Title contenders in any team sport are often characterised as much by an aversion to defeat as a thirst for victory

Paul Edwards at Edgbaston19-May-2015
ScorecardMark Stoneman gave Durham hope heading into the final day•Getty Images

Title contenders in any team sport are often characterised as much by an aversion to defeat as a thirst for victory. In the first three days of this match Warwickshire’s cricketers have shown their desire to win the game; in the final three sessions Durham’s players have a chance to further demonstrate their hatred of losing it. It is almost certainly all that is left to the visitors and it is worth more than five points.In the recent era known as BB (Before Barker) Durham welcomed this fixture, winning seven of the nine Championship games played between the sides. Since then they have lost four of the last six. That will be five in seven on Wednesday evening unless Paul Collingwood’s batsmen continue their prolonged resistance to an attack that has generally kept the ball up to the bat on an excellent pitch and accepted as collateral punishment the leaking of boundaries attached to this approach.Carrying Durham’s standard in the second innings was Mark Stoneman, whose technically correct 83 not out was a 161-ball act of penance for his carelessness in getting out on Tuesday evening. Also wearing a hair-shirt was Collingwood, although he has little reason for self-reproach after being last man out for 68 when having a swipe at Boyd Rankin in Durham’s first innings. When this pair trooped off at 6.50pm, they had helped reduce their side’s 265-run deficit to a manageable 76. While there is still work to be done to save the game, at least a start has been madeFor Warwickshire it was, yet again, Keith Barker who led his side’s thorough examination of the defensive technique of Durham’s top and middle order; and in the first half of the day Collingwood’s men failed the test. The left-arm seamer got rid of three more batsmen as Durham lost their last seven wickets for 135 runs in a mere 25.5 overs. Having then had the luncheon interval in which to rehydrate and recover, Barker was ready to lead his side’s attack when the follow-on was enforced.In his second over he removed Keaton Jennings, who completed a poor match by limply edging a catch to Rikki Clarke at slip; in his fifth he had Scott Borthwick lbw for 14 when a ball nipped back a shade and struck the rear leg. And there was still time for Barker to return and have Michael Richardson caught by Varun Chopra at slip for 47 after the Durham right-hander had added 72 with Stoneman for the third wicket in 18 overs. Calum MacLeod then put on a further 64 with the opener before he gloved a catch to Clarke at slip when unable to avoid a hostile delivery from Rankin who was then bowling around the wicket. Stoneman and Collingwood took care of business for the last ten overs of a long rain-interrupted day.Indeed, weather had provided a curious backcloth to the cricket. The wicket of Richardson fell just before the third and last break but there seems no doubt that this third day escaped comparatively unscathed in losing just 16 overs. Like 19th century American settlers, Durham’s players looked westwards with hope in their hearts but the expected rain did not arrive. Heavy showers had been confidently forecast yet while it poured elsewhere in the Midlands, at both Wantage and Grace Roads for example, Edgbaston’s Pershore Road remained mostly dry. Rather in the manner of pageboys in Shakespeare’s history plays, the groundstaff waited by the covers, doing little, saying nothing, but available to spring into action if summoned.They saw some pretty ropey batting in the morning session, when Durham declined from 50 for 3 to 182 for 8, 66 of the runs coming from the bat of Collingwood who at last found a stubborn partner in the No. 10 Chris Rushworth. Richard Jones took the first wicket when he bowled MacLeod off the inside edge with the fourth ball of the day. Barker then removed Richardson, caught at slip, Mustard, lbw for a golden duck, and Coughlin, middle stump uprooted, all in just six balls before John Hastings was leg before to Clarke for 14. That left Durham on 125 for 8 and people were wondering about a three-day finish.Instead they could enjoy the sight of Stoneman, middling a few, smearing others, but sticking around regardless.”We’re still in it and if we can now get a good session or two sessions in, we’ll have the chance of a few more points than we probably expected at the start of the day,” he said. “I’ve felt really good this season and ironically this is the worst I’ve felt at the start of an innings. Maybe I’ve gone at balls a little bit hard in the leave alone area. It was nice to have the opportunity to bat time with no pressure to set the game up, just take each ball as it comes.”One person unlikely to be bowling those balls, however, is Jones, who has aggravated a foot injury and is unlikely to take any part on the final day. That represents something of a fillip for Durham, who may need all the help they can get if they are to secure the draw. Although as Collingwood and Stoneman might observe, it is self-help that brings cricketers their greatest satisfaction.

Steven Smith has named Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen as two of his chief verbal tormentors on Australia’s last Ashes tour to England, and is determined to silence any remaining doubters with a pile of runs from No. 3 this summer.

Daniel Brettig04-Jul-2015Steven Smith has named Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen as two of his chief verbal tormentors on Australia’s last Ashes tour to England, and is determined to silence any remaining doubters with a pile of runs from No. 3 this summer.Speaking frankly about the treatment he received from England in his earlier years, when he was derided for an idiosyncratic technique among other things, Smith said he hoped he had changed some views by surging up the world rankings to be the No. 1 batsman in the game entering this series.However it is clear that plenty of scepticism about Smith is still evident in English ranks: the former spin bowler Graeme Swann and current paceman Stuart Broad have spoken publicly about his move to No. 3 being a possible advantage for England, while Pietersen made a point of rating Joe Root a better player of pace and spin in his head-to-head assessment of the two young batsmen.”I remember Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell getting into me quite a bit,” Smith said of the 2013 tour, when he was goaded by predictions he would be dropped for the home series in Australia until he carved out a century at the Oval. “I don’t think they really rated the way I played. But maybe I’ve changed their views now perhaps a little bit.”When I came back into that side I’d played two Tests since I’d been back in the side and they were both in India, so it was different conditions coming over here against the Dukes ball. I’d never had any real success against England before, so now they might view me a little bit differently.Smith rejects any suggestion that his rise to the top of the rankings has come with a reassessment of his batting style.”People might say my technique’s a little bit different. I don’t see it that way; I think all my fundamentals are all the same. The thing for me is my defence: as long as my defence is in good order then I feel the rest of my game can expand from there. Particularly over here I think your defence is key against the newer ball.”A key part of Smith’s success in recent times has been a well-developed sense of self-knowledge. He pores over footage of his own methods and has become adept at self-correcting, rather than relying on any coaches or mentors to advise him. In the midst of his current run glut, he was even able to recognise a flaw that crept in during the World Cup and then make an adjustment that kept him ahead of the world’s bowlers.”I got bowled around my legs in the warm-up game against India in the World Cup in Adelaide,” Smith said. “I was going too far across my stumps. I was taking leg stump guard at that point, I now take about an inch or so outside leg stump, so I’m stepping to where I want to.”I haven’t looked at it and said ‘this is what I’m looking for’. I don’t think it is ever finished. You want to keep getting better every day. I go back and look at footage quite a bit, make sure I’m doing certain things I want to be doing. I haven’t got to a point where I say ‘this is the perfect way to do things’.
“When you’re in good form and hitting the ball well you want to keep playing as much as you can and not have too much of a break. That’s how I think about it mentally. If I have a break I might come back and there may be a few things that aren’t quite right so it’s been nice when I’m on a run of form to continue playing and try to maintain it.”Perfection may be elusive, but Smith has been getting closer to it than most other batsmen lately. In the hyped-up surroundings of an Ashes series, he said his major priority was to stay true to the routines that have served him so grandly over the past two years – more or less since Bell and Pietersen loved to sledge him.

Michael Clarke has put the onus on himself to turnaround the performances of Australia’s under performing middle order

Daniel Brettig at Edgbaston31-Jul-2015Australia’s embattled captain Michael Clarke will consider moving down the order ahead of the fourth Test against England, but has emphatically declared he still believes he is worth his place in the team following another grim display in his side’s humiliating defeat at Edgbaston.Clarke made a tortured 10 and 3 and dropped a straightforward slips catch as England rumbled to an eight-wicket victory, prompting the most pointed questions yet about his future in the XI. While conceding that right now “they’ve got 11 and we’ve only got 10″ players due to his dreadful run of scoring, Clarke was bullish about his own place in the team and that he had the ability to regain touch.”I think it’s always going to be hard to beat any opposition when they’ve got 11 and we’ve only 10,” he said. “At the moment that’s how it feels. With my performances so far I certainly haven’t led from the front like i’d like to do as captain. I’ve always made that very clear, that’s a big part of my role as leader of this team that I’m scoring plenty of runs and leading by example.”It’s always going to be difficult … No.4 is such a critical position. You need to make sure you’re scoring a lot more runs than I have been so far. My self belief is still there and that’s because I continued to work as hard as I have throughout my career. For me to have success, it’s always been about my preparation and working hard. That gives me my best chance. At the end of the day, you can only do your best. While I keep doing the preparation I’m doing, I believe I can have success out in the middle.”One of the issues being created by Clarke’s poor form is that England’s avenue into an inexperienced Australian middle order is becoming wider with each match. The No. 5 batsman Adam Voges started this series in strong shape but has declined at least partly because he is continually being asked to come in after the fall of two quick wickets – the second invariably the captain’s. Clarke will ponder moving down the order depending on the side chosen for Trent Bridge, which may yet feature Shaun Marsh in place of Voges.”I will wait and see what XI the selectors give me,” Clarke said. “It’s never bothered me, statistically it shows that I have performed a lot better at No. 5 than No. 4 but it’s not like I have walked in at 2 for 10 throughout this series, I think our whole top order has done a really good job. The number is irrelevant, it is about what’s best for the team. If the team need me to bat at four if the team needs me to bat at five I will bat at five.”Clarke has been a habitually hard trainer over his 11 years in the Test side, and said he now needed to work out what was his best preparation for the pivotal fourth match of the series, taking into account his lack of runs but also the wages of a long tour that also included a month in the Caribbean before arriving in England. He looked a tired man by the end of the game, fielding at mid-off to protect his fingers after the chance dropped off Ian Bell.”It’s a tough balance,” Clarke said. “A lot of players it helps them to have time away, I think of someone like Ricky Ponting who used to go and play a week of golf then walk on to the field and make a 100 without picking up a bat at training. That’s never really been me and that was the reason I played at Derby.”The selectors asked me if I wanted to have that game off but I wanted to go to make sure I could do my training and have a bat as well. The next few days will be about balance when I am not training, trying to get away from the game and clear my head but training is still a big part. That’s what’s given me the success I have had throughout my career I have stuck to it to date and don’t think I will change now.”As for the result, Clarke said it was undeniable that the team had dropped off after their strong display at Lord’s. “It’s another kick up the backside, there’s no doubt about it,” he said. “We showed at Lord’s how we can play and I made it very clear after that game that it was only one Test. We have to perform like that if we want to win over here. It’s no coincidence it’s been really hard to have success in England.”You need to play like that every Test match if you want to win and we need to turn things around and just keep believing. It was only a few days ago that we played some wonderful cricket. So we know we’ve got it in us , we just have to turn up and be ready in Nottingham.”

Chhattisgarh and Manipur made another case to be awarded BCCI’s full membership after they made a presentation to the board’s affiliation committee in Bangalore on Sunday

Amol Karhadkar23-Aug-2015Chhattisgarh and Manipur made another case to be awarded the BCCI’s full membership as they made a presentation to the board’s affiliation committee in Bangalore on Sunday.Full membership would not only give both states – currently associate members – an annual revenue in excess of Rs 20 crore (approx. $3.03mn) but more importantly, will facilitate their entry into all the senior-level tournaments conducted by the BCCI.”We made a presentation to the BCCI affiliation committee today. We were asked to present our case. Now that we have explained all the activities, we hope that the BCCI takes our efforts into consideration and awards us full membership,” Rajesh Dave, secretary of Chhattisgarh State Cricket Sangh, told ESPNcricinfo.Both the states have been allowed to participate in the BCCI’s junior tournaments but lack of participation in the Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy has hampered the progress of cricket there. Besides, with the board’s grant of approximately Rs 75 lakh (US$114,000) annually to its associate members, the developing states find it difficult to establish a structured development programme.However, CSCS and Manipur Cricket Association have been putting in a lot of effort to develop cricket in their jurisdiction. Both the states put in consistent performances in the BCCI’s affiliate and associate members’ tournament before it was disbanded two years ago as well as impressed at times during the Under-22 tournaments.The committee also considered Mizoram Cricket Association’s application to be awarded BCCI’s affiliate membership. The three-member committee, comprising BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur, Vidarbha Cricket Association president Prakash Dixit and Goa Cricket Association vice-president Dr Shekhar Salkar, will now forward its recommendations for consideration at next month’s annual general meeting.If the board decides to award membership to either of the states, it will result in additional votes in the BCCI’s list. At present, the board has 30 full members. Due to the volatile election scenario, last year’s AGM had not considered Chhatisgarh’s plea.Chhattisgarh, along with Sikkim Cricket Association, Manipur Cricket Association and Bihar Cricket Association are BCCI’s associate members. Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh happen to be affiliate members, with Mizoram likely to join the ranks next month.

Michael Hussey has joined the South Africa coaching staff as a specialist batting consultant for the three-match T20 series against India, with the focus on preparation for the World T20 next year

Firdose Moonda28-Sep-2015The influence of a World Cup winning Australian did not rub off on South Africa at the tournament earlier this year, but they have not given up on Michael Hussey’s magic yet. Hussey is back with the squad and will work with them during the three-match T20I series in India, with the focus on preparation for the World T20 in next year.Hussey will work as a specialist batting consultant – South Africa’s second as they also have former coach Gary Kirsten on a 50-day-a-year contract – and T20I captain Faf du Plessis hoped he will teach the newer members of the team about both temperament and technique.”Mike is such a good guy from a coaching point of view. He has got a great batting mind so the young batters coming into the team, he’s the best guy you can learn from,” du Plessis said. “He does all the right things. He trains hard and fits in beautifully into our team. I think we are very lucky to have him in our side.”Du Plessis’ praise suggested Hussey’s involvement could extend beyond the India tour to the World T20, where South Africa will want the likes of Quinton de Kock and David Miller to fire. Both lacked runs recently, and de Kock was even dropped to the South Africa A side after a lean run in Bangladesh, though Miller, who last scored an international half-century 15 innings ago at the World Cup, survived. South Africa will hope the problems Miller had with his positioning at the crease have not. If they have, Hussey, also a left-hand batsman, may be able to help.Similarly, Hussey could work with de Kock, who recovered from his rocky road by scoring three centuries for the A side on the tour of India, but may still need tightening up outside the offstump. South Africa’s core of senior batsmen – du Plessis, AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla and JP Duminy – will also look to feed off Hussey’s knowledge, which has so far tried to instil in them the value of an all-round team performance.Hussey was with the South Africa team in the build up to the match against India in the 2015 World Cup, and he emphasised the need for some of the lesser lights to shine in major tournaments. “To win World Cups, you need world class performers and you look down the list of the South African team, you’ve got AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn, JP Duminy, Morne Morkel. You need those guys to fire and play well in World Cups and then that fires the other guys,” Hussey said at the World Cup. “But quite often you need some unsung heroes as well.”I look at the South Africa team and see a lot of those world class stars and there might be some unsung heroes like a David Miller or one of the other bowlers can come in and do a job as well.”South Africa’s current T20 squad has the same blend of big names and bits-and-pieces players, who will have to start seeing themselves as part of the bigger picture. Farhaan Behardien has started to do that, fitting in at No.7, sharing the fifth bowler duties and working on his finishing abilities with the bat. Both the uncapped Khaya Zondo and allrounder Chris Morris will have to follow suit.Zondo is likely to play some part in the series because of the absence of Rilee Rossouw, who is recovering from a stress fracture of the foot, and Morris should get a look in after David Wiese was ruled out of the series with a hand injury. South Africa’s middle-order will need them to be solid if it is serious about competing for the World T20 and it won’t take Hussey to tell them that.

Rory Kleinveldt took his fifth five-wicket haul of the season on another incredibly frustrating day at Wantage Road where Glamorgan reached 166 for 6

ECB/PA15-Sep-2015
ScorecardRory Kleinveldt made regular inroads when the weather allowed•Getty Images

Rory Kleinveldt took his fifth five-wicket haul of the season on another incredibly frustrating day at Wantage Road where Glamorgan reached 166 for 6 at stumps having faced just 37 overs in their first innings by the half-way point in the match.Rain again dominated the day with no play possible in the morning session and three spells where 32, 33 and 36 balls were sent down to add to the 35 delivered on day one. At least 14.2 overs were available after tea and Kleinveldt continued to use favourable conditions superbly well to take his tally of County Championship wickets for the season to 55. But David Lloyd counterattacked with a first-class best 64 not out.Kleinveldt took the only wicket to fall in what play there was on the first day and quickly add two more. He got two to nip off the seam: one away to the left-handed Colin Ingram who edged to first slip; the second through bat and pad of right-hander Aneurin Donald to take out middle stump.Chris Cooke, having never settled, was pinned on the crease and plumb lbw for 7. Rain took the players off immediately but the ball after the restart, Graham Wagg pushed firmly forward and edged low to gully where Josh Cobb got down to take a sharp chance and complete Kleinveldt’s five-wicket haul.The match may have lost context with so much time lost due to the weather but 84 for 5 still represented a sticky spot for Glamorgan. They also suffered the loss of their captain Mark Wallace. He gritted out for 27 from 52 balls, with a pleasant back-foot drive for four one of few bright spots on another otherwise dull grey day. But attempting a sharp single, he immediately pulled up and had to be helped off the field, hobbling with an injury to his left calf. Wallace has played 230 consecutive County Championship matches stretching back to 2001 – his run may come to an end next week.Better news for Glamorgan came through Lloyd, who like Kleinveldt was also grateful for lighter clouds as he made a third Championship half-century of the season. Driving confidently, he struck two perfect strokes through the covers and went to fifty with a press to deep point in 49 balls and nine boundaries.But Lloyd should have been taken on 45, driving in the air to short cover. Rob Newton shelled the low chance that would also have given a maiden Championship wicket to Richard Gleeson, the 27-year-old right-arm seamer who made his first-class debut against Australia last month.

South Australia’s last pair of Joe Mennie and Chadd Sayers eked out the last eight runs required for the Redbacks to complete a thrilling last-day chase of 317 and beat Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield match at the Adelaide Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2015
ScorecardFile photo – Travis Head stroked his maiden first-class hundred•Getty Images

South Australia’s last pair of Joe Mennie and Chadd Sayers eked out the last eight runs required for the Redbacks to complete a thrilling last-day chase of 317 and beat Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield match at the Adelaide Oval.The hosts appeared to have the chase well in hand for most of the day, thanks to a long-awaited maiden first-class hundred from their captain Travis Head, after 17 previous scores of 50 or more.Mark Cosgrove had also contributed a sturdy 63 at the top of the order, and at 4 for 269, South Australia looked headed for a more comfortable victory than they could have imagined when the Warriors were 2 for 217 the previous afternoon.But Alex Ross, Head, Tim Ludeman, and Adam Zampa all fell in quick succession to allow WA a glimpse of victory, with Michael Hogan and Simon Mackin both bowling well.It was left to Mennie and Sayers, who had combined well with the ball on day one to roll the Warriors for 211 in their first innings, to scramble the last few runs, something they managed to achieve to the delight of the new captain-coach combination of Head and Jamie Siddons. WA and SA now have one outright win apiece entering round three of the Shield.

The perjury trial against Chris Cairns has been held together by “rumour upon rumour, sustained by a biased investigation” a Southwark Crown Court jury has been told as Orlando Pownall QC continued his summing up for the defence

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Nov-2015The perjury trial against Chris Cairns has been held together by “rumour upon rumour, sustained by a biased investigation” a Southwark Crown Court jury has been told.Orlando Pownall QC was summing up for the defence for a second day in the trial in which Cairns denies two counts of perjury and perverting the course of justice, relating to his successful libel action in 2012 against Lalit Modi who had accused him of match-fixing.Pownall sought to undermine a Crown case which has involved nine witnesses, including the evidence of Lou Vincent, who has confessed to match fixing, and the New Zealand cricket captain Brendon McCullum.”We invite you to be careful to make no assumptions,” Pownall said. “Beyond rumour, beyond self-motivated lies, you cannot be sure Mr Cairns is guilty. For that reason, we invite you to acquit him.”Vincent was described as the “foundation stone” of the case against Cairns. “He is someone who is dishonest, who has lied, who has lied to you,” Pownall told the jury. If the jury concluded he was lying they should acquit Cairns as a consequence and the evidence of McCullum “doesn’t matter”.Pownall also examined McCullum’s recollections of a meeting with Cairns over dinner in 2008 in a Kolkata hotel room. McCullum’s evidence, to the ICC and later the Metropolitan Police, had changed three times – in 2011, 2013 and 2014 – and was “shifting sands” he said.Pownall said match-fixing was never mentioned in the first statement McCullum made in 2011, although the word “betting” was used time and again.”There was a meeting and Mr Cairns has never denied it, in that hotel in Kolkata, but what was discussed in that meeting was very different from the description given,” Pownall said. “What he’s talking about here is betting. Not match-fixing, betting.”McCullum also did not remember that Cairns had “definitely” told him that Vincent and Daryl Tuffey were allegedly involved in match-fixing at Chandigarh Lions until after Vincent had been interviewed by the ICC in September 2013.Pownall also invited the jury to consider why would Cairns would try to recruit McCullum to cheat, as he was a young player yet to reach the “zenith of his career” paid large sums of money in the Indian Premier League, not a “flaky individual” like Vincent who would risk his career for the sake of a “few extra dollars”.When McCullum said in a second statement that he told Kyle Mills and Shane Bond that Cairns had approached him, it referred to a meeting in Worcester the same year. He had not mentioned Kolkata.”Does it make you wonder why didn’t Mr McCullum mention the hotel meeting? Was it because himself he wasn’t sure about what it was about?”Pownall then referred to McCullum’s final statement, three years later. Only then had the names of Vincent and Tuffey – who also played at Chandigarh – also been mentioned.Pownall theorised that McCullum and Daniel Vettori, who also gave evidence for the prosecution, did not want Modi to lose his libel case because he ran IPL and his defeat might put their income at risk. “‘I don’t want him to lose, because that might imperil my contract. I don’t want my reputation to be tarnished, was what they were thinking,” Pownall said. That, he said, led them to give an account to the ICC in 2011.Pownall said that the evidence produced by the prosecution had not shown Cairns to be a liar. “He was vulnerable, but he wasn’t shown to be a liar.” Pownall said. “That’s not because he’s some clever dick who is able to evade, he’s a combative individual.”Cairns is accused of lying under oath in court when he said in that libel hearing: “I have never, ever cheated at cricket. Nor would I ever contemplate such a thing”.His co-defendant and former legal advisor, Andrew Fitch-Holland, denies one count of perverting the course of justice.

This was joy, utter joy, no matter where your loyalties lie: a feat to stir the youthful, cheer the sick and bring reveries from the old. Ben Stokes bludgeoned one of the great attacking Test innings – the second fastest double century in Test history

The Report by David Hopps03-Jan-2016Close
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsThis was joy, utter joy, no matter where your loyalties lie: a feat to stir the youthful, cheer the sick and bring reveries from the old. Ben Stokes bludgeoned one of the great attacking Test innings – the second fastest double century in Test history – on the second day of the second Test in Cape Town and those who were there to see it must have been enriched by the experience.When it was all over, shortly before England’s declaration at 629 for 6, a humungous total they could not have remotely imagined at start of play, Stokes’ demolition job had brought 258 from 198 balls with 30 fours and 11 sixes. Freckled of complexion and brawny of stroke, he wielded his bat like a wrecking ball, razing South Africa’s attack to the ground.Even his dismissal summed up South Africa’s broken state of mind. Stokes heaved at Kagiso Rabada, AB de Villiers dropped the skier at mid-on – AB of all people – but he steadied himself to throw down the stumps and complete a run out as Stokes jogged towards the bowler’s end, by then entirely sated. England declared two balls later once Jonny Bairstow’s 150 – an emotional maiden Test hundred that will receive limited recognition – had been gathered in.South Africa will resume the third day 488 adrift with eight wickets intact after enduring an extraordinary batting assault. England struck their second-highest partnership in Test history, 399 in 59 overs, with Bairstow, no slouch himself, playing an intelligent subordinate role. England made 312 for 1 off 38.5 overs in the day.Statistics underlining the achievement jostled for attention. It was once-in-a-lifetime, jaw-dropping stuff with virtually every delivery from a disorientated South Africa attack seemingly ripe for slaughter. There was little of the resourcefulness worthy of the No.1-ranked side in the world.Stokes played with untrammelled power as blue skies shone over Table Mountain and 12,000 cheering England supporters revelled in every moment. It was a stupendous achievement, a day to treasure, the time-honoured rhythms of Test cricket giving way to something more murderous.Barely anything threatened Stokes’ immense sense of feelgood. On 138, a six against the offspinner Dane Piedt barely cleared the outstretched hands of van Zyl, who significantly was a yard off the boundary at long off. On 197, Chris Morris almost yorked him, perhaps to the bowler’s surprise. And he pottered around for, oh, all of a few seconds before he pulled Morne Morkel through midwicket to reach 200.Jonny Bairstow celebrates his maiden Test century on the second afternoon at Newlands•Getty Images

When the ball comes onto the bat, and cricket is a simple game, Stokes’ destructive power knows few bounds. This was only his third Test hundred, to follow equally exciting affairs against Australia – including Mitchell Johnson at his fiercest – in Perth and New Zealand at Lord’s, and there have been malfunctions along the way, but it was an innings that spoke volumes about the importance of the combative allrounder, able to balance a side and change a game in an instance with bat or ball.His mind was entirely uncluttered, his physique more demoralising by the minute. His backlift was huge and flowing. Shot selection became entirely a matter of where he would hit the ball – pulls bludgeoned through mid-on a speciality, and not always against balls all that short – because he rarely defended and left only deliveries that were virtually too wide to reach. He powered up and let the shots flow.Newlands was at its most seductive for batsmen – and Stokes took a golden opportunity at face value. He is not the sort to see fears where none exist. South Africa lacked the waspish pace of Dale Steyn, or the Cape Town nous of Vernon Philander and those asked to fill the roles had no solution. Half-an-hour before tea on the second day, England were impregnable, hoping that the pitch would break up along with South African minds.England had stolen the game on the previous evening with Stokes and Bairstow taking 46 from the first seven overs with the second new ball. Now they did not just keep it, they ravaged it. That assault began from the outset, helped by some ragged South Africa bowling. An initial plan to bowl wide of off stump proved misguided. Ten came from the first over, from Morkel; a hapless over of short and wide stuff from Morris was flayed to the boards three more times. Playing yourself in was for wimps at a time like this. There were pulls and drives galore. It looked a very simple game.On this sort of pitch, Stokes fancied he could destroy Morris at will. Morris is a T20 specialist, so Stokes dismissed him from his presence as if playing T20. He looked predictable, a bowler operating at a convenient pace. Morkel produced the occasional good ball – but almost exclusively to Bairstow, one thick edge falling drainingly short of the slips. Rabada’s latest lesson in Test cricket was a painful one and his short balls lacked venom. By the time Piedt’s spin was introduced, 12 overs into the day, Stokes’ eye was set.Stokes was entirely relaxed, the power of his strokeplay leaving South Africa’s captain, Hashim Amla, lost for a response. Bairstow offered no release. Misfields crept in and South Africa’s pitch map should have been entitled “desperation”. The boundaries rained down, one of the best of them a pulled six against Rabada by Stokes that flew out of the ground in the general direction of the brewery, where accountants could celebrate the profits provided by celebrating England fans. About the only ball he pushed at cautiously in the morning was the last ball of the session: playing for lunch, Ben Stokes style.England had made 196 in 25 overs in the morning, they added 116 in another 13.5 in the afternoon. What plans South Africa had – and they did not have many – were abandoned at the first sight of failure. Bairstow secured his hundred by cutting van Zyl to the fence and his primeval holler of delight, beard bristling, tightly curled and tightly jawed, holding emotions in check as he looked to the heavens, was a moving moment.From then on, England slogged in the heat, happy to imagine themselves indestructible, Piedt was slow to chase a half chance behind the wicketkeeper as Bairstow top-edged Rabada and Morkel put down a sitter at long off as he same batsman smeared at Morris. It had to end surely, and it did as Rabada had the presence of mind to roll his fingers across the ball and outwit Stokes. England’s ginger quota had proved awfully successful.What followed was very much the undercard, but with Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers still together at the close, and the deficit clipped to 488, South Africa will hope their partnership will swell into something substantial on a third day that should still favour the batting side.South Africa started hamfistedly when Stiaan van Zyl was run out for 4, sent back by Elgar, and Stokes had enough stardust left to have Elgar caught in the gully off a leading edge, but Joe Root dropped de Villiers, on 5, a waist-high chance at second slip – cue a James Anderson black mood – and Amla logged his first half-century in 11 attempts, courtesy of a neat clip off Stokes that suggested form reawakening. England had plans and South Africa scored at 3.4 an over. Normality was restored.

In Perth 309 was insufficient, and in Brisbane 308 was inadequate. But for a short while it looked like India’s 295 in Melbourne might have been enough to keep this series alive

The Report by Brydon Coverdale at the MCG17-Jan-2016
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