Key occasions
Fifty for Dawid Malan!
thirty first over: England 141-3 ( Malan 58, Buttler 68) Wham, Bam, Malan – a kneeled welly of a whooping six to deliver up his half century and 4 extra by way of backward level. A tough working fifty, with bonus factors for well timed acceleration. And on they arrive with the freezer luggage for drinks.
thirtieth over: England 129-3 ( Malan 47, Buttler 67) The commentators don’t suppose the pitch goes to be any simpler to bat as soon as South Africa get their flip. A vanguard – and put down – as Shamsi unfurls from his crabbed bowling motion to dive to his proper however can’t maintain onto Malan’s flick.
twenty ninth over: England 127-3 ( Malan 46, Buttler 66) Parnell isn’t proving the simple pickings that England might need hoped for – although, as I kind, Malan inside edges previous the stumps, previous the keeper and right down to the rope.
twenty eighth over: England 119-3 ( Malan 41, Buttler 63) Buttler flambees Shamsi – excessive and out of the bottom. Easy as you want.
twenty seventh over: England 110-3 ( Malan 39, Buttler 56) Is Parnell going to be the milking man? Not this over – simply three singles – however Buttler and Malan look completely comfortable. The great thing about their dominance over the current years – excluding the final six months – is that you simply all the time assume they’ve one thing up their sleeve.
twenty sixth over: England 108-3 ( Malan 38, Buttler 55) Shamsi is shuffled off the pads by Buttler to the rope.
twenty fifth over: England 102-3 ( Malan 36, Buttler 51) Tighter from Magala, after sending down a large first up. I feel we’re simply working by way of the stodgy a part of that novel that you simply’d wouldn’t thoughts skipping over.
“Hi Tanya,” Finbar Anslow, hiya! “My wife has just philosophically remarked that you can’t have the kids happy, no unpaid bills, good weather and your cricket team going well, all at the same time. Apparently there’s some cosmic law preventing it.”
Does that imply there have been loads of unpaid cellphone payments in Australia within the Nineteen Nineties-early 2000s?
Fifty for Jos Buttler!
twenty fourth over: England 98-3 ( Malan 34, Buttler 50) Buttler clocks up yet one more fifty, yet one more rescue job, and England’s place is all of a sudden wanting much more wholesome. Through the dressing room door we see subsequent man in Moeen Ali, one leg folded on high of one other, relaxed gum chewing.
twenty third over: England 95-3 ( Malan 32, Buttler 49) Some good fielding by Malan at extra-cover prevents a drive reaching the rope as Buttler eases into peak Buttler. Four by way of midwicket and all of a sudden it’s ten off Magala’s over – who’s proving considerably costly.
Hello Simon Begley. “I wrote this An Ode To Eoin – The Full Toss for a mate’s blog a couple of years ago. I was a little surprised by his numbers when I researched it (March 2021). I think Morgan’s captaincy overshadows just how good a batsman he was.” So true.
“Before the 2015 World Cup, Morgan averaged 29.4 in T20s and 36.5 in ODIs. Since then? 31.3 and 43.6. He’s played 219 ODIs for England and scored 6,854 runs at 40. Only eight England players in history have a higher average. None have more appearances or runs. He’s played 100 T20s, scoring 2,306 runs at 30.3. Again, no England player has more appearances or runs. Of those who’ve played more than 25 games, only KP has a better average (37.9 in 37 games).”
twenty second over: England 85-3 ( Malan 30, Buttler 41) Left arm wrist spin from Tabraiz Shamsi virtually brings prompt reward as Buttler pulls and Hendricks flies skyward however can solely parry together with his fingertips – immediately disappearing off the sector for operating repairs to the hand.
twenty first over: England 80-3 ( Malan 27 , Buttler 39) Seven ticked off Magala’s over, because the rebuild skips into quick ahead. Malan, right, watchful, careers 4 away by way of the covers.
twentieth over: England 73-3 ( Malan 23 , Buttler 36) Malan and Buttler have now plugged absolutely into the circuit. Four – ding a ling- over Markram’s head by Buttler, and Malan slides a reverse sweep by way of backward level.
nineteenth over: England 61-3 ( Malan 15 , Buttler 29) Magala, constructed like a tank, retains Buttler from constructing on the boundary momentum. A fantastic cease by Bavuma cuts off a promising Malan drive.
18th over: England 57-3 ( Malan 15 , Buttler 29) I feel Markram is perhaps the marked man – Buttler lights the contact paper on an over pitched ball and launches it 90 plus metres over the rope.
seventeenth over: England 49-3 ( Malan 14 , Buttler 23) A veritable boundary, as Buttler eyes up one fired on his pads and eases it away for 4. Magala chews his gum again to his mark. And a tasty shot to complete, pushed, with model, for a pair extra. The present run price is 2.88 an over.
sixteenth over: England 40-3 ( Malan 14 , Buttler 15) The miserly Parnell continues, and drinks have neither supplied England with any further zip, nor made the pitch any extra agreeable.
fifteenth over: England 40-3 ( Malan 14 , Buttler 14) At final some correct crowd pictures at what is seemingly a sold-out Kimberley floor. Lots of Barmy military soccer flags, loads of solar umbrellas defending pasty northern-hermisphere winter pores and skin from the lunchtime solar. Ngidi rolls by way of one other good over, in a divine pair of mint velcro cricket boots. DRINKS!
14th over: England 37-3 ( Malan 12 , Buttler 13) Some excellent fielding at deep sq. leg by Miller almost does for Buttler who fees again for the second and scrambles his bat down as Klaasen removes the bails. The third umpire slows the photographs down sufficient to understand that the panting Buttler has simply made his crease.
thirteenth over: England 32-3 ( Malan 12 , Buttler 8) Ngidi switches ends, operating in the direction of the attractive bushes this occasions. Four singles knocked off simply sufficient, nothing dangerous.
Ah, right here you might be, Simon Hughes was fast sufficient to take a screen-shot:
twelfth over: England 28-3 ( Malan 10 , Buttler 6) It’s all very sedate, a few singles off Parnell. Stone by stone, brick by brick.
Sky simply put up a listing of England’s main ODI run-scorers and I’m blown away by the truth that Eoin Morgan is on the high. Is that simply me?
eleventh over: England 26-3 ( Malan 9 , Buttler 5) Jansen continues into his sixth over, his lengthy legs scooting over the turf. After 13 balls with out scoring, Buttler finally shimmies one away by way of the covers and over the rope. Mark Nicholas tells KP that he has precisely the identical strike-rate as Joe Root.
tenth over: England 20-3 ( Malan 8, Buttler 0) Bavuma makes the primary change with Parnell changing the harmful Ngidi. Malan can’t do something substantial with the over, wafts uneasily at his fifth, and picks up a single on the final. That’s the top of the facility play, England’s place is sub-optimal.
ninth over: England 19-3 ( Malan 7, Buttler 0) Still simply the one boundary this morning, after a tidy drive from Malan is scooped up simply contained in the rope.
eighth over: England 16-3 ( Malan 4, Buttler 0) Ngidi continues to make issues tough for England, quick and bouncy, on a wicket that the commentators are calling “tacky” – and definitely isn’t being sort to a batting line-up with issues on their thoughts. Root and Bairstow will probably be ready to slide again into this group come the English summer season.
“A veritable carnival of farm animals in the England line-up,” writes Colum Fordham “featuring rabbits and the lesser spotted golden Duckett.”
seventh over: England 15-3 ( Malan 3, Buttler 0) Spotlessly clear and on level by Jansen, who I think about folds his garments immaculately and places them in a these vacumn packed luggage for storage.
sixth over: England 14-3 ( Malan 2, Buttler 0) Dog’s breakfast of a begin by England. Still, good to have a problem. Ngidi now has three for seven in his again pocket and really pleased he appears too.
WICKET! Brook c Klaasen b Ngidi 6 (England 14-3)
King, queen, jack! Brook joins Roy and Duckett again within the shady glade of the dugout after an unpleasant, iron booted jab, which works nowhere however by way of to the grateful Klaasen. Three for seven for the very spectacular Ngidi.
fifth over: England 12-2 ( Malan 2, Brook 4) Not a lot room for manoeuvre from Jansen both, cruising in on the stumps. Malan nips off nought to his eleventh ball with a drive, and England are very grateful for one more Jansen vast.
“When you said ‘rabbits’ this morning,” writes Andrew Cosgrove, “were you referring to England’s top order?”
Bo-boom.
4th over: England 9-2 ( Malan 0, Brook 4) Brook shoulders arms on the hat-trick ball then wobbles considerably to the following which zooms in on the pads. But regular service is resumed as he eyes up the final , over-pitched and shining, and flays it by way of the covers for 4.
WICKET! Duckett c Klassen b Ngidi 0 (England 5-2)
Ngidi on a hat-trick after Duckett sticks his bat out horizontally however with out conviction and high edges by way of to Klaasen behind the stumps. Hmmm, not the perfect begin.
third over: England 5-1 (Duckett 0, Malan 0) A few leg byes, a wonky vast and a good lbw shout towards Duckett. Jansen induces an inside edge together with his final ball.
2nd over: England 2-1 (Duckett 0, Malan 0): Ngidi throws himself a couple of catches earlier than powering in from the Samarai Road End. He squeals one previous Jason Roy as he fees right into a drive. Roy then has a fly on the subsequent one as properly, and fails to make contact. Third time feels considerably inevitable.
Good morning, Tanya. John Starbuck!
Did you say ‘Rabbits’ at present? It’s not alleged to work until you say ‘Hares’ final thing on the night time earlier than.
“Anyway, I’m primed with coffee for today’s play which, although the series itself has gone, will hopefully allow England to break the losing game sequence. What can you recommend they do, apart from ‘play better cricket’?”
I did say “rabbits” however I didn’t learn about “hares.”
WICKET! Roy c Bavuma b Ngidi (England 2-1)
Jason Roy provides himself a what appears like a foul- mouthed telling off after taking a cocksure stride and chipping Ngidi to cowl. He’d been crushed by the earlier two balls.
1st over: England 1-0 (Roy 1, Malan 0) Jansen with the brand new ball, blue skies, little fluffy clouds, two slips, moustached bowler, stubbly batter, 5 dots.
Here’s a fab piece (due to Rob for pointing it out) on how little England’s greatest ODI group have performed collectively for the reason that greatestTM match of all time.
A masterclass from Nasser on Harry Brook. “Look at his knees, he is much lower in his stance to a spinner than to a quick bowler.” Athers and Nasser dish up spoonfuls of reward, however Athers means that he may discover it simpler on the flat pitches of the subcontinent than on bouncier pitches – his document within the Big Bash isn’t pretty much as good as within the PSL.
Tom Curran steps again from purple ball cricket
Surrey have introduced that Sam Curran’s older brother Tom goes taking an indefinite break from purple ball cricket to prioritise his psychological and bodily well being after a run of accidents.
“The last couple of years have not been easy for me. I have had a lot of time and this isn’t a decision that I’ve taken lightly,” mentioned Curran.
“Some choices in life I don’t think you will ever be 100% sure and this is definitely one of those. But where I find myself at this exact moment, I feel like it is the right decision for my body and for my mental health.
“I’m definitely not ruling out playing red ball cricket again in the future, and I feel like I have unfinished business in this format for both Surrey and England. But until I can feel 100% committed and confident in my body to be performing day in and day out for Surrey in the County Championship, I feel that putting all my time and focus into on our Vitality Blast campaign this year is the right thing to do.
“I know it is not ideal news for everyone at Surrey and our fans. But I wanted to say a truly heartfelt thank you to Alec Stewart for the support and understanding of my decision. Surrey has given me everything and is my home. I love it very much and my hope is everyone else will see and understand my decision as he has done.”
He made his maiden first-class century towards Northants final summer season.
Teams: South Africa – three modifications!
South Africa XI: Reeza Hendricks, Temba Bavuma (c), Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Marco Jansen, Wayne Parnell, Sisanda Magala, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi.
No De Kock. after his hand harm within the final sport, Maharaj and Nortje additionally miss out. Hendricks, Shamsi and Magala return..
Teams: England – Jofra returns!
England XI: Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler (c, wk), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, S Curran, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Reece Topley.
Olly Stone sits again on the bench.
South Africa win the toss and can bowl
More luck with the coin for Bavuma! Looks sizzling and sunny on the market.
Preamble
Good morning, farewell January and a really pleased February 1 to you all. This mini-series between South Africa winds up within the shoulder pads and glitter of diamond-mining city Kimberley. South Africa maintain a shock 2-0 lead after following up their first win with a barnstorming run chase at Bloemfontein on Sunday, impressed by 100 from Temba Bavuma.
Another win at present would shuffle South Africa as much as eighth within the World Cup Super League desk, that means they escape the ignominy of the World Cup playoffs in Zimbabwe. England, at present mendacity fourth, are in mid-winter hunch – 5 losses in a row, their worst ODI run since 2014. There are mitigating components – that shedding run consists of the ODI–series-no-one-wanted-to-play in December towards Australia, plus all joint-honours gamers being away on Test duties – however Jos Buttler will wish to garnish these two lonely wins England have notched up since he took over correctly after the run-tastic journey to the Netherlands.
It must be enjoyable – and the recovered Phil Salt and rested Jofra Archer are within the combine to play. It all begins at 11am GMT, hope you may make it.
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