England Cricket / Ed Hawkins / 05 January 2010 /

The Cape Town Test is fascinatingly poised as England resume 50 runs behind on first-innings with three wickets in hand. Ed Hawkins guides us through the action with the trends and tips

16.01 SA 312-2, lead by 330
I guess you could say a dominant batting display was on the cards. Apart from movement with the new ball, batting has been pretty easy. Certainly there have been no demons in the pitch, either seam movement or uneven bounce. England should have batted with more discipline yesterday. Andrew Strauss, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Alastair Cook and Ian Bell all threw their wickets away with poor shots. Those errors have been compounded. And how. South Africa, with Graeme Smith (162 not out) imperious, are set to bat England out of the game. Tomorrow they will have to bowl themselves back into the series. South Africa [1.29], England [28.00] and the draw [5.10].

15.48 SA 303-2
Shaun Pollock reckons South Africa will bat for another 30 overs tomorrow and then stick England in. That will give South Africa about 130 overs to bowl England. The tourists get a new ball in three overs but they may as well wait until the morning. Everyone will be fresh.

15.38 SA 295-2
Just switching sports for a mo, a taskforce called Racing for Change has produced a 10-point plan to improve horseracing. Where do you think the absolutely vital, 'Less Racing' came in at? No 3? No 7? No. Didn't even feature. But, fret not, the big ones have been solved. 'More modern announcements' is in there. Phew. I've got an announcement for them. Can't write it here, though. This is a family blog. 150 for Smith by the way.

15.21 SA 273-2
Sacha has been back in touch to answer my question about what he would set England. "375 and then back your bowling attack to do the business. Question is will SA be bold enough, or will it be safety first as usual?" Safety first, Shirley, to a point. South Africa should be able to bat England out of the game and do so quickly enough to give them time to take 10 wickets.

15.05 SA 265-2
Jacques Kallis has replaced Amla at the crease. Perhaps a faster scorer should have been sent in but South Africa are going so well they don't need to tinker.

WICKET 14.58 SA 261-2
H Amla c Cook b Swann 95. South Africa [1.26], England [28.00] and the draw [5.50].

14.50 SA 240-1
Sacha has been in touch via the email. "Perfectly set up by Smith and Amla - difficult to predict how much is enough on this pitch. Obviously want to give England a carrot to chase as well as SA are chasing the series. I think Smith will have to be bold with the declaration." What sort of total are you thinking?

14.30 SA 224-1
A ton for Graeme Smith. His 19th Test century and one which puts his side in total command. Probably the definition of a captain's innings. In what has become effectively a one innings game to decide whether the sides go to Jo'burg level, Smith has picked the best time to come up with the goods. Hashim Amla is 89 not out.

14.15 SA 216-1
Shaun Pollock: "If you're not living on the edge then you're taking up too much space." The sheer incredulity of it. Pollock, who doesn't drink, smoke, fart, is so far from the edge that he lists his address as 'The Wilderness'. Indeed, Pollock may well have been confused by people's apparent willingness to "live on the edge". They're just trying to get as far away from you as possible. Gee the guy drones on and on in monotone.

14.05 SA 205-1
Graeme Smith is 96 not out. And he's really jamming his foot down on the accelerator. The run rate in the last 10 is 4.6. That's very quick. Early on when they were at a crawl it looked as though they wouldn't lead until 300 until lunch tomorrow. But now they could lead by as much tonight.

13.50 SA 187-1
Let's discuss strategy here. If you ask me, and if you're reading this I guess you're interested in what I think, South Africa are worth a lay at [1.31]. A £20 stake, for example, only costs you six quid. Chicken feed. But this is a wager to trade. I think South Africa will drift because of two potential scenarios. Firstly, the wicket is looking so flat that South Africa could get the frighteners and bat on too long. The effect of that will be punters getting the frighteners. Out go the hosts, in comes the draw. Secondly, a 100-plus England partnership in the top four batsmen - likely given how flat it looks in CT - will cause panic.

13.36 SA 166-1, lead by 184
Apparently the England players would not have eaten at the break. Too hot says Nasser Hussain. I don't know about that. I would have thought a cream cake or a few choco biscuits would have been right up their street. Sugar gives energy right? I tell you, I wouldn't last too long in the England dressing room with such a mandate. I'm off to cut myself a slice of Christmas cake. Yeah, I've got loads left. Mum baked an extra large one because she knew I was entering a heavy blogging period.

TEA 13.12 SA 165-1
South Africa look imperious. But bat has started to dominate ball so they will be keen to bat, bat and bat some more. Tea now. I'm having kippers and poached eggs. South Africa [1.28], England [16.50] and the draw [6.00]

12.53 SA 153-1
This is beginning to have all the hallmarks of a typically unbeatable Cape Town performance from South Africa. Remember they've lost only four times at Newlands since 1970. And so what if they were in isolation for a chunk of those years - it's still a good stat. It is odd why they have such a fortress there. There is nothing in the pitch which suits their bowlers ahead of other countries for example. Nasser Hussain reckoned it had something to do with touring sides going off and doing their own thing around the Cape as soon as they arrive, whereas in places like Centurion and Durban there aren't so many distractions and teams do things together.

12.33 SA 134-1
South Africa winning this session with ease. And look at the run rate in the last 10 overs! A whopping 5.3! England appear to be suffering in the heat as Hashim Amla creams one through the covers for four to go to his 50. South Africa are [1.36].

12.16 SA 113-1
England have managed to generate reverse swing and for that reason the [9.40] is worth a gamble. Hashim Amla is particularly vulnerable to the ball moving in and James Anderson is trying to get him trapped leg before. Remember, a quarter of Amla's dismissals in Tests are lbw. The [9.40] might not be a bad bet looking ahead to the chase. Say if England have to get 350 batting last, well, a decent partnership early on will see them shorter.

12.08 SA 111-1
Nelson nearly struck. Graeme Smith survives soon after reaching 50. Umpire Tony Hill gave him leg before to Graeme Swann but the review system overturned. It was missing the stumps. England really needed that wicket. They are out to [9.00].

11.47 SA 78-1
That chase by Australia (see previous post) will cheer England. More bitter-sweet is the fact the pitch looks pretty darn good. Very little movement off the straight and no real signs of uneven bounce. It doesn't seem to have got any worse to my eye. The draw is the big mover since lunch, into [6.40] now. If South Africa continue on their current go slow (run rate 2.1 in the last 10) then it will continue to head south. At this rate they will have lead of only 300 by lunch tomorrow.

11.30 SA 72-1
Highest fourth-innings total to win a Test at Cape Town since 1966
334-6 Aus v SA Mar 02
211-5 SA v Ind Jan 07
186-3 SA v WI Jan 08
161-5 SA v Pk Jan 07
95-3 Aus v SA Mar 02

11.15 SA 56-1
That's the lunch break out of the way. Graeme Swann will resume first up. Hashim Amla will prefer facing a spinner at the start of his innings one would have thought. Often he can be too static in the crease and facing spin should help to get his feet moving.

LUNCH 10.35 SA 56-1
Stuart Broad is a bit of wally these days eh? If he's not giving the umps some chat, he's running off down the wicket not bothering to appeal. In the over before lunch he virtually stamped on the ball with his spikes. During the break, why not give Frank Gregan's musings about the young bowler a read. South Africa [1.40], England [5.10] and the draw [10.50].

10.15 SA 48-1
Hardly surprising that Prince was the first to go. He looked on borrowed time since he turned up. In fact, his 56 minutes at the crease could have been a psychological profile TV special. He's gone at the game. He was almost run out when he forgot to back up and then dawdled through, then he started to walk back to the pavilion after England appealed for a catch behind the wicket, prompting the ump to give him out. Prince referred it, rather sheepishly. However, the largest mental block was to come, wasting a review when he was plumb leg before to Swann.

WICKET 10.08 SA 31-1
A Prince lbw b Swann 15. South Africa [1.58], England [3.50] and the draw [10.50]

09.54 SA 22-0
There is a decent chunk in the coffers at [1.95] to lay South Africa for 300 runs or more. It might not be a bad wager. After all, it is a rarity indeed that the highest score of the match would come in a third dig. Having spent the last few minutes looking back at historic Cape Town scorecards, I can reveal that the average third-innings score in the last 10 Tests there is 259. Only two sides over that period have posted more than 300.

09.36 SA 13-0
Ashwell Prince's horror run in this series - he is averaging 14 -, his poor record in the third innings of Tests at home and evidence that he has left his brain in his hotel room this morning suggests he will not be around for long. First he almost ran himself out when dawdling for a quick single and then he was given out caught down the legside as he appeared to walk back to the pavilion. The referral saved him. He doesn't look as if he wants to be there.

09.23 SA 6-0
Let's get these stats up before a wicket falls. I've jotted down the averages of the South Africa top seven in home Tests in the third innings. Some interesting results. Amla, who is [6.40] for top SA bat in this innings, Kallis, [4.10] and JP Duminy are the stand out figures.

Third-innings averages in home Tests
Smith 25
Prince 17
Amla 61
Kallis 73
AB De Villiers 36
JP Duminy 5
Boucher 28

09.13 SA 0-0
We're underway again. The new ball gets given the 'crucial' tag because of the wickets that have fallen when it has been in operation of the last two days. In a mo, we'll have a look at top South Africa runscorer for this innings. I'll have to be quick, though given the formguide for wickets at the start of a dig.

09.07 Innings break
Good work from Matt Prior. That has reduced the deficit to just 18. Still, England are up against it. Apparently the heat out there is something extraordinary. Breathless. It sets up an interesting psychological battle for South Africa. What is their mindset? Worried that if they slip here the series has gone? Or do they say 'one partnership and we win the game'?

WICKET 09.01 Eng 273
M Prior b Steyn 76. South Africa [1.63], England [3.05] and the draw [15.00]

08.54 Eng 264-9
Good work from Prior. He's throwing the bat at anything wide. Graham Onions is surviving. That's all he needs to do. Indeed, successive boundaries from Prior takles the 'partnership' to 23. They have all come from Prior's bat. England only trail by 27.

08.40 Eng 243-9
I rise from my slumber about 30 minutes before the start of play. Have breakfast, log on, do some stats work. Take it easy, you know? Do the not out batsmen in this Test do the same? They're bloody hopeless. England are on their way to being skittled, just as South Africa were. Morne Morkel was on a hat-trick for goodness sake from the fifth ball of the day. England in the mire. They need Matt Prior to bludgeon a quick 20-odd here.

WICKET 08.34 Eng 241-9
J Anderson c Smith b Morkel 0. South Africa [1.65], England [2.92] and the draw [18.00]

WICKET 08.32 Eng 241-8
G Swann c Smith b Morkel 5. South Africa [1.77], England [2.82] and the draw [11.00].

08.19
"If England get a 30-run lead, who cares? If South Africa get a 30-run lead who cares?". So says Nasser Hussain. I'd reckon the punters who have backed either side care quite a bit. In a Test which is going to be come a one innings game, a lead, by whatever margin, is pretty key. And England are desperate for it because they are going to have to bat last on a wearing pitch.

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