Steyn and Morkel Destroy England at the Wanderers

South Africa versus England

The Wanderers, Johannesburg

England won toss and elected to bat

England 180 and 169

South Africa 423 / 7

South Africa won by an innings and 74 runs

Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel were awarded joint man of the match awards after they took a combined haul of 15 wickets to bowl England out cheaply in both innings and give the home side a series-levelling victory before lunch on the fourth day at the Wanderers.

Again England had the difficult task of batting under cloud on the juicy Wanderers track and again they failed to bat with any conviction whatsoever. Only Paul Collingwood (71, 88b) made a fist of it and again the visitors’ shot selection was awful. Again Trott looked drunk at the crease, Pietersen was overly aggressive, Prior went out slogging second ball etc…

The ticket purchasing system went down an hour before play and the Wanderers management made the decision to open the turnstiles. As a result, the morning probably boasted the best crowd of the Test series. Seeing hundred of children waiting nervously for a Dale Steyn signature at third man reminded me of my hundreds of childhood visits to this fine ground. The stadium erupted when Duminy took the final wicket two balls before lunch.

England may feel like they let themselves down in the this Test, and indeed they did. But drawing a Test series in South Africa is a great achievement under any circumstances. And don’t forget that England won the ODI series that preceded it.

Quotes

Graeme Smith

“We could easily be sitting here 3-1 up – that’s the honest truth – we lacked knockout blows and England played well in Durban. We played better cricket in three of the games but we drew the series  - that’s the reality of it.”

“This was a good Test wicket – it offered everybody something. Spin, bounce, runs, it was nice to see the ball going through to the ‘keeper.”

“England spent so much time and energy on the review system that they lost focus on what was important out there.”

“It’s a whole new world going to India and it’s going to be a challenge preparing for such different conditions.”

Andrew Strauss

“When you lose four wickets in the first hour of a match then you are always going to be under pressure.”

“It was a disappointing end to a tour.”

“We were far more frustrated as a team by the way we played than by the negatives of the review system.”

“We need to take this loss as a knock on the chin and accept it for what it was.”

“We are not good enough yet – not consistent enough and not clinical enough. We need to keep improving.”

Mark Boucher

“I only hoped for two wickets before lunch but there was a lot more in this wicket than in most others. England opened up the door for us and Dale and Morne showed us what match-winners they are.”

Morne Morkel

“I had a good look at my action and realised I had been trying too hard to take wickets every ball – it has worked for me to go back to basics.”

Dale Steyn

“England was the one side that I hadn’t really bowled well against and after not performing at Centurion, I was delighted to get man of the match here.”

Day Two Report

South Africa resumed the day carefully in the morning but quickened their progress as captain Graeme Smith constructed a century to help his side to a 28-run lead with only two wickets down at the close of the second day, after a significant rain delay hampered the hosts’ push for victory.

The batsmen who took to the crease at 10 am this morning were the two to be dismissed – Prince for 19 off 48 balls and Smith for 105 off 187 balls. Smith was controversially given not out on 15,and when Sidebottom called for the review of the decision after the England fielders went up in unison – they had been convinced that the batsman was caught behind. Third umpire Darryl Harper heard no nick and adjudged the Proteas captain not out, but a few overs later, the SABC replays clearly gave the audience a loud nick as the ball brushed the bat.

Ponting was dropped on 0 yesterday by Pakistan in Hobart and he went on to make a fine double hundred. Smith was dropped on 15 this morning and went on to make a largely ugly but wholly brutal century. Even if there are those who feel who should have walked on 15.

Amla (71*, 119b) batted beautifully with his captain and has helped to put his side in firm control of this Test, but the thunderstorm that came from out of the nowhere has given England a realistic hope of saving this final Test and winning the series.

It rained so hard for 90 minutes that most of the crowd evacuated the Wanderers and headed for the hills but astonishingly, the drainage and groundstaff at the ground are so good that play was again ruled possible at 5.30pm. But it wasn’t long before bad light intervened but it was extraordinary that the pitch, that resembled a lake at 3.30pm, was fit for play two hours later.

There was nothing terribly wrong with England’s bowling, it just wasn’t as good as South Africa’s. Anderson and Sidebottom are not as threatening as Morkel and Steyn. And the conditions, although a bit cloudy, were not as heavy and humid as they had been yesterday. The pitch had also dried out significantly and played quite a lot better.

The drama continues tomorrow…

Day One Report

The expression “A good toss to lose” was bandied about the Wanderers today after England captain Strauss elected to bat, was out first ball, and then watched his side collapse to 39 for four before drinks in the opening session of the match.

Groundsman Chris Scott had promised the South African public a sporty pitch for what is a must-win game for the local side but even he would have been surprised by that score. Whilst the pitch offered some juice under the heavy Johannesburg skies, it certainly wasn’t the kind of green top that is conducive to such a poor start with the bat. There are no two ways about it – England batted badly.

1-0 up going into the final Test and on a morning where seeing off the new ball should have been the first priority, England batted like they were the side that needed to gamble to win the match. Trott (5, 8b) came in at 0 for 1 and tried, spectacularly unsuccessfully, to whack boundaries. His only fortune in this regard came as he inside edged Morne Morkel for four runs. Shortly after, he tried to drive a good ball from the same bowler through midwicket and was trapped LBW.

An arrogant looking Pietersen had a similar disregard for the conditions and was caught at wide mid-on trying to pull the same bowler to the boundary in a shot that was far more extravagant than was called for at the time.

Cook (21, 31b) went LBW to a good ball from Morkel (3/39, 11ov.) –  the decision was reviewed and it was hotly debated as to whether the delivery was a no-ball and pitched outside leg, but third umpire Harper upheld it.

Collingwood (47, 61b) and Bell (35, 86b) put on 76 for the 5th wicket but it wasn’t long after lunch that the Proteas five-prong seam attack struck again. Collingwood, Bell, Prior (14, 25b) and Broad (13, 13b) followed their team-mates back to the pavilion within the space of ten overs as the combination of cloudy conditions, good bowling and shoddy batting combined forces to reduce the visitors to 148 for eight. Steyn bowled Bell with a beauty of a delivery but Broad and Prior went playing attacking leg side strokes.

Sidebottom then nicked Steyn (5/51, 13.5 ov.) to the ‘keeper and after a nice little cameo, Swann (27, 27b) was dismissed in the same fashion to give the South African spearhead a five-wicket haul and bowl England out for 180 runs.

Ryan McLaren (1/30, 10 ov.) turned out a handy performance on debut but the other local debutant disappointed as Smith only gave Wayne Parnell (0/18, 3ov.) three overs. Parnell bowled too many bad balls and was easy pickings for Collingwood and Bell during England’s only partnership. Smith instead opted for McLaren’s consistent line and length. Kallis (1/40, 10ov.) did his routine good job.

In reply, South Africa managed a tentative 29 without loss after a ninety minute rain delay in the evening session. Smith is not out and 12 and Prince on 15.

Unless they collapse as badly as they did in Durban, South Africa will battle the weather for a series-levelling victory. England may be worried that they are without Graham Onions this time around.