England surrendered a yawning advantage to South Africa on a manic second day at Trent Bridge.
The hosts, hoping to consolidate here after their wide-margin win at Lord’s, will have to do so the very hard way after being bowled out for 205 to concede a first-innings deficit of 130 in this second Test.
South Africa then extended their lead to 205 with a stumps total of 75 for one, as a curiously serene late passage of play broke the mould and yielded a solitary wicket in a daily tally of 15.
TWEET OF THE DAY
A few words on the day’s play from @MichaelVaughan and @GraemeSmith49 at lunch. #ENGvSA pic.twitter.com/CZTIJkxMDy
— Cricket on 5 (@cricketon5) July 15, 2017
CRAZY CRICKET
After 19 wickets on the fourth day at Lord’s, another 15 fell here on just the second. Overhead conditions played their part, as they often do in Nottingham, and an untypical spinners’ pitch was a key factor at HQ.
Even so, after England were bowled out in little more than 50 overs, it seems few modern-day cricketers retain the capacity to dig in and bat time.
SOUTH AFRICA CAN BOWL
Everyone expected the tourists to miss the banned Kagiso Rabada badly here. They got stuck into England in his absence, though, Vernon Philander and Morne Morkel doing the early damage and Keshav Maharaj and Chris Morris completing the job quickly.
With Rabada due back at The Oval, there is an argument that South Africa may even have the better of two quality attacks.
STAT OF THE DAY
700 – James Anderson’s dismissal of Keshav Maharaj took his and Stuart Broad’s Test aggregate tally in partnership to an impressive round figure.
Only Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh have more together as a pace pairing. For good measure, by the time he was done in South Africa’s first innings, Anderson had taken his all-time record Trent Bridge haul to 58 in nine Tests.
WHAT NEXT?
More wickets, few boundaries in between, and an early conclusion – with South Africa by far the likeliest winners.