17 January 2020
3rd Test, Day 2: England 499 for 9 declared, South Africa 60 for 2
There was nothing remotely rotten about England's performance today. By contrast, more or less everything went wrong for the hapless hosts, enabling a resurgent touring side to put themselves in an unassailable position in this contest - and most likely the series itself.
The initial blow to South Africa's prospects was struck even as the teams took to the field after a frustrating delay for rain, with the scarcely believable news that Kagiso Rabada would be banned for the final test in Johannesburg. Just deserts for his serial misdemeanours or a bureaucratic over-reaction to his understandable excitement yesterday at dismissing the England captain? The debate apparently raged all day long on live commentary and social media. I, for one, am disappointed that we will all be deprived of his talents next week - and I fear for the South African bowling attack in his absence.
When it's not your day, the agony can be unrelenting. So must Faf du Plessis have felt for huge swathes of today, as he and his flagging team did not benefit from a single slice of good fortune. That said, England's batsmen arguably made their own luck, as a dominant opening session paved the way for some fun and frolics later on and saw Ben Stokes proceed serenely to a brilliant 120. One of his two sixes threatened to endanger life and limb in the family enclosure but in the end sailed harmlessly overhead into some neighbouring gardens. It's a mark of the man that he appeared so disappointed at his eventual dismissal after lunch, providing Dane Paterson with a deserved first Test wicket and Dean Elgar with one of three outfield catches.
And so to Ollie Pope. Still only 22, this young man batted with a maturity far beyond his years, combined with the innovation of someone whose skills have been honed in the modern T20 format. I was worried for him when Stokes was dismissed, as he had thus far played the subtle foil to the buccaneering hero, accumulating his runs almost unnoticed. Even before that, he had been perilously close to LBW, yet this proved to be his only error of judgement in almost six hours at the crease. After fretting visibly through his eighties, Pope then advanced to his maiden Test century as calmly as he had faced his first ball. Even his forward defensives are a thing of rare beauty. Batting with the tail, his successive “ramp” shots off Radaba appeared to defy any laws of science as he helped the ball on its way to the vacant boundary behind Quinton de Kock. A joy to behold.
Just as joyful for England fans were the cameos played by Sam Curran (44) and Mark Wood (42), albeit against a now demoralised attack. South Africa's misery was compounded by another overturned dismissal, this time with added comedic elements. Wood was practically in the changing room and Joe Root had declared the innings closed by the time the TV umpire ruled that Rabada's delivery to dismiss Wood was, in fact, a no ball. And so it was that Wood was reprieved and Root withdrew his declaration, enabling England to add a bonus 23 runs to reach 499 for 9. Incredibly (but indicative of England's batting struggles of late), this was the first time England had reached 400 in their first innings in over two years. The only real blot on today's batting copybook was another tame dismissal for Jos Buttler, who must now fear for his Test place as incumbent wicket-keeper/batsman (clue: the answer is Ben Foakes).
A further blemish was the strangely insipid performance of England's opening bowlers Broad and Curran, who more or less presented South Africa with their first 50 runs on a silver platter. But after Pieter Malan got his bat stuck in the pitch to present Dominic Bess with the simplest of return catches, England mercilessly regained control. Mark Wood's latest injury lay-off has clearly not dented his pace, with one of his explosive deliveries registering 150 km/h (or 93 mph) in the approaching gloom. The resolute Elgar took a painful blow to his arm, while Zubayr Hamza looked like the proverbial rabbit in the headlights as he scampered a single to reach the safely of the non-striker's end. Sadly for him, this reprieve proved only temporary as he succumbed to a bat-pad catch off Bess - just before the rain returned to end an entertaining but ultimately very one-sided day.
A couple of final thoughts: I read various comments after the first Test defeat claiming that this is one of England's worst ever teams. It isn't (anyone who followed England in the 90s knows that). But it is a team currently in transition to a younger generation, so will inevitably suffer its ups and downs. Though the current opposition is average at best as they face their own struggles, the transition now seems to be bearing fruit. A valid remaining concern is whether England's bowling attack is strong and varied enough to take 20 wickets and win Test matches - especially without the talismanic James Anderson. We may be closer to knowing the answer by close of play on Saturday.
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