Stuart Broad produced a sensational display of fast bowling as England swept to a series-clinching victory on the third day of the third Test at the Wanderers Stadium on Saturday.
Broad took six for 17 as South Africa were bowled out for just 83 in their second innings.
Needing 74 to win, England won by seven wickets to take a winning 2-0 lead into the final Test in Centurion next week.
Photo: Reuters
Broad ripped the heart out of the South Africa batting, taking the first five wickets for one run in the space of 31 balls after lunch.
“When he gets on a roll like that, you just let him go,” England captain Alastair Cook said. “You could see by the look in his eyes this morning that he had the bit between his teeth.”
The defeat is set to topple South Africa from top spot in the International Cricket Council’s Test rankings when the points are adjusted after the series.
England led on the first innings by 10 runs after being bowled out for 323 and the match was evenly poised as South Africa opening batsmen Dean Elgar and Stiaan van Zyl put on 23 runs at the start of the second innings, with Broad having conceded 13 of the runs.
According to Cook, England coach Trevor Bayliss had “a few harsh words” at lunch before a session in which eight wickets fell for 55 runs, telling the players they had an opportunity to win the series.
Broad struck in the third over after the interval, having Elgar caught behind off a ball that lifted and moved away from the left-hander.
Van Zyl was dropped, a difficult chance to James Anderson at third slip, and the single that was taken as the ball looped away was to prove the only run that Broad conceded while wrecking the top order.
Van Zyl was caught at gully. South Africa captain A.B. de Villiers came out to a roar of appreciation from a near-capacity crowd, but was caught behind without scoring off a delivery that cut back sharply to take an inside edge.
Hashim Amla was superbly caught at short leg by James Taylor off a full-blooded leg glance and Temba Bavuma was bowled when he ducked to avoid a short ball, which hit his glove and went on to the stumps.
Broad was rested with figures of five for 14 from 10 overs, eight of which were bowled after lunch.
“I got a bit lucky with the conditions,” Broad said. “The clouds came in and the lights came on. It was a fantastic deck to bowl on... There was movement through the air and off the pitch.”
Broad said he had been frustrated by his bowling in the first innings.
“I was a little bit ill and I did not bowl well. I had a chat with Alastair [Cook] this morning about bowling a bit fuller and bringing the batsmen forward. We were great as a side after lunch and took some great catches,” Broad said.
De Villiers said: “It was some of the best bowling I have faced, from the whole unit. The conditions suited them, but they made the best of them. They asked a lot of questions.”
England had not “asked as many questions” in the first innings, he said.
“That is where we missed a trick. We had a great opportunity to get 400-plus and we did not take it,” De Villiers added. “It is tough to lose the series, but there is still a lot to play for. I almost feel all hope is gone, but I am the kind of guy who will get myself and the team going for the last Test.”
The fourth and final Test starts on Friday.
Kylian Mbappe struck from the penalty spot as Real Madrid beat a dogged CA Osasuna 1-0 on Tuesday to make a winning start in Spanish La Liga under new coach Xabi Alonso. The France striker, last season’s European Golden Shoe winner, scored early in the second half, after he was fouled in the area by Osasuna defender Juan Cruz. It was enough to seal the points in Alonso’s first game in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu, with Madrid now unbeaten in their opening fixture of a league campaign since 2008. “You can see that Kylian wants to do even more
TO THE TOP: After securing the international title on Saturday, Team Taiwan were to face Las Vegas to potentially win their 18th Little League World Series championship A team from Taipei’s Dong Yuan Elementary School won the Little League Baseball World Series’ international title on Saturday by defeating Aruba 1-0 in the annual baseball tournament held in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The Taiwan team, competing under the name Chinese Taipei, were after press time last night to face a team from Las Vegas, Nevada, which beat a team from Fairfield, Connecticut, in the US championship 8-2. Taiwan are seeking to win their first Little League Baseball World Series title since 1996. “Really haven’t taken a moment to data dump right now on Taiwan,” Nevada manager T.J. Fescher said. “They’re a
‘CATASTROPHE’: Despite losing several key forwards in the summer transfer window, Bayern were up 3-0 in the first half before Harry Kane scored a hat-trick in the second Harry Kane hit a hat-trick, Michael Olise a double and newcomer Luis Diaz also scored as Bayern Munich made a “statement” against RB Leipzig 6-0 at home in the Bundesliga season opener on Friday. Bayern’s big-money arrivals, all brought in from the Premier League across the past three seasons, were dominant as the Bavarians begun their title defense in style. Olise scored twice in the first half, either side of a Diaz strike. Not to be outdone, Kane scored three goals in the second half — with two assists coming from Diaz, to bring Bayern’s total to 6-0. Kane told the Bundesliga
Kevin de Bruyne is to lead SSC Napoli’s Serie A title defense today when he makes his full debut at promoted US Sassuolo, but the champions head into the new season rocked by a long-term injury to star striker Romelu Lukaku. De Bruyne was, alongside aging icon Luka Modric, the big new name to arrive in Italy this summer and fans were hoping his linkup with Belgium teammate Lukaku would push Napoli to success both at home and in their return to the UEFA Champions League. The 34-year-old has suffered from hamstring injuries which caused him to miss significant chunks of the
RSS