That’s it for today’s blog. Thanks for your company and emails, and please join us for the second ODI in Manchester on Friday. Goodnight!
Keshav Maharaj’s verdict
The boys were really clinical. Rassie sent the tone with the bat and the bowlers kept it up, so full credit to the team.
Rassie played a very special innings – his tempo allowed everyone to play round him. Partnerships were the key and we’re really glad to be on the winning side.
Aiden’s [Markram] bowling is really underrated and I was glad he got his rewards today.
Jos Buttler’s verdict
Tough day. I thought it was a good toss to win and we just couldn’t find enough breakthroughs with the ball. You need to try and take wickets in this format. They ran well and it was an outstanding partnership between van der Dussen and Markram.
We never quite imposed ourselves in the chase. I thought the pitch got slower and lower. I don’t think it was a lack of effort on our part, but South Africa read the conditions and were smart with the way they bowled. We couldn’t quite get away.
It feels a little bit like a changing of the times for us. But we’ve got some fantastic player and this means an opportunity for them.
For myself, and I think for all England fans, I want to say thank you to Ben for everything he’s done. What he did three years ago will live on. He’s been a fantastic ambassador and we’ll miss him.
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That’s three defeats in four games for England. They suddenly find themselves in transition - but they are also in poor form, so I’d be loath to draw too many conclusions. This group are still good enough to win white-ball World Cups; they just might not be the favourites anymore.
Ben Stokes, playing his final ODI, shakes hands with all the South African team. There was no fairytale today - he bowled five overs for 44 and was out for five. Frankly, who cares: Stokes’ work was done on 14 July 2019, when his competitive instinct won the World Cup for England.
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SOUTH AFRICA WIN BY 62 RUNS
WICKET! England 271 all out (Carse c Pretorius b Nortje 14) Carse heaves Nortje to long on, and South Africa have completed an excellent and emphatic victory.
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46th over: England 263-9 (Carse 8, Potts 2) Carse charges Ngidi and slaps a short ball to third man for four. I think he was aiming towards midwicket, but they all count.
“I suggest that emphatic wins and defeats for England should have names, a la Hurricanes and Heatwaves (pending),” says John Starbuck. “This one should go down as the Riverside Strangle.”
What could possibly go wrong.
45th over: England 254-9 (Carse 1, Potts 0) “I had a brief moment of panic at the start of the last over when Root seemed to completely disappear from the BBC scorecard,” says Tom Van der Gucht. “ I wasn’t sure it this was some sort of weird new supersub-style rule whereby if you got out in a certain manner your entire score was struck off the card...”
Please don’t give the ICC ideas.
WICKET! England 254-9 (Rashid c de Kock b Nortje 0)
Make that three in the over! Rashid top-edges a pull high in the air, and de Kock backpedals past the fielding helmet to take a simple catch.
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WICKET! England 253-8 (Curran LBW b Nortje 18)
Two wickets in the over for Nortje. Curran walks across his stumps and is pinned in front by a sizzling yorker. Lovely bowling from Nortje, a class act who is going to provide plenty of entertainment this summer.
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WICKET! England 252-7 (Root b Nortje 86)
Game over, if it wasn’t already. Root crashed Nortje for another boundary but then dragged an attempted pull back onto the stumps. It was an enterprising innings from Root: 86 from 77 balls, with five fours and two sixes.
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44th over: England 248-6 (Root 82, Curran 18) Joe Root’s last ODI century was against West Indies at the World Cup three years ago, though it’s hardly a drought: this is only his 11th ODI innings since that tournament.
South Africa continue to squeeze the life out of England, who have hit only 20 boundaries in the whole innings. Make that 22: Curran has just belted Pretorious for consecutive fours. It’s on! [Legal disclaimer - it may not actually be on.]
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43rd over: England 235-6 (Root 77, Curran 10) Nortje replaces Ngidi and concedes just four from a really good over. It included two rapid bouncers to Curran, the second of which nearly knocked him over as he took evasive action.
In fact, South Africa reviewed that last delivery, thinking the ball brushed Curran’s glove on its way through to Quinton de Kock. Replays show it almost certainly hit the arm guard rather than the glove, so Curran survives. It was very close. England need 99 from 42 balls.
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42nd over: England 231-6 (Root 76, Curran 7) There have been an unusual number of drags and scuffed shots in this innings, which suggests the pitch is on the awkward side. The increasingly frustrated Root charges Shamsi and edges a wide delivery past short third man for a couple.
Root comes down the track again next ball, cuffing over midwicket for four. He has 76 from 68 balls, which is an admirable effort because at times his innings has been a struggle.
41st over: England 219-6 (Root 65, Curran 6) On the England balcony, Ben Stokes looks thoroughly cheesed off. Not even he gets to write his scripts all of the time.
“I was wondering if Joe Root and Sam Curran had ever batted together in an ODI before,” writes Tim de Lisle. “The answer is yes, once, also at Chester-le-Street, just last year, and they won the match... under no pressure at all.”
40th over: England 215-6 (Root 63, Curran 4) Root swishes Shamsi’s last delivery down the ground for six. It’s another brilliant shot in an impressively resourceful innings of 63 from 61 balls, but it’s surely not going to be enough: England need 119 from 60 balls
39th over: England 207-6 (Root 56, Curran 3) Root is one of the world better problem-solvers, but I think this will be beyond even him. For whatever reason, none of the England batters have been really fluent in this innings.
38th over: England 200-6 (Root 52, Curran 0) It was really good captaincy from Keshav Maharaj, who brought midwicket in from the boundary to tempt Moeen into a slog-sweep.
WICKET! England 199-6 (Ali c Pretorious b Shamsi 3)
Moeen Ali slog-sweeps Shamsi miles in the air, and Pretorious takes an easy catch at midwicket.
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37th over: England 196-5 (Root 50, Ali 2) Moeen Ali is the new batter. England need 138 from 78 balls.
WICKET! England 194-5 (Livingstone b Ngidi 10)
England are sliding to defeat. Liam Livingstone decided to target the new bowler Ngidi, which is fair enough in the circumstances. But though he flat-batted one boundary down the ground, he soon dragged another big shot back onto the stumps.
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36th over: England 190-4 (Root 50, Livingstone 6) Root reverse sweeps Shamsi for a single to reach a run-a-ball half-century. A typical day at the office for Root, whose ODI average of 51 is second only to Jonathan Trott among England batsmen (min: 20 innings).
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35th over: England 183-4 (Root 46, Livingstone 4) Root pulls out his new favourite shot, reverse ramping Pretorious over short third man for four. I remember a time when a reverse ramp shot warranted an exclamation mark or three; not any more.
Root’s dot-ball percentage is higher than usual, yet he’s still going at close to a run a ball. He has 46 from 47, Livingstone 4 from 8.
An inspiration. A legend. A champion.
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 19, 2022
Thank you for everything, @benstokes38 ❤️ pic.twitter.com/OD1gc5OnxD
34th over: England 174-4 (Root 38, Livingstone 3) Livingstone chips Shamsi not far short of midwicket. South Africa are slowly squeezing the life out of England, and the required rate has hit 10 an over for the first time.
33rd over: England 168-4 (Root 34, Livingstone 1) A defeat today would be England’s third in four ODIs. It’s a reflection of how good they have been that it would be only the second time that has happened since January 2017. Before Morgan it happened all the time.
Dwaine Pretorius, on as a concussion substitute for Phehlukwayo, comes into the attack and hurries through another boundaryless over. England are running out of time, balls and hope.
32nd over: England 164-4 (Root 31, Livingstone 0) That was a slightly unfortunate dismissal for Buttler, who was looking good and had just wafted a boundary down the ground. Mother Cricket has it in for him at the moment.
WICKET! England 164-4 (Buttler ct and b Shamsi 12)
A huge wicket for South Africa! Buttler came down the track to Shamsi, who saw him coming and dropped it short. Buttler worked the ball onto the pad, from where it looped back towards a gleeful Shamsi.
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31st over: England 156-3 (Root 30, Buttler 5) The captain Keshav Maharaj ends a terrific spell with figures of 10-1-42-1. He started the innings with a maiden, setting the tone for an innings in which South Africa have slowly drained the hope out of England.
30th over: England 153-3 (Root 29, Buttler 3) Root has decided to go after Markram. He dances down the track again, this time to chip four back over the bowler’s head.
“Hi Rob,” says Gary Naylor. “Having spent the day at The Oval, I’m now at the Camden Roundhouse for Jean Paul Gaultier’s Fashion Freak Show. The man himself is now a dead ringer for Everton’s model pro Peter Reid. I guess the burning question is - do any iconic figures from 20th century popular culture look like cricketers? Vincent van Gogh and Ben Stokes is a century too early.”
Do Chris Tavare and Basil Fawlty count? I appreciate Tavare isn’t quite a contemporary cricketer, having retired in 1993, but my ever shrinking brain can’t think of anyone else.
29th over: England 145-3 (Root 23, Buttler 1) There’s no way England are winning this game. The pitch is getting steadily more awkward, and the required rate is approaching nine an over. South Africa won an important toss but they have also outplayed England.
28th over: England 142-3 (Root 21, Buttler 0) Earlier in the over Root, frustrated by all the dot balls, drove Markram for an impatient but stylish straight six.
Stokes, meanwhile, finishes his ODI career with 2924 runs at an average of 38.98, and with a strike rate of 95. His bowling record was not quite so impressive: 72 wickets at 42.39 with an economy rate of 6.05.
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WICKET! England 142-3 (Stokes LBW b Markram 5)
Ben Stokes’ ODI career is over. He misses a reverse sweep and is trapped LBW by Markram. England have only one review left and Stokes, selfless to the last, ignores Root’s suggestion* that he should use it. It’s the right decision: he was plumb.
* I think that’s what happened, anyway. Either way, it was typical of Stokes not to use the review, however tempting it must have been.
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27th over: England 134-2 (Root 14, Stokes 4) Another boundaryless over of spin, this time from Maharaj. England need 200 from 138 balls. With that, good luck.
26th over: England 131-2 (Root 13, Stokes 2) The consensus in the commentary box is that you need 10-20 balls to get used to the pace of this pitch. That’s far from ideal for England, especially with the require rated now above 8.5 an over. ODIs can change quickly but right now South Africa are well on top.
25th over: England 127-2 (Root 11, Stokes 1) Andile Phehlukwayo has concussion and has been replaced by Dwaine Pretorius, who will be allowed to bowl.
Stokes drives his first ball from Maharaj for a single. But it’s another quiet over, and it feels like this game is slipping away from England: they need 207 from 150 balls.
24th over: England 125-2 (Root 10, Stokes 0) There’s a standing ovation - not for Bairstow but for the new batter, Ben Stokes.
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WICKET! England 125-2 (Bairstow LBW b Markram 63)
Aidan Markram strikes in his first over! Bairstow missed a sweep at a standard offbreak and was hit on the kneeroll in front of off and middle. He reviewed the decision, of course he did, but replays showed it was plumb. England lose a review, and Bairstow goes for a good 63 from 71 balls.
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23rd over: England 120-1 (Bairstow 63, Root 5) Bairstow lifts Maharaj over midwicket for four, a superb stroke. But he’s struggling with cramp, and there’s a break in play at the end of the over so that he can receive treatment.
22nd over: England 112-1 (Bairstow 56, Root 5) Bairstow swats a hook off Nortje, but this time it falls well short of Ngidi. Nortje is bowling rapidly, with every delivery in that over in excess of 90mph, and there’s only one run from it. The required rate is creeping towards eight an over.
21st over: England 111-1 (Bairstow 55, Root 5) Mark Butcher, commentating on Sky, suggests Ngidi might need a trip to Barnard Castle to test his eyesight. Five runs from Maharaj’s latest over, which means he and Shamsi (the spinners) have combined figures of 8-1-32-1. They are the key to this game.
20th over: England 106-1 (Bairstow 52, Root 2) Bairstow is dropped by Ngidi! He was beaten for pace by Nortje and top edged high in the air to long leg, where Ngidi put down a straightforward two-handed chance. That’s the second time Bairstow has been put down in this innings. Miller’s was a tricky catch above his head at mid-off; Ngidi’s was not.
19th over: England 102-1 (Bairstow 50, Root 0) Earlier in the over, Bairstow worked Maharaj for a single to reach a restrained half-century from 53 balls. Imagine if, in 1993, you’d tried using the phrase, “A restrained half-century from 53 balls” in polite society. You’d have been guffawed out of the Long Room!
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WICKET! England 102-1 (Roy c Miller b Maharaj 44)
Jason Roy has gone! The ball after reverse sweeping Maharaj sweetly for four, he drove inside out and was well taken by Miller, running round from long off. It was a soft dismissal, after a lot of hard work, and Roy swished his bat in frustration. He goes for a useful if laboured 44 from 62 balls.
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18th over: England 96-0 (Roy 38, Bairstow 49)
Phehlukwayo is on his feet. He seems okay, though he has a cut on his chin and is leaving the field. Replays show that he ran face-first into Maharaj’s shoulder. Collisions of that nature always evoke that nasty incident involving Steve Waugh and Jason Gillespie in 1999. Don’t click on the link if etc.
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17.5 overs: England 96-0 (Roy 38, Bairstow 49) Nortje replaces Shamsi. Pace on the ball is what England want this evening, and Bairstow blasts a length delivery through extra cover for four.
He gets a bonus boundary later in the over after a collision between Maharaj and Phehlukwayo, both running round from mid-off and mid-on. There’s a break in play while Phehlukwayo, who is still lying on his back, receives treatment. There’s a suggestion that he may have suffered mild concussion.
17th over: England 86-0 (Roy 38, Bairstow 40) Bairstow chips Phehlukwayo towards deep midwicket, where Nortje runs away from the ball rather than towards it in an attempt to take the catch. That was a bit strange; he might have been unsighted.
Bairstow gets a rare boundary later in the over, skilfully steering an attempted yorker to third man. He has 40 from 46 balls, Roy 38 from 57.
Rassie van der Dussen, who made a brilliant 134 earlier in the day - and did a helluva lot of running - is off the field. Apparently the medical team are managing his hydration and secondary muscle cramps.
16th over: England 77-0 (Roy 37, Bairstow 34) So far so excellent from Shamsi: 3-0-9-0 with no boundaries conceded.
15th over: England 73-0 (Roy 36, Bairstow 32) Roy misses a premeditated ramp off Phehlukwayo, with the ball bouncing over middle stump and through de Kock’s gloves for a couple of byes. Three more singles make it a reasonable over for England. They’ve only hit five fours and one six in 15 overs, which is almost unprecedented for this pair.
14th over: England 68-0 (Roy 35, Bairstow 30) Roy doesn’t punish a long hop from Shamsi, pulling it to deep midwicket for just a single. Just two from the over. England need 266 from 36 overs.
“Is there an argument that England losing a wicket would be a positive for England?” says Brendan Large. “Joe Root with his ability to manoeuvre the ball might be better suited to this chase right now?”
There’s pretty much always an argument for getting Joe Root to the crease.
13th over: England 66-0 (Roy 34, Bairstow 29) Andile Phehlukwayo, whose slower balls will be useful on this surface, comes into the attack. His first ball beats Roy, who continues to wage war on fresh air. Okay, maybe not fresh air.
Roy times one nicely later in the over, with the sliding Markram saving a boundary at wide long-off. There are seven runs from the over, all in ones and twos. That’s drinks. It’s been an unusually sedate start to the innings - I can’t decide if England are playing sensibly or are behind the rate.
“I’m just wondering how long it’s been since Joe Root hasn’t been in by the end of the Powerplay?” says Brendan Large. “He must be desperate to get out there. Nice to see England playing the conditions and not being three down by the 10th over.”
What do you think this is, a Test match?
12th over: England 59-0 (Roy 28, Bairstow 28) The left-arm wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi comes into the attack. He’s a dangerous bowler, who has troubled England in the past, and his and Maharaj’s spells could decide this match. His first over is played carefully, with three runs from it.
11th over: England 56-0 (Roy 27, Bairstow 26) A short ball from Nortje is muscled through midwicket for four by Bairstow. I’ll be honest, I missed the rest of the over because I was considering the below.
“Roy is out of form and struggling, Stokes is no longer playing ODIs and Rashid’s and Moeen’s powers are on the wane,” says Will Lane. “I still don’t think England have really replaced Liam Plunkett either. With Morgan gone too that’s six key members of England’s World Cup-winning squad who need replacing now or in the (relatively) near future. Is there anyone in the county game that jumps out as potential replacements who have the potential to be just as good?”
There are tens of really talented batters, though it’s hard to say with certainty that any of them will make it at international level. Harry Brook looks the part, but then so did Tom Banton and that hasn’t quite worked out yet. The bowling worries me more, particularly spin and pace. I’ll be surprised if England regress too far in white-ball cricket, but we are moving inexorably towards the end of an era.
10th over: England 47-0 (Roy 26, Bairstow 19) Bairstow is dropped by Miller. He drove a slower ball (I think) from Ngidi towards mid-off, where the leaping Miller couldn’t hang on to a difficult one-handed chance.
“Do you see Alex Hales coming back into contention any time soon?” asks Johnathan Plunkett. “Or is it all over on that score?”
With the caveat that I have absolutely no inside information, I can’t see it happening. I don’t think it was just Eoin Morgan’s decision, so I don’t think his retirement changes that much. I’d love to know the full, objective story, but I doubt we ever will.
9th over: England 44-0 (Roy 25, Bairstow 16) Roy charges Nortje and hacks a boundary through the leg side. He’s doing quite well to score at a strike rate of 74, because he has barely middled a thing.
Anyone out there? Have we done memories of Ben Stokes’ ODI career yet? Aside from the obvious, he made a truly majestic century against Australia at the 2017 Champions Trophy. There was also that ludicrous assault in India last year. But it’s fitting, for a player of his nature, that he saved his best for the 2019 World Cup: five superb innings between 79 and 89, culminating in that act of escapology in the final. Whenever I watch the last hour of that game in full - at least once a week - I can’t see a way that England can win.
His bowling? I always thought he was a pretty ordinary white-ball bowler, though I’m probably forgetting some Boy’s Own spells.
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8th over: England 37-0 (Roy 20, Bairstow 16) Roy drags a pull onto his body, another sign that his timing is awry. It’s all fairly sedate, certainly by the standards of Roy and Bairstow. I still have the fondest memories of their partnership against India at the 2019 World Cup, when they responded to an alarming crisis by walloping 160 in 22 overs.
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7th over: England 32-0 (Roy 17, Bairstow 14) The brilliant Anrich Nortje comes into the attack. He has an LBW appeal turned down against Roy, who played around a rapid delivery that was probably sliding past leg stump. Despite that stylish six off Maharaj, Roy looks nowhere near his best; his bat seems to have an ever-shrinking middle. But he’s had spells like this before in his career, most notably in 2017, so it’s nothing to worry about. Yet.
Bairstow, who has no concerns about form, belts his first ball from Nortje back over the bowler’s head for four. Next!
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6th over: England 27-0 (Roy 16, Bairstow 10) Bairstow clumps Ngidi down the ground for four, though he almost runs Roy out in the process. The ball flicked Ngidi’s boot and went this far wide of the stumps with Roy a long way out of his ground.
Ngidi’s next delivery is a slower off-cutter that Bairstow drags just past leg stump. I don’t think this is going to be an easy chase for England, especially with at least 20 overs of spin and umpteen slower balls.
Meanwhile, in Derby, Ben Duckett has smashed 200 off 224 balls.
5th over: England 21-0 (Roy 15, Bairstow 5) Maharaj concedes just three singles from his third over. England are playing him watchfully, that one six from Roy aside, even though there hasn’t really been any spin.
4th over: England 18-0 (Roy 14, Bairstow 3) Roy, on the walk, inside edges Ngidi past leg stump for four. Then Bairstow survives a run-out chance when the swooping Miller’s throw misses the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Six from the over.
“It was the Aussies who began referring to players’ nicknames, which were originally attempts at being witty e.g. Tugga and Burma for the Waughs,” says John Starbuck. “That it degenerated into simply adding ‘y’ to a name came from footballers. Even then it didn’t really work when more and more overseas players joined the Premier League. There’s probably someone researching this even now.”
Who the hell told you about my dissertation?
3rd over: England 12-0 (Roy 9, Bairstow 2) After eight dot balls, Roy slog-sweeps Maharaj over midwicket for six. We’ll miss Roy when he’s gone - for his style, swagger, selflessness, and the sheer ease with which he hits sixes. That’s his 146th in international cricket.
“Sad to see Stokes go but not much could be done with the schedule threatening to break even the best/fittest player’s back,” says Ram Sridhar. “Surely something needs to give. Sam Curran not a Stokes yet but definitely Stokes-in-the making with his pinpoint accuracy -bowling and batting (on his day of course).”
2nd over: England 3-0 (Roy 1, Bairstow 1) The pacy Lungi Ngidi starts with a big no-ball, which means a free hit for Jonny Bairstow. He can’t take advantage, with Ngidi spearing in a good leg-stump yorker.
Both batters get off the mark with singles into the leg side. This is an important series for Roy, whose ODI form since the World Cup has been disappointing. He smashed a few in the Netherlands last month, but against Test-playing nations he averages 26 in the last three years, with a top score of 60.
In other news, thanks to Tim for pointing out this scorecard from Derby. Haseeb Hameed is quietly having an excellent season. Oh, and Ben Duckett is biffing his way towards 200.
1st over: England 0-0 (Roy 0, Bairstow 0) Ever since the 2016 World Cup final, there has been a perception that Jason Roy struggles when teams open the bowling with spin. I don’t have the data to hand, but I’m sure South Africa do.
Maharaj starts with a teasing, accurate over to Roy, who plays it respectfully. A maiden.
The players are back out, and South Africa are going to open with spin: the captain Keshav Maharaj.
“I think there is probably a question of etiquette here,” writes John Starbuck. “Only when a player has definitely retired can they be officially neutral. Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad are now seasoned broadcasters too, and they use the nicknames - which are not necessarily their actual team nicknames. That might be bit more controversial e.g. Bob Willis known as ‘Goose’.”
I wonder when people started using nicknames. Try as I might, I can’t hear Jack Bannister or Richie Benaud saying, “And in comes Fruitfly to bowl to the Cockroach.” With them, it was always just Merv Hughes to Michael Atherton.
Thanks Tim, hello everyone. England have successfully chased 334 or more on five occasions - all since 2015, obviously - so this target won’t intimidate them. But it won’t be easy, for a few reasons: the long square boundaries, England’s lowish confidence and a fine, varied South African attack.
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Rassie – and England – stuck at it
All you can do in this heat is stick at it, and Rassie van der Dussen did that supremely well. He stuck it out long enough to make 133 of his team’s 333, and even had the nous to go down a gear when Aiden Markram was reverse-sweeping all before him.
The other party that shone in the heat was England’s attack. While Matthew Potts was unwell and Ben Stokes bereft of magic, the rest of them rose to the challenge. Carse was economical, Curran creative, Livingstone competitive, Rashid and Moeen canny. When the big guns return – Woakes, Archer, Topley, Wood – Jos Buttler’s team could be just as formidable as Eoin Morgan’s. Now they just have to lay on a Morgan-style chase, ideally with Stokes hitting the winning runs, by accident, off the back of his bat.
Thanks for your company and correspondence. I’ll leave you in the safe, if perhaps slightly sweaty, hands of the great Rob Smyth.
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SA finish on 333!
50th over: South Africa 333-5 (Miller 24, Phehlukwayo 0) The dubious honour of bowling the last over falls to Brydon Carse. His long-on, Stokes, is quite wide, so Miller bunts him down the ground for four... and Stokes finishes his last outing on the field in this format flat on his face, with a mouthful of his home turf. So the South Africans rack up their biggest score in an ODI in England, but surely feeling that they should have got 20 more. Last time they broke that record, they lost. So this game, I can exclusively reveal, could go either way.
“Not only is Wood very interesting in what he’s saying on comms,” argues Brendan Large, “with a lot of up to date insight...but you gotta absolutely love that accent!” You have. If he could just drop the nicknames, he’d be the complete commentator.
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Wicket! Klaasen c Roy b Carse 12 (SA 327-5)
Klaasen wants to do something about the missing six... but he just picks out long-on, where Jason Roy makes no mistake. England are finishing strongly, which is no mean feat in this heat.
49th over: South Africa 327-4 (Miller 18, Klaasen 12) After a quiet start, Heinrich Klaasen shows his class by anticipating Curran’s yorker and playing a lovely check-scoop it for four. Miller, trusting in his edges, nicks for four through the vacant slips. Curran finishes with 1-67 on a day when he would not have been flattered by 3-50.
48th over: South Africa 314-4 (Miller 13, Klaasen 4) Back comes Brydon Carse, and one ofthe commentators is Mark Wood – the very man he is replacing as England’s bang-it-in merchant. Some players of the past might have been a bit narky, but Wood has a big heart. “Pace on, pace off,” he says. “He’s executing this really well. Perfect over that from Carsey.”
47th over: South Africa 308-4 (Miller 10, Klaasen 1) David Miller is a dangerous finisher, but not usually in this fashion. Facing Curran, he inside-edges onto the stumps ... and gets four as the bail refuses to budge. It may well have melted.
Miller likes the effect so much he does it again, though this time it’s just off the inside edge, not the leg stump as well. SA still aiming for 350, though 340 may be more realistic.
46th over: South Africa 297-4 (Miller 0) Well done Liam Livingstone, making a great recovery after one bad over earlier. He now has 4-0-29-2.
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WICKET!! van der Dussen b Livingstone 133 (SA 297-4)
One brings two! In the same over from Livingstone, who is a middling bowler but a fierce competitor. He deceives van der Dussen, and that’s the end of a scorchingly good knock – 133 off 117 balls, with only ten fours and a lot of hard runnin. It’s his highest in international cricket.
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WICKET! Markram c Bairstow b Livingstone 77 (SA 295-3)
The breakthrough, at last. Markram’s outstanding innings comes to an end as Jonny Bairstow takes a very neat catch on the midwicket boundary. He’s obviously warming to his new hat-and-shades combo.
45th over: South Africa 292-2 (van der Dussen 130, Markram 76) Rashid does well to restrict the batters to five singles. An odd feature of this innings is that there hasn’t been a single six. Hard to see England following suit, even if this is a big ground.
Meanwhile, we have a dissatisfied customer. “Re 18th over,” says John Foster, “excellent ‘pro tip’. I’m sure [Mark] Wood will be grateful for the benefit of your wisdom garnered from years of being an esteemed TMS summariser. And indeed England team member. Cheers!” Ouch. I meant pro as in professional member of the media, the role Wood is dabbling in today (and mainly playing very well, as I said). Just as he’s the pro when it comes to playing cricket, so we writers are the pros when it comes to covering it. But perhaps I got the tone wrong.
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44th over: South Africa 287-2 (van der Dussen 127, Markram 74) Stokes continues, not fully fit but forever whole-hearted. He bowls a no-ball, as he did a few times on the way to his four Test triumphs. The free hit yields only a single but the seventh ball is costly, whipped for four by Aiden Markram. The partnership goes to 143, making it the highest for the third wicket in ODIs by two South Africans against England, beating Kallis and Gibbs.
43rd over: South Africa 275-2 (van der Dussen 122, Markram 68) And another ten off this over from Rashid. After slog-sweeping him for four, van der Dussen tries it again and is dropped by Jonny Bairstow, sliding in from deep midwicket. Bairstow is just back from a spell off the field, possibly with sunstroke, and is wearing sunglasses and a floppy hat. This may not be much consolation, but it’s a look that suits him.
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42nd over: South Africa 265-2 (van der Dussen 115, Markram 65) Ben Stokes, willing as ever, comes back on. He starts well but then has to bow to Markram, who thrashes him to leg, then off, then leg again – four, four, one. Thirteen off the over. Stokes’s career as an ODI bowler is ending with a bang, and not in the right way.
41st over: South Africa 252-2 (van der Dussen 112, Markram 55) Buttler keeps two overs of Curran up his sleeve and brings back Rashid. Eoin Morgan salutes “his subtle variations” and Rashid bears him out by inducing a couple of uncertain strokes, but the upshot is much the same: eight off the over.
The cricket authorities have reacted to the heat as only they can. In a dramatic development, the break between innings will be extended from 30 minutes to 35.
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Fifty to Markram!
40th over: South Africa 244-2 (van der Dussen 107, Markram 52) Markram dabs Carse into the on side for a single to reach the third and fastest fifty of the day, off just 40 balls. And up comes the hundred partnership too – it’s been superb. Carse has done well in terms of economy, going for 34 off seven overs, but he does struggle to offer a threat.
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39th over: South Africa 238-2 (van der Dussen 105, Markram 49) Not content with a hundred (off 90 balls), van der Dussen hits the next two deliveries for two. He has only hit nine fours, so an awful lot of running has gone into this innings – graft as well as class.
Hundred to van der Dussen!
A flick off the pads, fine enough to go for four, takes Rassie van der Dussen to his first ODI hundred against England. It’s been very classy.
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38th over: South Africa 229-2 (van der Dussen 96, Markram 49) Matty Potts is feeling unwell, apparently – sounds like heat stroke. With Stokes less than fully fit, the last right-arm seamer standing is Brydon Carse. Buttler brings him back, he bangs it in, and it works for five balls – but then Markram pulls him for four.
Drinks: SA coasting
37th over: South Africa 222-2 (van der Dussen 93, Markram 45) Seeing Markram take charge, van der Dussen has been playing second fiddle, but he takes then lead againnow with a pull for three off Curran. That’s drinks, with SA double-Nelson-ing their way to something huge.
36th over: South Africa 215-2 (van der Dussen 88, Markram 43) Markram is really motoring. He lofts Moeen fora straight four, then reverses for two. A glance down the page reveals that I’ brought you not one 31st over, but three – sorry about that. Can I blame the heat?
On the subject of motoring, Ben Stokes told Nasser Husain today, “We’re not just cars you can fill up with diesel or petrol”. Simon Burnton has the story.
35th over: South Africa 207-2 (van der Dussen 87, Markram 36) In the absence of Topley, Buttler summons ... Sam Curran. And he does draw a false shot from van der Dussen, but the edge goes for four. Tough luck on Curran, who has been England’s best bowler today with 6-1-27-1.
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34th over: South Africa 198-2 (van der Dussen 81, Markram 33) Markram, on fire now, reverse-sweeps Moeen for four. That’s the fifty partnership, 53 off 51 balls: England may be missing Malan.
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33rd over: South Africa 190-2 (van der Dussen 79, Markram 27) After that good second over, Livingstone has a minor shocker, going both too short and too full to Markram. Two long-hops are cut for four, but the best shot is a drive, played inside-out. In the space of one over, Markram goes from a supporting actor to joint leading man.
And here’s Kim Thonger. “Spurred on by Tory leadership candidate Kemi Badenoch’s fresh faced and rightful insistence that the only way forward is to tell the truth,” he says, “I am informing the world that I am reading the OBO in a tepid bath inside while outside 40 degree heat cooks Northamptonshire to a condition that were it a rump steak could only be described as charred. Oh for a spot of traditional English July steady drizzle.” With you there!
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32nd over: South Africa 176-2 (van der Dussen 78, Markram 14) van der Dussen reverse-sweeps Moeen, so delicately that Buttler thinks he’s missed dit and appeals for LBW. It goes for three. If Topley was playing, Buttler would be bringing him back now with one instruction: Get Rassie.
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31st over: South Africa 170-2 (van der Dussen 74, Markram 12) A better over from Livingstone, who hustles and bustles and goes for just three singles.
30th over: South Africa 167-2 (van der Dussen 72, Markram 11) Another regal shot from van der Dussen, the man of the match so far: he cuts Moeen for four, finding the gap expertly. Matthew Potts, by the way, has been off the field for a while, possibly nursing an injury as well as his bruised pride. With 20 overs to go, SA are eyeing 350 again.
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29th over: South Africa 161-2 (van der Dussen 67, Markram 10) As his second spinner has done the trick, Buttler summons a third – Liam Livingstone. And you could say a fourth too, as Livingstone is two spinners for the price of one, an offie and a leggie. Or, as the Guardian spellcheck wants me to say, an offie and a veggie. This over is mostly leg-breaks and Markram tucks in, turning a couple of ones into twos. Eight off the over.
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28th over: South Africa 153-2 (van der Dussen 65, Markram 4) Just four singles off Moeen’s over as Aiden Markram settles in. He has slotted into the role Malan suddenly abandoned, working the ball into the gaps on this large ground.
27th over: South Africa 149-2 (van der Dussen 63, Markram 2) Rashid, enjoying his mate’’s moment in the sun, finds some extra bounce to beat van der Dussen outside off. Adil and Mo will be interviewed at the interval about their Muslim faith. Good on Sky for that.
26th over: South Africa 145-2 (van der Dussen 61, Markram 0) That’s a fine over from Moeen, going for just two as well as bringing the wicket. But the crowd are very quie, perhaps deciding that it’s too hot to cheer.
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WICKET! Malan c Livingstone b Moeen 57 (SA 144-2)
The breakthrough at last! Buttler brings back Moeen, who persuades Malan to hole out to Livingstone on the long legside boundary. “England needed that wicket,” says Nasser Hussain. Well, yes, better than nothing, but it’s not the wicket they needed.
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25th over: South Africa 143-1 (Malan 57, van der Dussen 59) Rashid continues, and so does the pattern: singles to Malan, a four to van der Dussen, who sees a half-volley and wallops it past Rashid’s right ear. Even England’s senior bowler is struggling here.
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Hundred partnership!
24th over: South Africa 135-1 (Malan 55, van der Dussen 53) Carse eventually finishes his over, and another elegant cover-drive from van der Dussen brings up the hundred partnership, off 104 balls. These two make a good duo – a master and his apprentice.
Drinks again: SA on top
Mid-24th over: South Africa 132-1 (Malan 54, van der Dussen 51) Three more balls from Carse, and Malan hurts himself again, possibly twisting a knee when running, so there’s another drinks break. The camera finds a line of spectators, queuing patiently in the cauldron that is Chester-le-Street. I assume it’s going to draw back to show Mr Whippy, but in fact it’s a queue for the tap where you can fill a water bottle. This is what we’ve come to.
If you do one thing today for the poor old climate, please follow The Next Test on Twitter. It’s run by my colleague Tanya Aldred, our queen of the county scene. Nobody in the press box has been more alert to the coming catastrophe.
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Fifty to van der Dussen!
23rd over: South Africa 130-1 (Malan 52, van der Dussen 51) Anything Malan can do, van der Dussen can do faster. He sees a Rashid leg-break, plays a straight push and cruises to fifty off just 45 balls. Jos Buttler has a few things to worry about here and the biggest is that van der Dussen could make 150.
Fifty to Malan!
22nd over: South Africa 126-1 (Malan 50, van der Dussen 49) Carse continues, which is fine by the batters. Malan likes his length, just short of good, and plays a cut for two followed by a pull for two more, which takes him to fifty off 63 balls. Malan is a very consistent accumulator, much like his English namesake, and tonight he’s gonna party like it’s 1979.
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21st over: South Africa 121-1 (Malan 46, van der Dussen 49) Rashid’s googly, a lethal weapon over the years, is flicked for four over midwicket by van der Dussen, with as much nonchalance as is possible in the heat. Facing Rashid, these two are in different leagues: Malan has five off 11 balls from him, van der Dussen 17 off 15.
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20th over: South Africa 112-1 (Malan 44, van der Dussen 42) Buttler gives Stokes a rest, which he looks as if he needs, and goes back to Carse. He does OK, conceding just four. No offence to Malan, but England’s best hope of restricting SA to 300 might be to keep him in for a while.
19th over: South Africa 108-1 (Malan 44, van der Dussen 38) Buttler can sniff a wicket and has shown it by giving Rashid a slip throughout his spell, but these two batters are stubbornly sticking to the middle of the bat. This over goes for six without any big shots as they just work the ball into the gaps. It won’t be a surprise if they get 350.
18th over: South Africa 102-1 (Malan 41, van der Dussen 36) Stokes continues, and the magic still refuses to materialise. Another creamy cover drive from van der Dussen, and a stunningly good shot from Malan, who sees a length ball and straight-drives it on the up. “It’s like Stokesy’s bowling at 60 mph,” Wood says, “when he’s bowling at 80.” Pro tip to the largely excellent Wood: it’s not great to use nicknames when you’re commentating, you’ve got to have a bit more distance.
17th over: South Africa 91-1 (Malan 37, van der Dussen 30) Malan has made a superb start to his ODI career, with three hundreds from only 17 games – the same as Stokes has from 104. Still, he hasn’t faced Rashid before and it shows as he’s bamboozled by the googly. He lives to tell the tale but that’s a much better over, all dots apart from a single to van der Dussen.
16th over: South Africa 90-1 (Malan 37, van der Dussen 29) It’s supposed to be The Ben Stokes Show today, but Rassie van der Dussen is running it. As Stokes overpitches, he cover-drives for four with something resembling contempt. And that’s the fifty partnership, off 52 balls. Stokes fights back with a bouncer to Malan, which hits him on the biceps and prompts a delay.
An unusual email has landed. “All this fuss about different format fatigue,” says Alasdair Gould, “but no one thinks of the writer. How are you? How do you maintain energy levels and longevity? Thanks as ever.” Too kind! Truth to tell, international formats may change but the OBO remains much the same. The only killer is The Hundred, because they’ve done away with half the changeovers. And they didn’t even consult the writers.
15th over: South Africa 81-1 (Malan 35, van der Dussen 24) It’s a double change as Buttler, still searching for some magic, brings on Adil Rashid. He’s known ninth dressing-room, Mark Wood says, as The Magician, but he can’t conjure anything instantly aS van der Dussen plays another fine reverse-sweep.
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14th over: South Africa 74-1 (Malan 35, van der Dussen 17) England need some magic, so who are they going to turn to? Yes, it’s Ben Stokes, even though he’s wincing a bit, probably from his dicky knee. He puts the plug in, varying his pace and allowing only two singles.
Drinks: SA sitting pretty
13th over: South Africa 72-1 (Malan 34, van der Dussen 16) A tighter over from Carse, going for just three, and that’s drinks, with SA eyeing the sort of total that England love to chase. There will be extra drinks breaks today, for obvious reasons.
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12th over: South Africa 69-1 (Malan 32, van der Dussen 11) Rassie van der Dussen has been playing himself in, but he eats off-breaks for breakfast and he tucks into Moeen now, hitting a reverse-sweep for four, crisp as a piece of toast.
11th over: South Africa 59-1 (Malan 30, van der Dussen 7) Here is Brydon Carse, a paradox of a bowler: he’s big, fast, whole-hearted, accurate and has only ever had the wickets to show for it once in international cricket. His first over here goes for a respectable five.
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10th over: South Africa 54-1 (Malan 28, van der Dussen 2) Both sides have a pair of spinners and on a hot day Buttler is keen to give one of his an early go. The slight surprise is that it’s Moeen Ali, who struggles to take ODI wickets these days. Plus, he doesn’t have a left-hander to bowl to as de Kock has gone. But Mo starts well, conceding only three and finding some turn. The PowerPlay ends with SA ahead on points, just.
“Hi, Tim.” Smylers! “I’m not sure about Matthew Potts joining the limited overs team, at least not while Matthew Mott is managing them: my brain apparently can’t cope with both of them being mentioned in the same coverage and remembering which one is which.”
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9th over: South Africa 51-1 (Malan 27, van der Dussen 2) Sam Curran blots his copybook too, conceding his second four as a would-be waspish lifter turns out to be a gentle long hop. Anyone called Malan, brought up in South Africa, knows how to play the pull.
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8th over: South Africa 42-1 (Malan 20, van der Dussen 0) Buttler shows even more faith in Potts, but it’s just not his day. While the middle of this over is good, it begins with a wide and the fifth ball is an absolute gift, glanced for four by Malan. Potts has 4-0-33-0, and Buttler has a problem, as his other specialist right-arm seamer – Brydon Carse – has been anodyne lately. The stage is already set for some heroics from Ben Stokes.
7th over: South Africa 35-1 (Malan 14, van der Dussen 0) Curran keeps van der Dussen quiet too, and that is a wicket-maiden. So far Curran is doing a very good impression of Topley: 4-1-9-1.
WICKET! de Kock b Curran 19 (SA 35-1)
The breakthrough! Curran again keeps de Kock quiet and then surgically removes him with a cutter that trims the leg bail. England needed that.
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6th over: South Africa 35-0 (Malan 14, de Kock 19) Jos Buttler, like Ben Stokes, believes in showing belief in his players. Some other captains would have dropped Jason Roy by now, with Phil Salt in far better form. And when many a captain would take Potts off, Buttler keeps him on. His faith doesn’t bear dividends right away as Potts goes for seven and offers de Kock another cheap boundary, pushed to long-off. Potts has gone for four fours, Curran only one.
5th over: South Africa 28-0 (Malan 14, de Kock 12) Curran is getting closer to that immaculate over. He concedes only a single, to de Kock, and beats Malan on the outside edge for a change. Curran has gone for only nine runs off three overs, Potts for 19 off two.
We have an email! “Preamble – England batting prospects,” says the subject line from John Starbuck. “For those interested,” he goes on, “you can currently see Haseeb Hameed and Ben Duckett batting together for Notts against Derbys, on the Livestream.” Don’t send the punters away, John! But that does sound like a nice study in contrasts.
4th over: South Africa 27-0 (Malan 14, de Kock 11) Just when he seemed to have got through his early nerves, Potts has a shocker. He hands Malan two friendly length balls, both driven for four, one past cover, the other straight. And then he follows up with a wide. When you play with a different ball, as Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow have shown in the past week, it’s suddenly a different ball game.
3rd over: South Africa 16-0 (Malan 5, de Kock 10) Sam Curran ties de Kock down well for four balls, then spoils it by giving him a freebie – a wide half-volley, duly despatched to the cover boundary. Kumar Sangakkara spots that the offside ring is not in the right place: “they need to be a triangle”.
2nd over: South Africa 12-0 (Malan 5, de Kock 6) Here is Matthew Potts, handed the new ball ahead of his Durham team-mate Brydon Carse. He was presented with his cap by yet another Durham quick, Mark Wood, who confessed to being more nervous than he was when bowling in the World Cup final. “I probably drove my wife mad by practising my speech 386 times.” Wood is a natural-born commentator. And Potts is a natural-born bowler, but he struggles a bit now, giving de Kock an easy cut for four, then bowling a wide, before recovering well.
1st over: South Africa 4-0 (Malan 3, de Kock 1) Reece Topley’s role as the new-ball bowler goes to Sam Curran, another leftie, albeit nine inches shorter and peroxide-blond. He finds some swing and beats Janneman Malan on the inside edge. Malan retorts with a confident punch through the covers that gives Ben Stokes something to do – he saves four but can’t prevent three. Quinton de Kock plays tip-and-run and would have sunk his partner had Liam Livingstone hit the stumps from midwicket.
The players are out there, and so is the scalding Durham sun. The forecast is for 36 degrees. As Mark Wood said, “it’s the first time I’ve ever heard Chester-le-Street described as a dry pitch”.
Teams: SA have the big guns
No Bavuma, and no Kagiso Rabada either. But there should be plenty of runs in this team, with Quinton de Kock and Rassie van der Dussen ranked fifth and sixth in the ODI world, above any of their opponents. England’s uptown top-ranker is Bairstow at No 8.
South Africa 1 Quinton de Kock (wkt), 2 Janneman Malan, 3 Rassie van der Dussen, 4 Aiden Markram, 5 Heinrich Klaasen, 6 David Miller, 7 Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Keshav Maharaj (capt), 9 Anrich Nortje, 10 Lungi Ngidi, 11 Tabraiz Shamsi.
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Teams: England welcome back Rashid
England’s fab five get their final outing together. Can they do better than they did against India, when they were a rather flat five? Reece Topley gets a rest, and the seam attack looks anodyne unless Potts starts as strongly as he did in the Test team. But Buttler will be delighted to have Adil Rashid back, even if his excellence has largely migrated to T20s.
England 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jonny Bairstow, 3 Joe Root, 4 Ben Stokes, 5 Jos Buttler (capt, wkt), 6 Moeen Ali, 7 Liam Livingstone, 8 Sam Curran, 9 Adil Rashid, 10 Brydon Carse, 11 Matthew Potts.
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Toss: SA win and bat
Keshav Maharaj calls heads, and heads it is. “It looks a little bit dry,” he says. Jos Buttler, always straightforward, admits that he would have batted too. “Hot day.” He can say that again.
Early team news: a debut for Potts
Matthew Potts, an instant senior player in the Test side, will make his ODI debut.
Preamble: we go again
Afternoon everyone and welcome to ... another bloody series! It’s not 48 hours since the end of the last one, and here we go again. Is it possible to have too much of a good thing? Discuss with reference to either sunshine or top-class sport.
Older readers may remember a soul band of the Seventies called the Three Degrees. (If they came along now, they’d be the 43 Degrees.) “Is this the beginning,” they sang, “or is it the end?” Today is both: the start of eight weeks of cricket between England and South Africa, and the finale of Ben Stokes’ ODI career in front of his home crowd. He announced his retirement yesterday with a very understandable broadside about the “unsustainable” demands being placed on the players. If you can’t stand the schedule, get out of the kitchen.
England may well miss Stokes the batter, who has averaged 47 since the white-ball reset in 2015. They won’t miss Stokes the bowler, who has a mediocre average of 44 in the same period and is ranked 86th in the ODI world. They will miss Stokes the fielder, and perhaps most of all Stokes the sheer presence. But we the viewers, as well as savouring the precious moments of the 2019 World Cup, will still be able to enjoy his big hitting – it’s just that he’ll be doing it in whites. Who needs 50-over cricket when the Test team specialises in barnstorming 50-over run-chases?
Stokes’ departure, coming on top of Morgan’s, will open the door for a left-hander in the top five. It looks like an intriguing choice for Jos Buttler and Matthew Mott: do they stick with Dawid Malan, who did well in the Netherlands last month and could also give Joe Root a rest, or twist with Ben Duckett (who seems to have grown up since he last played for England), or promote Moeen Ali and send for Sam Curran to be Stokes-lite, or just forget about left-and-right and bring back the very biddable Sam Billings?
All that is for the future. Right now we have England needing a win after losing to India, who inflicted not just two series defeats but the demented scheduling caused by the fifth Test being shoehorned into this summer. And we have South Africa looking for an upset with a reshaped side.
Their white-ball captain, Temba Bavuma, has a broken elbow, so Buttler will be walking out to the toss with the left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj. That is at 12.30pm UK time – see you shortly afterwards with the teams.
