Close of play report (Day 3) England 458 & 119-1; South Africa 351
England had moved into a commanding position by the end of the third day at Lord’s as South African’s bowling woes deepened after a nasty injury to strike bowler Vernon Philander.
The tourists’ options for the next Test at Trent Bridge had already been affected by the suspension of Kagiso Rabada, who was sanctioned for swearing at Ben Stokes after he dismissed him in the first innings (combined with a previous offence), but they were left a bowler short as England batted for a second time.
With Philander, who took three wickets to leave England in a shambles early in the first innings, unable to bowl, Alastair Cook and Keaton Jennings compiled an opening stand of 80 to pile the misery on their opponents.
Jennings, the slower of the pair, was finally caught behind off Morne Morkel from a thin inside edge, for 33 from 101 balls, but Cook, who reached a 54th Test fifty – he was unlikely to fail for a second time given the form he’s been in for Essex – and Gary Ballance guided England to the close 216 runs ahead.
Philander, who was struck painfully on his bowling hand by a lifter from James Anderson early in his innings, had done much to take South Africa to within 97 runs of England’s first innings total, bravely culling 52 with a series of powerful drives and pulls, but once he was last man out to give Moeen Ali a fourth wicket, he was sent for an x-ray.
Reports were relatively positive, hospital investigations showing only swelling rather than a break, but he was unable to bowl at all in the final session as his injured hand was placed in ice.
Philander was not the only South Africa batsman to prosper. If anything, the impetus to the tourists’ innings was imparted by Quinton de Kock. De Kock, batting at No 8 after Rabada had been used as a nightwatchman the previous night, and perhaps fearing that he would quickly run out of partners, smashed Stuart Broad for three fours from his first over with the second new ball and never looked back.
By the time he was out for 51 from 37 balls shortly before lunch, he had hit ten fours in a coruscating knock, and helped take South Africa from 244 when he walked to the crease – just 30 added to the overnight score – to 314 when he departed.
Philander took the fight to England after the interval as he and Keshav Maharaj added 23 for the ninth wicket before South Africa’s spinner was given out on review when he danced down the wicket and pad made contact with the ball shortly before bat.
That gave Liam Dawson his second wicket. His first had come when he removed Rabada after the pace of Mark Wood and Stokes had failed to shift the nightwatchman and his partner Temba Bavuma in the first few overs of the day.
Stokes had opened from the Nursery End as Joe Root showed his mischievous side. The new England captain gave him first sight of Rabada, the news about the 22-year-old having emerged overnight; to be fair, the pace bowler handed the confrontation maturely and with technical competence as Stokes found some significant reverse swing.
Bavuma’s dismissal shortly after he’d completed a well-earned fifty, his outside edge deflecting off the wicketkeeper’s thigh to provide a simple opportunity for Stokes at slip – brought a third wicket for Moeen. It meant that De Kock would have only the tail for company despite boasting a Test batting average of 51.26 – but he made the most of his limited time at the crease before slicing James Anderson to cover.
Philander drove and pulled impressively as Wood, brought back to open the bowling after lunch, worked on a plan to bounce him out and although he took another blow to his throbbing right hand from one that exploded from Dawson, he reached his fifty from 80 balls, seven of them struck for four.
He was the final man out as he ran down the wicket to the last ball of the over from the returning Moeen, dragged it on to his pad and watched it roll back on to his stumps. The off spinning all-rounder, who yesterday became the second fastest England player to 2,000 runs and 100 wickets – both achieved on the same day – finished with the fine figures of 4-59 from 20 overs.
Tea-time report (day 3): England 458 & 48-0;South Africa 361
England took control of the first Test at Lord’s despite enterprising fifties from Quinton de Kock and Vernon Philander, the latter while trying to nurse a sore bowling hand after he was struck by a lifter from James Anderson early in his innings.
The pair took South Africa within 97 of England’s first-innings score – much better than it might have been after the tourists lost two wickets in the first hour – although Alastair Cook and Keaton Jennings increased the deficit to 145 by tea.
De Kock – perhaps fearing that he might run out of partners after being forced to bat at No 8 when Kagiso Rabada was sent in as nightwatchman on Friday night – took three fours from the first over he received from Stuart Broad with the new ball and never looked back.
By the time he was out for 51 from 37 balls shortly before lunch, he had hit ten fours in a coruscating knock that was particularly hard on Broad, and, later, Moeen.
Philander took the fight to England after the interval as he and Keshav Maharaj added 23 for the ninth wicket before South Africa’s spinner was given out on review when he danced down the wicket and pad made contact with the ball shortly before bat.
That gave Liam Dawson his second wicket. His first had come when he removed Rabada after the pace of Mark Wood and Ben Stokes had failed to shift the nightwatchman and his partner Temba Bavuma in the first few overs of the day.
Stokes had opened from the Nursery End as Joe Root showed his mischievous side. The new England captain gave him first sight of Rabada, who overnight had been suspended for the second Test after sending-off the Durham all-rounder with an expletive in his ear when he dismissed him with a bouncer on the first day. That, combined with an indiscretion against Sri Lanka earlier in the year, earned him the punishment.
Bavuma’s dismissal shortly after he’d completed a well-earned fifty, his outside edge deflecting off the wicketkeeper’s thigh to provide a simple opportunity for Stokes at slip – brought a third wicket for Moeen. It meant that De Kock would have only the tail for company despite boasting a Test batting average of 51.26 – but he made the most of his limited time at the crease before slicing James Anderson to cover.
Philander drove and pulled impressively as Mark Wood, brought back to open the bowling after lunch, worked on a plan to bounce him out and although he took another blow to his throbbing right hand from one that exploded from Dawson, he reached his fifty from 80 balls, seven of them struck for four.
He was the final man out as he ran down the wicket to the last ball of the over from the returning Moeen, dragged it on to his pad and watched it roll back on to his stumps. The off spinning all-rounder, who yesterday became the second fastest England player to 2,000 runs and 100 wickets – both achieved on the same day – finished with the fine figures of 4-59 from 20 overs.
As Cook and Keaton Jennings started the England second innings news filtered through that the brave but unfortunate Philander had been sent for an X-ray.
It added to the burden on his fellow seamers Morkel and Rabada and further stacked the odds against the tourists.
Lunch report: South Africa 323-8; England 458 all out.
Liam Dawson justified Joe Root’s faith in him on the third morning at Lord’s, making the breakthrough after his michievous captain unleashed Ben Stokes on Kagiso Rabada, whose confrontation on the first day had earned the South African suspension from the second Test.
Moeen Ali added the wicket of Temba Bavuma but Quinton de Kock launched a wonderful counterattack, a flurry of fours off Stuart Broad guiding the tourists, who started the day on 214-5, past their 300 and bringing the deficit down under 150. Shortly before the interval, though, having completed a coruscating half-century from just 36 balls, De Kock sliced James Anderson to Stokes at cover to hand control back to England.
Dawson, whose inclusion as a second spinner was widely reported to have been driven by Root, found the edge of Rabada’s bat with his second ball of the day, Jonny Bairstow pouching an admirable chance behind after Mark Wood and Stokes, despite a number of testing overs, had failed to force an early wicket.
News that Rabada would not be allowed to participate at Trent Bridge in six days’ time broke overnight, his expletive-laden send-off of Stokes on day one, added to an incident against Sri Lanka earlier this year, invoking the punishment. Root had opened with the Durham all-rounder from the Nursery End.
Bavuma’s subsequent dismissal shortly after he’d completed a well-earned fifty, his outside edge deflecting off the wicketkeeper’s thigh to provide a simple opportunity for Stokes at slip – brought a third wicket for Moeen. It meant that De Kock, batting at No 8 after Rabada’s appearance as a nightwatchman, would have only the tail for company despite boasting a Test batting average of 51.26.
That seemed a waste but inspired the 24-year-old left-hander rather than inhibiting him, as he took full toll of Broad and, later, Moeen, hitting ten fours.
Dawson had been ripped out of the attack only an over after his moment of success, Root showing his ruthlessness as captain, the new ball having become due. He was replaced by Anderson, who soon nipped one past Vernon Philander’s outside edge.
There was more alarm for the tourists when Anderson rapped Philander painfully on his bowling hand in his next over as one jumped off a length. They have lost Rabada for the match at Nottingham, they did not need Philander excluded on injury grounds.
FUN FACT: Today is the third anniversary of Guerilla Cricket’s first broadcast under the new name after five years as Test Match Sofa. The England fast bowler, Fred Trueman, also liked July 8, taking four five-wicket hauls in Test cricket on that date.
