South Africa 309 (Philander 61, Duminy 61, Finn 4-75) and 351 (Amla 121, Finn 4-74) beat England 315 (Bairstow 95, Bell 58, Morkel 4-80, Steyn 4-94) and 294 (Prior 73, Trott 63, Bairstow 54, Philander 5-30) by 51 runs
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South Africa displaced England at the top of the Test rankings with a
51-run victory in the third Test at Lord's to secure a 2-0 victory in
the series. It was a thoroughly merited victory by a side that had
dominated the series but England, forced by desperate circumstances to
play with daring, went down with a spirit that for a partisan crowd made
their failure easier to bear.
For South Africa's captain, Graeme Smith, there must have been just a
few flutters of doubt before the greatest triumph of his formidable
reign was confirmed and he received the mace from the ICC chief
executive, Dave Richardson. He has had too many disappointments for
there not to be. It was appropriate that the moment he knew victory must
belong to South Africa was when Matt Prior was ninth out for 73 and he
plunged for the red ball at first slip with hands like an apple catcher.
One ball later came South Africa's victory, Steven Finn pushing at
Vernon Philander and this time Jacques Kallis holding on at second slip.
Philander, who until Lord's had been largely overshadowed. finished
with 5 for 30 and had top-and-tailed England with each new ball in turn.
Good runs as well made him a worthy recipient of the Man-of-the-Match
award.
England had tried, and failed, throughout the series to overcome South
Africa with tight disciplined cricket. They had been rolled by an
innings in the first Test at The Oval but, in the closing moments of
another defeat at Lord's, they had at least piqued their superior
opponents with adventure. Perhaps it carried a significant message that
their strategy had been too narrow. Perhaps it was nothing more than a
last fling.
What could not be disguised was that England's reign at No 1 has been
nightmarish: six defeats in 11 and Test series defeats against Pakistan
and South Africa, this latest setback representing their worst home
defeat since the 2001 Ashes series. Despite that, the captain, Andrew
Strauss, is still held in high regard, although he will want this praise
to centre upon run-making, a united dressing room and tactical acumen
rather than his undoubted managerial skills.
At tea, England needed 125 from 33 overs with three wickets left and the
new ball 10 overs away and calculated that the difference between old
ball and new had been so pronounced in this Test that those 10 overs
should be met with all-out attack. Prior and Graeme Swann added 62 from
8.4 overs, but Swann perished before the new ball, skilfully thrown out
by Imran Tahir at the bowler's end as he tried to steal a single through
gully.
Prior survived Duminy's catch in the deep when Morne Morkel overstepped
and survived again when AB de Villiers narrowly missed a stumping chance
off Imran Tahir, both on 67, but from the moment the new ball was
taken, the match shifted South Africa's way.
It was Jonny Bairstow whose ebullient half-century - 54 from 47 balls
from the depths of 45 for 4 - first sought a route to victory, an
overgrown path strewn with pitfalls, a fourth-innings target of 346 of a
magnitude England had never achieved. Tahir, bowling his legspin around
the wicket into the rough, scuttled one through his defences three
overs into the afternoon session as he trusted to the back foot.
Broad was in jaunty, stand-and-deliver mode, a suitable approach
considering his long-standing run of failures playing in more orthodox
style, never better than when he pulled Dale Steyn into the grandstand
for six. Another hook, an excellent bouncer delivered by Kallis in the
penultimate over before tea, brought his downfall as Hashim Amla took an
assured catch at long leg.
Jonathan Trott was the mainstay of England's subjugated top order,
making 63 from 159 balls, an innings ended by Steyn in mid-afternoon,
courtesy of a fast catch, diving to his left at second slip, by the
evergreen Kallis. But until his ambition was recalibrated by the example
of Bairstow, Trott had been in danger of burying deep into his own
brain. The situation demanded that he played well out of his comfort
zone and he gave the impression of attacking zeal without really moving
the score along, playing and missing regularly.
Any batsman had a right to struggle against an attack of high quality in
what, while the ball retained its hardness, were favourable bowling
conditions. South Africa had had his measure throughout the series and
it showed.
Trott was also stung forward by a mix-up that led to the run-out of
James Taylor. This was England's nadir, for which Trott had to take the
majority of the blame.
When Trott clipped Steyn wide of mid-on, and Amla chased towards
long-on, the lack of running urgency suggested that both batsmen had
settled for a dawdling three. In fact, were it not for an outfield
slowed by repairs after the Olympics archery, it would have been four.
The final arrow was about to plunge deep into England's ambitions that
they might square the series.
Steyn, the bowler, was so convinced all meaningful action was complete
that he collected his sun hat from the umpire before the call of "over."
But Trott turned in invitation of a fourth. Taylor, who was running to
the danger end, accepted with alacrity only for Trott to turn his back
and leave Taylor stranded as Steyn transferred to the wicketkeeper.
England's 16 for 2 from 13 overs overnight was no sort of platform.
Trott and Ian Bell had clung on during the fourth evening in expectation
of a more comfortable morning. But the morning was overcast and the
ball hooped around for every South Africa pace bowler in turn. Instead
of easing into the task, they began as if disorientated by an unwanted
alarm call.
Bell did not manage to add a run, his score 4 from 37 balls when he
drove without conviction at Philander and was caught by Smith, second
attempt, at first slip. When Taylor became the fourth batsman to fall,
England had scrambled 29 in 13 overs, aware of the target but unable to
develop any coherent approach to it.
England's spirit persisted. Like Bairstow and Broad before him, Swann,
ideal for such an escapade, played with dash. He sauntered down the
pitch to hoist Tahir's legspin for six, and pulled Kallis high into the
Mound Stand. Prior passed 50 by twice reverse sweeping Tahir and
serenely drove Morkel over mid-on. It was fun but, in the final
analysis, perhaps it did not mean all that much.
David Hopps is the UK editor of ESPNcricinfo
Feeds: David Hopps
© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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