conviction in his batting these days. It’s far too early to get carried away, so that’s exactly what I’m going to do: in terms of balance, not to mention competence, a middle order of Compton, Root, Taylor and Stokes looks very promising going forward.
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TEA: England 121-3
Statistical coincidence alert: after 40 overs one batsman has 40 runs and the other has 41. There’s a thing. What an excellent partnership this has been, righting a wobbling England and dragging the score from 12-2 to 121-3. What’s more, Steyn has been spending a bit of time off the field, and though he started the day fabulously perhaps there are in fact some lingering fitness issues there. Rob Smyth will take you through the rest of the day from here, and I’ll be back in the morning. Bye!
Re John Starbuck's point about a potential Taylor - Broad partnership, they wouldn't be the first - https://t.co/9i6JxNSMa4
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) December 26, 2015
40th over: England 121-3 (Compton 40, Taylor 41)
Taylor sweeps nicely, along the ground to the rope, so Piedt tries to correct his line, overdoes it and gets cut for four more. This run-scoring has the advantage of ensuring that the over ends 10 seconds after 3.40pm Durban time, so there won’t be time for another before tea.
That's a cracking sweep followed by a perfectly timed cut shot. Taylor is developing into a player with it all in his armoury.
— Elizabeth Ammon (@legsidelizzy) December 26, 2015
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39th over: England 111-3 (Compton 39, Taylor 32)
After a couple of deliveries Morkel switches to round the wicket, immediately thumping in a short ball that heads towards Compton’s chin, before the chin gets out of the way. Then a full one, then a short one, then another short one. Compton deals with all this with admirable sobriety, though he starts to swing his bat at a bouncer before thinking the better of it.
“Robert Wilson is right, the height jokes about Taylor should die the death,” nods John Starbuck, as he cracks Morkel straight to a fielder in deep midwicket. “What needs to replace them is an appreciation of using it to disconcert the bowlers. I hope Taylor’s still there when Broad comes in, because the concept of what constitutes a short ball and a good length is distorted by significant height differences between a batting pair. Think Greig and Knott, for instance, though I don’t know if the stats will bear this out.”
38th over: England 108-3 (Compton 37, Taylor 31)
The binary run ends when Compton cracks the ball through the covers – it would have gone for four had it not rained, but instead it got stuck in a damp patch. Taylor, meanwhile, nutmegs Bavuma, turning a ball through the legs of short leg for one. The suggestion – and they’ve been repeating it on Sky of late – is that play is likely to end early today due to bad light, with dark clouds covering the stadium like so much chocolate on a mini roll.
37th over: England 102-3 (Compton 33, Taylor 29)
Morkel’s back. We’ve now had six fully binary overs since any delivery brought anything other than 0 or 1 runs.
36th over: England 99-3 (Compton 31, Taylor 28)
Good bowling from Piedt, and fine batting from Taylor, very conscious that Bavuma continues to lurk at short leg. Again the batsmen take a single each, in the process bringing up the 50 partnership. If England could put a decent total together despite losing the toss and Cook and Root contributing just 24 between them, I think it would be a significant morale-enhancer. A long way to go yet, clearly.
@Simon_Burnton The dumb height jokes should all stop now. James William Arthur Taylor is officially a GIANT of a man. Top batting.
— Robert McL Wilson (@Parisbob2001) December 26, 2015
35th over: England 97-3 (Compton 30, Taylor 27)
Van Zyl’s overs are as quick as Abbott’s are lengthy. I think I’m correct in saying that absolutely nothing happened in that one.
34th over: England 97-3 (Compton 30, Taylor 27)
With light fading and the vague whiff of tea starting to trail across Kingsmead like those Bisto ads, there seems to be a diminution of run-scoring intent from both batsmen. For all that, there are two more singles.
33rd over: England 95-3 (Compton 29, Taylor 26)
Van Zyl bowls some medium-pacers, and the batsmen take a single each before taking a bonus last-ball bye, when the ball flies off De Villiers’ wrist. “Early days for Compton’s second coming but it would be good to give Andy Flower a call and ask if he regrets dropping him for what seemed like no good reason,” suggests Dominic O’Reilly.
32nd over: England 92-3 (Compton 28, Taylor 25)
Taylor scores a single from Piedt’s fourth over, after which South Africa make another bowling change, Van Zyl replacing Abbott.
31st over: England 91-3 (Compton 28, Taylor 24)
Abbott bowls, Compton with a couple to backward square. He’s faced 78 balls so far, nearly double Taylor’s 41, and is bringing some necessary calm to England’s order.
Nick Compton is playing the most Nick Compton innings of all time.
— Rob Smyth (@robsmyth0) December 26, 2015
30th over: England 89-3 (Compton 26, Taylor 24)
Piedt’s first ball turns an absolute mile to hit Taylor’s thigh pad, and the next couple are fielded by Du Plessis at mid on, before one is dropped short and Taylor mashes it to deep square leg for four, and he then sweeps the last, just the other side of Bavuma at short leg, for another.
29th over: England 81-3 (Compton 26, Taylor 16)
Compton pushes his bat at a ball that perhaps wobbled away a little, and looks thoroughly disappointed with himself afterwards, even though he made no contact. A nice over from Abbott all round, even though Compton cut the final delivery to the backward point boundary.
28th over: England 77-3 (Compton 22, Taylor 16)
Piedt’s back for a second spell/over, which unlike the first doesn’t start with a wicket, though it is a maiden.
27th over: England 77-3 (Compton 22, Taylor 16)
Abbott comes on, and Compton plays a lovely cover drive for four. The over seems to take a while – does Abbott have an unusually long run-up, or is he just a bit slow?
26th over: England 70-3 (Compton 16, Taylor 15)
There’s some very half-hearted appealing as Morkel raps Taylor’s pad, the ball heading way down leg side. The batsman prods the next past point and runs three before anyone catches up with it.
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25th over: England 68-3 (Compton 15, Taylor 15)
England have resumed in pretty decent style since the latest rain break, and Taylor gets four here with a lovely cover drive. Piqued, Steyn ramps up the speed for his final delivery, but Taylor fends it to safety.
24th over: England 64-3 (Compton 15, Taylor 11)
Variety and hostility from Morkel, who sends in one short ball that bounces high over Compton. A bit of attitudinal glare follows, but it’s definitely sub-Steyn standard. Then Compton works the ball to short leg and manages to spin, twist and ground his bat before Bavuma can hit the stumps with his throw.
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23rd over: England 63-3 (Compton 15, Taylor 10)
Steyn’s giving a lot of attitude. He is not a man to turn down an opportunity to glare intimidatingly at Englishmen. Every single delivery is followed by a bit of made-eye action. His first ball is pushed through the covers by Compton, who runs a couple; his last cramps the same batsman, forces him into a shot and zips just past the edge. Cue an extra-long 12” remix stare.
22nd over: England 61-3 (Compton 13, Taylor 10)
Morkel takes the first over of the post-rain era and Taylor slightly miscues a hook – off a no ball – which nearly decapitates Compton on its way down the ground for four. After the latest delay they’ve extended play wherever possible – this session will go for another 80 minutes, there’ll be an extra half-hour tonight, and tomorrow will start half an hour early.
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It has stopped raining, I’m hearing. Play is due to restart shortly (in three minutes, to be precise).
Rain stops play
Well, rain stops drinks, to be precise. The covers come on, the players go off. Bah.
21st over: England 55-3 (Compton 12, Taylor 6)
Piedt’s first-ball wicket does not precurse an extended spell – instead Steyn returns immediately, tasked with terrifying Taylor. Instead, after a testy first few deliveries, he pulls a shorter one for four, really quite gloriously. And at the end of the over the players take drinks.
20th over: England 51-3 (Compton 12, Taylor 2)
Hello again. So, is this minor mess going to turn into a major mess for England? They’re teetering on a precipice here, though such is the depth of their batting hope takes an unusually long time to die these days. Their total swells by a single as Taylor runs one off Abbott’s fifth delivery.
19th over: England 50-3 (Compton 12, Taylor 1) Piedt, like Shane Warne, has taken a wicket with his first ball against England. This wasn’t even the Ball of the Day, never mind Century, but he won’t give a fig about that. Taking a wicket – not just any wicket either, but England’s best player – should really settle him down. And it was a good delivery, which turned a fair bit to beat Root’s inside edge.
James Taylor is the new batsman. I wonder whether South Africa might hook Piedt and hit Taylor with seam at both ends. Anyway, I’m off; Simon Burnton will take you through to tea.
@robsmyth0 please tell me Morkel's nickname is Angela
— Peregrin Hodgkinson (@Fnordmeister) December 26, 2015
WICKET! England 49-3 (Root LBW b Piedt 24)
It turned pretty sharply and hit Root on the back thigh. I suspect this will clip the bails, which is enough for South Africa because Aleem Dar gave it out on the field. Yes, he’s out! What a blow that is for England. You do all that work to see off the seamers, and then you get out to the spinner. Ach!
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ENGLAND REVIEW! Root LBW b Piedt 24
Root has been given out to the first ball from the offspinner Dane Piedt! Oh dear. He’s reviewed it but I suspect this will be out.
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18th over: England 49-2 (Compton 12, Root 24) A short ball from Abbott is muscled disdainfully over midwicket for six by Root. Shot! The response from Abbott is a beauty that beats the outside edge. Ball! Excellent cricket, this, and thus far Compton and Root have played their different roles splendidly: Compton has 12 from 41 balls, Root 24 from 37.
17th over: England 42-2 (Compton 12, Root 17) This session has been an unyielding arm wrestle. Root makes room to back cut Morkel classily for four, the best shot of his innings so far.
16th over: England 37-2 (Compton 12, Root 12) Abbott continues to Root, who has been unable to get off to his usual flying start because of the conditions and the quality of the bowling. South Africa will feel they are one wicket away ... not from the tail, but certainly from the rump. England bat deep but none of the remaining batsmen are established at Test level yet – indeed, Chris Woakes at No9 has the highest Test average of the England batsmen bar Root and Cook.
I've got nothing if I haven't got my hyperbole @robsmyth0. I'll happily settle for a more mundane battle if this lot bat to tea. #ENGvSA
— Guy Hornsby (@GuyHornsby) December 26, 2015
15th over: England 36-2 (Compton 12, Root 11) Compton again shapes to hook/pull Morkel, but it’s a superb bouncer and he has to abort the stroke as the ball gets big on him. He drives the next ball confidently for three, showing again that he is determined to avoid the old accusations of strokelessness, and then Root thick edges three more through point. There was a brief shout of “catch” but it went safely through the gap. Morkel bowls a no-ball, after which Sir Ian Botham tells us, for only the 942342395th time in his career, that “the line belongs to the umpire”. I still don’t really understand that phrase.
@robsmyth0 Dale Steyn is the best bowler of his generation, but not by a mile. There is (tear pricking my eye) Mohammad Asif not far behind.
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) December 26, 2015
Now that’s an interesting discussion. There’s a nice bit in Kevin Pietersen’s new book (which is brilliant by the way) about Asif. From memory he says that Asif was the only bowler he never felt comfortable against. He was a homme fatale of a bowler.
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14th over: England 29-2 (Compton 9, Root 8) Bumble makes a good point on Sky, namely that South Africa only have three seamers and so Amla needs to be smart in how he rotates them. There’s a scare every over for England at the moment; this time Abbott boings a snorting leg-cutter past the outside edge of Compton. Abbott’s record is spectacular: a first-class average of 21.20 and a fledgling Test average of 19.73.
“Sorry Rob, I just can’t bring myself to like Dale Steyn,” says Simon Burnton. “The South Africans are by far my most disliked sporting nation alongside the Australians, which of course it what makes this series, and a Boxing Day Test so bloody enjoyable. Not sure about what medical advice you could give, but there’s a bottle of brandy here eyeing me up, I feel like the OBO established earlier it’s not too early to start on that.” We should set up an OBO priory, open every January, where people get their lives back on track by sipping freshly squeezed Sicilian lemonade and watching videos of Chris Tavare making 21 from 127 balls at Scarborough in 1982.
13th over: England 28-2 (Compton 8, Root 8) Dale Steyn (6-3-11-2) has a break, with Morkel switching ends. A typical back-of-a-length hits Compton on the waist and deflects to Bavuma at short leg, with South Africa appealing in the vain hope that Aleem Dar had so much booze yesterday that he’s temporarily lost the use of his eyes. He hasn’t and rightly says not out. Compton then pulls for a single – not entirely convincingly, but you can understand him playing the stroke to show that he is not just going to be a passive punchbag for Morkel. England are doing well in tricky conditions, though they aren’t a million miles from the precipice.
Fully with you @robsmyth0. This IS cricket. Steyn is an absolute alpha human. This is basically Donald v Atherton mk II. #Root
— Guy Hornsby (@GuyHornsby) December 26, 2015
Well I wouldn’t go that far but it was great. Steyn was custom-made for these kinds of duels. I suppose his best was against Sachin Tendulkar in 2011.
12th over: England 27-2 (Compton 7, Root 8) Kyle Abbott, on for Morne Morkel, starts with a malevolent lifter that Root gloves just short of the slips. Root did well to keep that down because it was a very nasty delivery. The rest of the over is full and straight, and Root can’t pierce the field. This is excellent stuff.
“My plan to watch the Boxing Day Test at my folks’ house has been scuppered by floods!” prioritises Tom Gucht. “I’m now trapped at my in-laws, who have kindly agreed to put up with me for another 24 hours, munching toast and being subjected to Corrie... In the plus column, they have a bottle of finest reserve port, of which I briefly sampled last night before retiring to bed with a swollen stomach, which I can now look forward to making a bigger dent on as the day progresses.”
11th over: England 27-2 (Compton 7, Root 8) There was the merest spike on Ultra Edge when the ball passed Compton’s bat, yet the commentators º Alan Wilkins and Michael Holding – reckon that isn’t sufficient to indicate an edge. I failed my NVQ in Ultra Edge so I’ll take their word for it. Steyn continues, and bowls a rare poor delivery that Compton slams through the covers for four. Compton has been excellent so far, and that showed that he is sufficiently alert to take advantage of any bad balls.
@robsmyth0 Seems quite a lot of optimistic English fans called it wrong about mediocre trundler Dale Steyn #Ouch pic.twitter.com/IhDSAN4HNd
— Robert McL Wilson (@Parisbob2001) December 26, 2015
“Never write him off” is a bit of an overused phrase in sport but Steyn is somebody I’d never write off, to his face or even from behind a keyboard 500 miles away.
10th over: England 22-2 (Compton 3, Root 8) A sharp nipbacker from Morkel takes the inside edge of Root’s bat before thudding into his thigh. Compton is beaten by a vicious lifter later in the over. Or was he beaten? South Africa’s slip cordon appealed very late for caught behind, with Morkel following their lead. After a long discussion Hashim Amla decided to review it, but it was too late: the 15 seconds were up. We haven’t seen a replay yet.
“So, here we are again,” says Guy Hornsby. “Boxing Day, mild hangover in place, rain in Durban, England staggering like a drunk on 19-2, Steyn charging in. Another opener failing, Root carrying the team’a hopes, Australia in the ascendancy overnight, and I’m exactly 1.6kg heavier than I was yesterday morning. Ennui, anyone?”
I know what you mean but this is wonderful. Steyn to Root! Steyn to anyone in this mood! He’s almost too charismatic to function.
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9th over: England 21-2 (Compton 3, Root 7) With Steyn, it’s not just about raw pace. It’s about force – of personality and of will, which can overwhelm a batsman. It’ll be fascinating to see how Compton fares here; it’s definitely a day for batting ugly, and he does that, er, beautifully. He takes a single of Steyn, and then Root flicks another through midwicket. Root has started with his usual busy purpose.
“It was obviously a typo, but when you wrote ‘shirt balls’ you got it exactly right: short, yes, but on or flicking the batsman’s shirt means they were not bouncers,” says John Starbuck. “Congratulations on your neologism. Pity about Hales though.” What can I say, my subconscious is a genius. Yes, a shame about Hales but it’s vital we hold our nerve – having given him a chance, we have to allow him to fail. I do think they should have waited until next summer but it’s done now. Look it’s done, let’s just move on.
8th over: England 19-2 (Compton 2, Root 6) That was a poor shot from Hales, in truth; it wasn’t quite full enough and he didn’t get his weight into the drive. But this is what Steyn does; like Shane Warne, he turns his bowling spell into a theatrical event, and that makes batsmen do silly things. He is a glorious cricketer, and a glorious human being. If you don’t love Dale Steyn, you need urgent medical advice.
Now, Morne Morkel has come on to replace Kyle Abbott. Compton takes an iffy single into the off side to get off strike. This is the kind of situation for which Compton was picked. A filthy 85-ball 25 would do nicely today. Root, of course, will look to counter-attack rather than bat time; he drives his first ball from Morkel down the ground for a couple.
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7th over: England 16-2 (Compton 1, Root 4) Steyn to Root. This is why we watch cricket. This is why we get up early on Boxing Day despite having a malevolent one between the eyes. Root pushes a little tentatively at his first ball, but his hands are soft enough for the ball to race along the floor and through the slips for four. Those are the first runs Steyn has conceded today.
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Steyn celebrated that wicket with a primeval roar and a punch of the air. He clearly feels like he has something to prove; figures of two for nought would suggest he has proved it. He oozes charisma.
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WICKET! England 12-2 (Hales c de Villiers b Steyn 10)
This is magnificent from Dale Steyn! He pushes Hales back with some short balls, then tempts him into a loose drive that is edged straight through to AB de Villiers.
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Hello, Rob here. Merry hangover! Merry regret and shame! Let’s get on with the cricket, shall we. If all goes to plan, play will resume in nine minutes’ time in Durban. Alex Hales and Nick Compton will have to deal with the great Dale Steyn, who is, in the parlance of our time, pretty pumped.
England haven’t always seen the best of Steyn – his average of 32 against our brave boys is comfortably his highest against any Test-playing nation – but he looked ominously purposeful in that short spell this morning. We should celebrate him while we can; he has been the best bowler of his generation by a mile.
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Rob Smyth is in the building and primed to take you through the first hour of the afternoon session. Back in a bit!
“I hate to pull rank but there are serious rules about early morning drinking,” writes Robert Wilson. “Substantial, dignified protocols and traditions. Let’s not lark about here. Morning beer is a tonic, pre-breakfast wine is the correction of a previous mistake, matutinal spirits are a sign of commitment and seriousness, and brushing your teeth with gin is the mark of a life well-lived. Of course, if you can smoke thirty cigarettes at the same time, you’re a moral paragon.” Beautifully put*.
* The Guardian does not necessarily endorse these lifestyle choices.
“Marrying the Champagne and Bloody Mary threads, I don’t care for tomato juice, but in our house we believe Christmas day hasn’t started until the first glass of Bucks Fizz,” says John Starbuck. Much more of a Kir Royale man myself, I must say. Not only is it tastier than the Bucks Fizz, it also involves the addition not of juice, but of fruity bonus alcohol.
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“A Bloody Mary is surely the best route to a guilt free boozy breakfast drink,” says Joel Greig. “Who needs a juice bullet (or whatever the hell that thing is?) and, if you insert a stick of celery in it, it’s practically a detox.” Hard to disagree – if you hide your alcohol in enough tomato juice becomes to all intents and purposes healthy. Whereas going with straight-up fortified wine isn’t hiding anything – it’s boozing, pure and simple.
LUNCH: England 12-1
They’re taking an early lunch. Strictly speaking it doesn’t start for 14 minutes, until 12 noon local time, 10am GMT, but nothing’s going to happen before it so they might as well tuck in now.
“I operate on a sliding scale,” writes Paul Jaines. “Champagne: not before coffee in the morning. Madeira/port: 9am onwards. Table wine: 11am onwards. We are currently on second bottle of champers. My excuse is that I have a french wife.”
Brings to mind the famous Lilly Bollinger quote, when asked when she drinks Champagne: “I drink it when I’m happy and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’m not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise, I never touch it – unless I’m thirsty.”
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Apparently the covers are now off. I have no further update.
“While we’re waiting and Nick Compton still hasn’t nicked off to Steyn, it’s seems apt that we should all enjoy this bizarre moment one more time,” writes Michael Jenkins. “Let’s hope that his Boxing Day will be a little better than his Boxer’s Day was. And that there’s not too much moisture at the crease.”
“While we’re all twiddling our thumbs during the rain commentary, here’s a question: when is too early to be drinking Madeira on Boxing Day?” wonders John Starbuck. “There are no children around so no need to worry about setting an example or not and I don’t reserve this festive season for Madeira, though it does go well with mince pies and hefty fruit cake.” Now here’s an important dilemma. Standard table wine is to my mind certainly not an early-morning beverage, but Madeira and mince pie on a Boxing Day? Why hold back?
The covers are on, the weather is still scary.
Thunder and lightening all around Kingsmead. Better off playing at Lord's https://t.co/osbqkRmKMh
— Nick Hoult (@NHoultCricket) December 26, 2015
Maybe it was thunder stopped play, rather than lightning. Whatever it is, the players are hiding from it.
We've had a couple of loud claps of thunder so the players are off. @AlexHales1 10* and @thecompdog 1*; ENG 12-1. pic.twitter.com/Iripfse5Yf
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) December 26, 2015
Lightning stops play!
A flash of lightning nearby and the players leave the field. It doesn’t even seem to be raining. Unusual.
6th over: England 12-1 (Hales 10, Compton 1)
Hales flicks the ball off his pads towards deep square leg, where again it holds up on the wet turf and is chased down. They run three, and moments later Compton gets off the mark with a highly risky single to midwicket – had the fielder hit the stumps he could well have been in trouble – and then Hales gets a significantly more straightforward one, which means he’ll have to face Steyn for the first time.
5th over: England 7-1 (Hales 6, Compton 0)
Sweet bowling from Steyn, and another chance! The last ball of the over again takes the edge, high up Compton’s bat, but it doesn’t carry to first slip. It’s a maiden.
Another email: “As I know something between sweet FA and sod all about the man, I was wondering if a kindly, more knowledgeable soul could shed a little light on Temba Bavuma for me?” writes Thomas Jenkins. “His first class record being decidedly modest in recent years – a strong upswing during the last domestic season aside – coupled to the fact that it’s rare to see Test sides select a specialist batsmen at seven these days has got me intrigued. What do the selectors see in him? Is he a genuine talent that they hope’s about to bloom or more of a placeholder for a team in transition? Is he a dasher or a grinder? Please someone relieve me of my ignorance. (And of this hangover.)” Can any more regular watcher of the South Africa side enlighten the world about the diminutive willow-wielder?
4th over: England 7-1 (Hales 6, Compton 0)
Hales hits past extra cover, a fine shot that would have gone for four had rain not massively slowed the outfield this morning. He still gets four, he’s just got to run them. In terms of rain-soaked sports grounds, though, it’s not a patch on Accrington Stanley right now (their game today has unsurprisingly been called off) …
This is the goalmouth at asfc v @officialcufc - under water pic.twitter.com/B1RKsjD0o0
— Accrington Stanley (@ASFCofficial) December 26, 2015
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3rd over: England 3-1 (Hales 2, Compton 0)
Steyn welcomes Root with a snorter that rips straight through Compton, followed by a glare that’s almost as scary.
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WICKET! Cook c Elgar b Steyn 0 (England 3-1)
Cook leaves a couple more, but then one rises and takes a thick edge off the top of the bat, flying straight into the hands of second slip. Steyn roars with furious glee.
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2nd over: England 3-0 (Cook 0, Hales 2)
Abbott’s over starts with an emphatic no ball, from which Hales scores a couple. He’d have had some more off the last had it not been very well fielded at square leg.
1st over: England 0-0 (Cook 0, Hales 0)
Steyn bowls across Cook, who leaves five of the six deliveries and defends the other. “Predictions are a thing for making idiots out of fools (or vice versa - I can never remember which),” asserts Robert Wilson. “You’re not going to hazard the merest guess? May I make one? Win, lose or draw, this is surely going to be fairer and more interesting than the heartbreaking, kitten-punching mismatch of Aus v WI currently going on at the MCG. Or am I sticking my neck out there?” Well one certainly hopes that isn’t too much of a risk. That Samuels drop today was horrible.
DROPPED 2/323 "Dear oh dear" - Lawry. Khawaja hits it straight to Samuels and he puts it down. #AUSvWI #WWOS pic.twitter.com/K8IoD2Ae33
— Wide World of Sports (@WWOS9) December 26, 2015
Right, preamble, warm-up and build-up done. Cricket time.
#ProteaFire fans. It's go time! A massive #SAvsENG series awaits. #VorsprungProteas pic.twitter.com/m4ZlaRJZji
— Audi South Africa (@audisouthafrica) December 26, 2015
Well that’s just mean.
Taylor given a mascot to stand with at anthems taller than him which in Australia would count as some form of mental disintegration
— Nick Hoult (@NHoultCricket) December 26, 2015
An email! “Should be a tough debut for Hales,” writes Steve Hudson. “On a completely separate subject, anyone else remember fondly Amla’s debut series when for a week or so the Graun referred to him as Hamish Amla?”
I’ve actually checked this – the Guardian and the Observer have each mentioned a certain Hamish Amla once, both Paul Weaver reports from 2009, the Observer’s in March, the Guardian’s in December. Here’s the latter.
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The players are out and the anthems being sung. Actual cricket just seven minutes away!
The #ProteaFire team for the 1st Test. pic.twitter.com/BIDZ15EUhY
— Cricket South Africa (@OfficialCSA) December 26, 2015
Here's your confirmed England team for the First Test against South Africa in Durban #SAvENG pic.twitter.com/R9psWijmWL
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) December 26, 2015
So the teams in full:
South Africa: Elgar, Van Zyl, Amla*, De Villiers†, Du Plessis, Duminy, Bavuma, Abbott, Morkel, Piedt, Steyn.
England: Cook*, Hales, Root, Taylor, Compton, Bairstow†, Woakes, Stokes, Broad, Ali, Finn.
Alastair Cook responds to his fourth successive Test match toss loss:
We’ve started pretty well. We’ve had a good build-up, we’ve got what we wanted out of it, a lot of guys have scored some runs and taken wickets.
Alex Hales gets his debut. What a chance it is for him, such a special day. I think it’s a real reminder for all of us who’ve played a bit of cricket, how special a Test match is.
South Africa win the toss and will bowl first
“Looks like a good surface. The ball might swing and seam a little bit and hopefully we can get a few early wickets,” says Hashim Amla.
Time for the toss …
Alex Hales was given his first cap by Mike Atherton this morning – in the dressing room, because it was a bit drizzly at the time. With Anderson injured, whether England bowl first or bat there’ll be real intrigue from the start (not that this series was lacking interest already, obviously).
Tricky decision re toss - greenish pitch, moist atmosphere but pitch expected to turn later. Be bold, bat first.
— John Etheridge (@JohnSunCricket) December 26, 2015
Green pitch, cloud overhead –> win toss, bowl first, win match*.
* potentially.
The toss has been rescheduled for 10am local time (just under half an hour from now), with play starting a further half an hour after that.
The nightmare scenario – that I had to wake up at 6am on Boxing Day in order to come to work and provide occasional updates on rain falling 8,000 miles away – appears not to be coming to pass, thankfully.
Much more promising with stumps going in and prospects of play much better. On air 745am #SAvEng pic.twitter.com/g7dPyBE7Qy
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) December 26, 2015
Still waiting for news of the toss. In the meantime, there’s this:
Covers off in Durban, pitch revealed. Greenish.
— John Etheridge (@JohnSunCricket) December 26, 2015
More from Kingsmead:
Morning from grey Durban on Boxing Day. The ground staff are working hard but the drizzle feels persistent ☔️ 😔 pic.twitter.com/jvvdmTPQm7
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) December 26, 2015
Hello world!
Happy Boxing Day! Apparently it’s raining in Durban. A little.
Drizzling in Durban
— mike selvey (@selvecricket) December 26, 2015
Simon will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s Andy Bull on a different kind of Test match:
THE LONGEST GAME EVER PLAYED
The game started on Friday 3 March and it ended 12 days later, after 43 hours and 16 minutes of play, 1,981 runs, and 5,447 balls. After all that, it still lacked the one thing it was supposed to have – a winner.
Day one, Friday 3 March, South Africa 229-2
Seemed Wally Hammond had the devil’s own luck. He had won eight straight tosses since he became England captain, a streak that started in the summer of ’38 and stretched all the way through the first four Tests of the winter tour of South Africa. Hammond, never the most imaginative of captains, chose to bat each time. In South Africa, this strategy had worked well. England’s batting was strong, South Africa’s bowling weak, and the pitches flat. “Pluperfect”, Jim Swanton called them. England had a one-nil lead, then, leading into the fifth Test. Which meant, according to the regulations drawn up by the boards beforehand, that it would be played to a finish, however long it took.
That made the toss more important than ever. Most predicted that it would start to break up soon enough, and that the match would be over inside five days or so. Hammond’s opposite number was Alan Melville, who had grown so sick of losing the toss that he abandoned the lucky half-crown he had been using, and threw, instead, a three-penny bit lent him by one of his players. As the captains walked out, nine of Melville’s players lined up on the dressing room balcony to watch. The 10th sat inside, recalled batsman Dudley Nourse, “with fingers crossed hoping thus to be of assistance.”
“Melville spun, bent down anxiously to scan the coin, and rose with a smile.” Melville flashed his thumbs up towards his players. “And jubilantly we went in to tell our team-mate that his crossed fingers had done the trick.” Hammond had lost at last. In the minutes before he went out to open the batting, Melville told his batsmen that they should look to “camp on the wicket”, since “the longer we stayed there the sooner the wicket would begin to wear”.
So they did. Melville made 35 runs that morning. His partner, Pieter van der Bijl, made 12. “He never believed in unseemly hurry in any sphere of life,” Nourse wrote of his team-mate. “His speech and his batting both proved him to be patience personified.” England’s attack was led by Ken Farnes, 6ft 6in and, according to Jackie McGlew, “ferociously fast” with it. Farnes recalled Van der Bijl as a player of “great determination and concentration”, “an excellent judge of the ball to leave alone, he was very hard to shift indeed”. And so the crowd of 3,000 or so were treated to what was, wrote journalist Brian Bassano, “a morning of quiet and rather grim cricket”.
The afternoon was at least a little more lively. At 2.25pm, three hours after play had started, Melville hit the first boundary of the day, off a no-ball. At one point,Hedley Verity bowled a spell of nine over for eight runs. Melville eventually fell for 78, but Van der Bijl batted on to the close. “An innings of painstaking defence,” wrote Bassano, “enriched by vividly contrasting passages of attack.” At one point, he snapped, and struck 22 off a single over by Doug Wright. “Then, as if horrified at such a spate of scoring, he retired once more to his slow plodding way,” wrote Nourse, “as though offering an apology to all bowlers thereafter for a lapse from grace and good manners.”
Read the full story here:
