Tag: South Africa v England

The End of a Match and an Era

A brief look at the conclusion to the last ‘timeless’ test match ever to be played, a conclusion which unfolded on March 14th 1939, 11 days after the match had begun.

Up until World War II broke out both Australia and South Africa were believers in timeless test matches (i.e. played until one or other side had won). This post looks briefly at the match which finally ended timeless tests.

OF RAIN, TRAINS AND BOATS

As March 14th 1939 dawned England were within sight a victory that had it eventuated would have strained credulity. At one point South Africa had been over 400 runs to the good with all ten second wickets standing. Both sides knew that although the test match, which had begun 11 days previously on March 3rd, had been designated timeless this would have to be the final day as England needed to catch a train to Cape Town or miss their boat home and be stranded for at least a month (and of course war was looming, which made folk even less keen on being trapped abroad than they would have been anyway. Although it had rained on several occasions in the match these interludes had served only to bind the surface of the pitch back together, and it was still playing well and true. England, set a mammoth 696 to win, went past 600 with only three wickets gone. At 611 Eddie Paynter was fourth out for 75. Les Ames now joined Hammond at the crease, and the pair were still together when the 650 came up. At exactly 650 Hammond was stumped off Dalton for 140. That brought Bryan Valentine, a specialist batter, in to join Ames. Four runs later the heavens opened, and the downpour proved terminal. In total the match had seen 1,981 runs scored for the loss of 35 wickets, an aggregate that remains a test match record but was beaten twice in the next decade in FC matches, both involving Bombay as it was then called – Bombay v Holkar yielding 2,078 runs, including 249 in losing cause for Denis Compton, and then in 1948 Bombay v Maharashtra yielding 2,376. The Durban test match still had the record for the longest span of any first class match. Hedley Verity, the left arm spinner, sent down 774 balls across the two South African innings (96.6 eight ball overs under the playing conditions of the day, equivalent to 129 six ball overs. For South Africa Norman Gordon, a seamer no less, sent down 736 balls (92 eight ball overs, equivalent to 122.4 six ball overs). There is a book about this match “Edging Towards Darkness” by John Lazenby. No timeless match has been scheduled since this one. For the moment here is the scorecard.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…

Three Overlapping Matches

Detailed looks at the men’s match between Australia and India and the women’s match between South Africa and England that are currently in progress, a mention of the men’s match between New Zealand and England, a 35 second video and a photo gallery.

The New Zealand and England men’s teams are currently playing the third match of a series already won by England, while the Australian and Indian men’s teams are playing the third match of a five match series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and the South Africa and England women’s teams are playing a one-off test match to end England’s tour there. This post looks at goings on in these matches, the second and third in a bit of detail as I have been able to follow them. As for the first, suffice to say that it looks like England are copping a hammering and that said result will be entirely justified.

THE GABBA: AUSTRALIA v THE WEATHER

The third match of the series for the Border-Gavaskar trophy in Brisbane has lost a lot of time to the weather with possibly more interruptions in the two days that remain. The weather has done rather more to stand in Australia’s way than India have managed. India won the toss and opted to field, a lure that has tempted several captains there in the past, though the results should influence modern era skippers against doing so: Hutton put Australia in in 1954-5 and they scored 601-8 declared and won by an innings and 160 runs, though England fought back to win the second, third and fourth matches of that series; Border put England in in 1986-7 and they scored 456, bowled Australia out twice and knocked off the runs needed in the fourth innings; and finally Hussain put Australia in in 2001-2, the hosts were 367-2 at the end of day one and won a thumping victory. Unless the rain persists Rohit Sharma will come away with the same result as those three did – Australia have scored 445, a total kept within some sort of bound only by Jasprit Bumrah who emerged with 6-79. In such batting time as the rain has allowed them in their own first innings India have limped to 48-4, meaning that Australia need 16 more wickets to win and are 397 ahead, given that we are going into day four and there is still rain about, if they do indeed bowl India out for 245 or less it will be mandatory to enforce the follow on.

THE GHOSTS OF DRS PAST AND FUTURE HAUNT CSA

This test match will almost be the last such game involving either sex not to feature the Decision Review System – both the England innings, and the South African response still in progress have featured moments where the absence of DRS for this match has been crucial, and England have been the beneficiaries of both. Tammy Beaumont was given not out in response to a concerted appeal for LBW on the second ball of the match, and South Africa would certainly have sent it upstairs had DRS been in place, and would very probably have seen it overturned. In the South African innings their skipper Laura Wolvaardt was on 65 and frankly looking impossible to dislodge when a ball from Ecclestone struck her pads and she was given LBW. Wolvaardt made it obvious that she was certain that she had nicked it into her pads, and with DRS in place she would have sent it upstairs and it would have been overturned. Maia Bouchier scored a century on her test debut, and Natalie Sciver-Brunt also contributed a ton, reached off just 96 balls, to England’s efforts. England fell away a bit late in their innings, but a score of 395-9 declared is not to be sniffed at. At 237-3 with Marizanne Kapp and Sune Luus going well South Africa looked to be heading for somewhere close to parity, but Kapp being bowled by Ryana McDonald-Gay opened an end for England, and wickets have been falling regularly since then. The latest go has been Chloe Tryon, clipping one from Lauren Bell straight into the hands of Tammy Beaumont. Luus had succumbed just previously to a fearsome burst from Lauren Filer, finally fencing one into the gloves of Amy Jones behind the stumps to go for 56. Number nine Tumi Sekhukhune  has just got off the mark with a four, but at 275-7 South Africa are 120 adrift with only three first innings wickets standing. Things have moved on while I have been preparing this post for publication – Lauren Bell has bowled Jafta with a beauty and then with her next ball, assisted by the number 10 backing away so much that she was practically in a different post code from the ball, removed Nonkululeko Mlaba’s middle stump. Nat Sciver-Brunt has just terminated the innings by pinning Ayanda Hlubi LBW for 1 and South Africa are all out for 281, giving England a first innings lead of 114.

PHOTOGRAPHS

Before I produce my latest photo gallery I have a short video to share with you…

Now for the photo gallery…

Two WODIs

A look at goings on in two WODIs, Australia v India which finished a while back and South Africa v England which is approaching the halfway stage.

Today is a big cricketing day – in the early hours of this morning UK time an Australia v India Women’s One Day International started, and at midday today UK time a South Africa v England Women’s One Day International started. This post looks at what has happened so far.

AUSTRALIA v INDIA

Harmanpreet Kaur won the toss at the WACA in Perth (these days superseded by the Optus Stadium, but still a fine venue) and to fairly universal surprise opted to put Australia in with the temperature at 38 Celsius and set to rise during the first innings. A four wicket burst from Arundhati Reddy had Australia 78-4, but none of Reddy’s team mates managed to bowl well, and with an Annabel Sutherland century the highlight (Sutherland has a great record at this venue, including scoring 200 in a test match against South Africa) Australia regained control of proceedings, ending on 298-6. India were soon behind the rate, but they did do a good job of keeping wickets in hand for later in the chase. With coverage of the other match due to start at 11:45 I set out at 10:30 for a walk, aiming to arrive back as coverage of that match got underway, which I managed to do. I was reckoning that Australia had the match under control and that the only real obstacle in their pathway was Smriti Mandhana who was batting splendidly. Events confirmed both elements of this prediction – I was to find out that India had reached a high water mark of 189-3 before Mandhana having reached three figures was out, and the innings fell away to a low point of 203-8, before the last couple of wickets scraped up a further 12 runs to reduce Australia’s margin to 83 runs, still an emphatic victory for the hosts.

SOUTH AFRICA v ENGLAND

This match is taking place in Potchefstroom on the high veldt, where scoring can be rapid due to the ball travelling further and faster through the thinner air. However, South Africa, put in by England who won the toss, are not scoring particularly fast. Laura Wolvaardt scored a fine half century but when she had reached 61 she was pinned LBW by Ecclestone. South Africa appear to have decided that the left armer can be allowed to get through her overs effectively unscathed so long as she doesn’t take too many wickets. However, she has just added a second scalp, Chloe Tryon, stumped after about the first show of aggression by any Protea batter against Ecclestone. South Africa are 201-7 in the 41st over, and Ecclestone currently has 8-0-21-2. England lost Kate Cross injured before she had completed her first over, leaving them an allocation to fiddle through with part timers. Nevertheless England have the advantage and I would expect them to win from here. While I have been preparing this for publication an eighth wicket has gone, and South Africa are 201-8 in the 43rd over.

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off (please note that the featured image is not in the below gallery, being a composite of three separate pictures, showing both sides of the Guanock Gate and the information panel about said gate)…