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Updated: Jan 29, 2020

28 January 2020


4th Test, Day 4: England 400 and 248, South Africa 183 and 274 all out.

England win by 191 runs


Looking totally underwhelmed by my appearance on Sky

On the face of it, this match proceeded to a predictable end, with England bowling out South Africa midway through the final session of Day 4 to win by a big margin. In reality, however, the road proved to be rockier than England would have liked, with the Proteas’ top order batsmen summoning up reserves of skill and determination that had been lacking in their performances since the first Test. Sadly for them, the length of the South African tail meant that, once the initial resistance was broken shortly before tea, the end came all too quickly - a recurring theme of the series.


Chasing a massive 466 to win (which never happens in Test cricket), South Africa batted positively and well for over four hours. Their beleaguered skipper, Faf du Plessis, in the twilight of his Test career, could but cling to the hope that at least two of his “gun” batsmen could make big hundreds to take the match into a final day. At 89 for 1 shortly before lunch, then 181 for 2 just ten minutes before tea, he - and the very few locals in the ground today - may even have dared to dream. Yet, out in the middle, he must have known that the England bowling was just too good, the bounce of the wicket now too unpredictable, the target still too far in the distance - and the remaining batting too weak.

Desperate for a "Barmy Army wicket" before lunch - and we got one

That’s not to say some uncertainty hadn’t crept into the hearts and minds of the watching England fans. Even the Barmy Army's"Woody" song, fast becoming iconic, had not yet succeeded in bringing an early wicket from our hero, although the first drinks break did account for Pieter Malan, driving loosely straight after at an out-swinger from the excellent Chris Woakes. When Ben Stokes induced another horrible stroke from Dean Elgar, so patient up to that point, it came as a relief to end the first session with two wickets in the bag. England continued to bowl and field well in the afternoon session, but the combination of du Plessis and van der Dussen resisted everything thrown at them and looked more and more comfortable as the session went on. Finally, the arch partnership-breaker Stokes broke through du Plessis’ defences and we all began to breathe a little easier.


The stand-out innings was played by Rassie van der Dussen (or is it Dussie van der Rassen, or Rassen von der Dussie, maybe even Dussen Van Rental? So confusing). Since Cape Town, he had looked more and more like the proverbial walking wicket and this morning came within millimetres of a pair of noughts in this match. Given out LBW by the umpire, he almost ran out of time to review the decision, maybe lacking the confidence that his wicket was important enough to preserve - finally he did and it was. Afterwards he batted superbly to reach 98, only to fall agonisingly short of his maiden Test century - psyched out by some clever field-placings by Joe Root. I don’t like to say I called it - but I actually did call it. I had become convinced that van der Dussen would be out either just before he reached his century (due to nerves) or just after (due to euphoria-induced lack of concentration). Such a shame for him it was the former, as he would have richly deserved his ton. 187 for 4 at tea and despite all the hard work, South Africa were now staring down the barrel.

A joyous final hour of the series for the Barmy Army

The final hour of the series seemed to pass by in a blur of boundaries, wickets and assorted favourites from the Barmy Army songbook. Quinton de Kock briefly smashed the ball to all parts as only he can, while the diminutive Temba Bavuma batted nicely before almost being decapitated by a vicious bouncer from Stuart Broad, which flicked his glove as he fell prone to the floor. Further resistance proved futile and brief as man-of-the-match Wood ran amok through the tail, though there was still time for a comedy run-out - always a joy - as Hendricks and Nortje found themselves running to the same end. The end, when it came, was somewhat of an anti-climax, as Nortje was shown by the technology to have gloved a catch down the leg-side, but that didn't dampen the England celebrations - or their achievement in winning the series 3-1 after going one down at sickness-plagued Centurion.

Who else? What a player

At the presentations, Joe Root described his team as being on the verge of something exciting. For me, he has called this right, even allowing for the euphoria of victory and the relative weakness of the opposition. Whilst there are still blind spots to work on, and particularly the more inexperienced players remain untested against stronger opponents, this England team is exactly that - a team. They play for each other, support each other, complement each other. It was telling that South Africa had the series’ highest run-scorer (de Kock) and wicket-taker (Nortje), but England still beat them comfortably because their players contributed consistently up and down the batting order and in the field. That said, the life-force that is Ben Stokes - man of the series, of course - was so often the talisman again, contributing runs, wickets and brilliant catches at the vital moments of matches. He is, quite simply, a winner and we’re very lucky to have him.


Among the other positives:

  • Joe Root looks to have (finally) come of age as a Test match captain. His juggling of his seam attack here - together with some innovative field-settings - was spot on. His batting also seems more assured and relaxed, the weight of captaincy maybe sitting less heavily on his shoulders than before.

  • The emergence of Dom Sibley as a Test-class opener was a big plus, especially after the freak injury to Rory Burns, up to then more or less the only consistent opener to emerge since the heady days of Cook and Strauss. Now we have two - and potentially three, given Zak Crawley’s promising start here.

  • Without wanting to put the mockers on him, Ollie Pope is surely an emerging superstar of England’s batting for the next decade. He looks an absolute gem - and a brilliant short-leg fielder too.

  • In Mark Wood and Jofra Archer, England have two genuinely quick bowlers who can damage the best batting line-ups at this level. A valid question to ask is whether they will ever both be fit at the same time, but what a thing it would be if this coincided with the 2021/22 Ashes down under.

  • Even without Wood and Archer, England’s other seamers contributed consistently and well in the last three Tests here (not so much at Centurion, but the sickness bug in the camp must been been a massive handicap there). Anderson (if fit), Broad, Curran, Woakes, backed up by Stokes - all can play valuable roles and also bring the opportunity of squad rotation into play.

  • Similar to the opening batsmen issue, the lack of a Test quality spinner has plagued England since the retirement of Graeme Swann (who himself only had a relatively brief career at the top level). Maybe I’m being harsh on Moeen Ali, who has had his moments of magic and hopefully will again, but I was very impressed by the performances of Dom Bess in Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. At least we now have more options than in the recent past.

To the victors the spoils

It would be churlish of me to dwell on the “areas for development” (using corporate HR speak), as these have been clear for a while - the wicket-keeper/batsman role and the perennial problem of the number three spot. For what it’s worth, I think Joe Denly’s contribution has often been under-valued over the past year, a difficult transition period. He has been the foil, and sometimes the fall guy, to Root’s desire to bat at four and not have to come in and face the new ball every innings at 10 for 2. This he has done consistently well and deserves credit for it. It's no coincidence that Root's own batting has started to flourish again.

Billy Cooper - Barmy Army legend

Finally, as in Australia in 2010/11 (and with the same 3-1 scoreline), the Barmy Army tour experience has been utterly intoxicating (in most senses implied by this word). I realise I am very lucky to have this opportunity - and to share the time with the fun and varied characters that inhabit these overseas tours. South Africa is one of the most awesome destinations for such a tour, clearly not without its many difficult issues to solve, yet the people we met have been universally welcoming and friendly. It was also a privilege to be present for the swansong of Billy Cooper (a.k.a."Billy the Trumpet"), who was signing off after 16 years service as the Barmy Army's official trumpeter - a fellow Old Colfeian and all round good bloke. I look forward to doing it all again sometime in the future - but for the moment what I’m looking forward to the most is being reunited with my family. Being reunited with the English winter - not so much.

Acknowledgements: Photos by Brian Veitch and Steve Roberts (as well as myself)


  • Writer: Richard
    Richard
  • Jan 26, 2020
  • 4 min read

20 January 2020


4th Test, Day 3: England 400 and 248 all out, South Africa 183 all out

South Africa need 466 runs to win


The Wanderers in the sun - few better sights than this

So much happened during Day 3 that even spectating seemed an exhausting experience (although that could also have been due to the mix of sun and Castle lager). In all, 343 runs were scored for the loss of 14 wickets in seven hours of cricket, as the day was extended both to make up some of the time lost on the first day and to accommodate the habitually sluggish over-rates.


I wrote yesterday that something extraordinary would need to happen to alter the course of this match. It didn’t - at least not yet - so England remain on course for another big win, most likely at some point tomorrow.





Resuming precariously at 88 for 6, South Africa soon lost the wicket of Vernon Philander - the third time in a row he has been dismissed within the first six balls of the start of play. Poor Vern really had a day to forget, later limping off after bowling only nine balls (his last in Test cricket) and being docked 15% of his match fee for his revenge “send-off” to Jos Buttler yesterday. At this stage, it was theoretically possible that the match could have been over within three days, as a rapid end to the South African first innings may well have tempted Joe Root to enforce the follow-on. Yet England were made to wait for further wickets as Quinton de Kock and Dwayne Pretorius combined to put on 79 runs in fine style. As so often, it took the introduction of Ben Stokes to break an obdurate partnership (aided and abetted by the Barmy Army’s dulcet tones), while South Africa’s fans provided a more tuneful but unlucky accompaniment as de Kock was bowled by a beauty from Mark Wood. Wood soon completed a well deserved “five-for” and South Africa found themselves 217 runs behind.

From the sublime to the ridiculous in the lunch queue

As widely predicted after the de Kock/Pretorius resistance, England did not enforce the follow-on after the lunch interval, preferring to give their bowlers a rest while aiming to set South Africa a large - and nigh on impossible - fourth innings target. My own prediction was that the visitors would aim to score around 200-225 by the close, then bat for another 50 minutes the next morning, setting South Africa around 475-500 to win. In fact, England’s positive approach meant that their second knock was to last only 61.3 overs and would set a target of 465 with two full days to go.


England’s innings ranged from the highly entertaining to the occasionally exasperating, with many highlights:


  • Zak Crawley and Dom Sibley produced a third successive opening partnership of over fifty. Sibley, in particular, was excellent until he hit uppishly into the legside, a recurring manner of dismissal for him. For a second it looked like he was about to destroy the stumps in his annoyance, but fortunately he played and missed.

  • The batsmen who most desperately needed to score runs, Joe Denly and Jos Buttler, didn’t. They remain the players whose future places look to be the most at risk..

  • Picture the scene - your team is already over 300 runs behind and you see Benjamin Stokes coming to the wicket. It's like a football team being 4-0 up and bringing on Ronaldo for the second half (thanks to my mate Brian for that one). And of course Stokes batted like a god - but in this case only for 24 balls, during which he accumulated 28 runs with six sumptuous fours.

  • Pope couldn’t repeat his recent successes but Sam Curran shrugged off his first innings duck to strike the ball to all parts - another 35 from only 29 balls.This only encouraged Mark Wood to create more mayhem - 18 runs from only 12 balls.

  • The one constant throughout this chaos was captain Joe Root, who played a more traditional Test match innings but also pushed to accelerate near the end. For a while, Joe’s attempts at slogging were about as effective as mine i.e. the ball only goes about two yards. Then, from nowhere, he suddenly unleashed a huge six into the grandstand - surprisingly, the only maximum of England’s innings.

  • Root’s fine innings of 58 was ended in spectacular fashion by an astonishing diving catch at fly slip by Faf du Plessis, the final action of the day. He will have regretted turning down easy singles from the previous two balls.

A debut five wickets for Beuran Hendricks

Although England rattled along at four runs per over, it would be remiss not to mention some admirable performances from South Africa’s young seamers. Anrich Nortje has taken the most wickets of anyone in the series and always looks likely to make something happen with his lively pace. Beuran Hendricks, the debutant here, bowled his left-armers confidently throughout the match and was rewarded with a five-for in the second innings. Dane Paterson, in only his second match, bowled aggressively and posed lots of questions to the England batsmen - in a situation where England were looking to score quickly, at one stage he had figures of 1 for 5 from his first 8 overs, an admirable effort that deserved greater reward. I’m not saying they will develop into the next Donald/Pollock or Steyn/Morkel combinations, but I think there’s enough here to provide hope for a South African team currently in transition. I'm much less sure about the batting, which finally needs to step up tomorrow - or bust.

  • Writer: Richard
    Richard
  • Jan 26, 2020
  • 3 min read

25 January 2020


4th Test, Day 2: England 400 all out, South Africa 88 for 6


Something tells me England might be on top here

It’s not quite game over of course, but it might as well be. After a day of England dominance at The Wanderers, there’s just no way they can fail to win this match - and with it the series 3-1 - unless something extraordinary happens.


There were three key passages of play that took this game away from the home side:

  • South Africa’s bowlers failed to make the early breakthroughs they needed to have a chance of dismissing England for around 250. Instead, Joe Root and Ollie Pope were largely untroubled as they extended their partnership to 101 runs before Pope unluckily played a short ball onto his stumps.

  • After a wobble where five wickets went down for only 60 runs, leaving England on 318 for 9, the visitors’ last wicket pairing of Mark Wood and Stuart Broad added 82 more runs in a joyous display of clean and audacious hitting. Broad’s 43 (from only 28 balls) made him the top run-scorer for the day - not bad for the “walking wicket” he has often been seen as in the recent past.

  • Having started their reply with some much needed grit and determination from Dean Elgar and Peter Malan, the latter’s dismissal by the rampant Wood heralded the beginning of a steady procession of wickets up to the close. At 88 for 6, there is surely no way back for them with only the tail-enders left to support Quinton de Kock tomorrow.

The scoreboard tells its own story as "Woody" celebrates

As in Port Elizabeth, Ollie Pope caught the eye with another innings of great skill and maturity. He so rarely looks troubled, so seldom plays a false stroke. The other star of the show was Mark Wood, who is enjoying a fruitful return to the Test arena after so long out through injury. “Woody” adds so much to England’s bowling attack with his raw pace and whole-hearted enthusiasm and deserved his three wickets, helped by an excellent diving catch from Joe Denly to end the day. It looks like he has been practising his batting too!


Some other happenings of note:

  • Ben Stokes can catch again, hurrah! In other news, it seems unlikely he will be called upon as a brand ambassador for Specsavers anytime soon (should’ve kept his mouth shut).

  • Chris Woakes batted and bowled well on his return from “forgotten man” status on this tour - a useful reminder of his value to the England squad.

  • Three batsmen appeared equally determined to win the unofficial “most brainless shot of the day award” - Sam Curran for his first ball swipe at a wide one, Jos Buttler for an ugly slog straight up in the air and Dean Elgar for a bizarre upper cut straight to cover. There's no clear winner, I’m afraid.

  • Faf du Plessis, for all his admirable qualities, sets some god awful fields. Once again he had his seamers bowling to an ultra-defensive 6:3 leg-side field in the morning session, while the eight (EIGHT!) men posted on the boundary for England's number ten and jack were a sight to behold.

Bantz

Last but not least, it was the most wonderful day to be a spectator. The early morning rain soon gave way to warm sunshine and after lunch the locals flocked to the ground in their thousands, mingling colourfully and seamlessly with the massed ranks of England fans. The Woody song, to the tune of the Beatles’ Twist and Shout, rang out time and again from the Barmy Army, but the Proteas’ fans responded in kind with some fine uplifting melodies of their own. The banter was both friendly and funny - just as it should be. Regardless of the score, everyone was just loving being at the cricket on a sunny Saturday afternoon.

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