Thetownend.com

First Test today and off to our usual flying start. Lost the toss and lost 3 wickets including Cook and Root.

Still, nice to have it back.

Indeed, a lovely way to spend Boxing Day. Nice to see Conpton back in the team, adds solidity which you need with a younger side. Should be an interesting series, both sides in transition a bit but with a few classy players apiece.

Impressed with Taylor at the moment.

England looking good here. Currently lead by 250 with 7 wickets left, and 2 days remaining.

The Saffers look like they're falling apart with Steyn going to hospital to check a shoulder injury.

 Well done chaps. Hopefully, some of the inexperienced players, can kick on from here.

Fantastic win, can't help but think momentum and confidence will be big in a series with so few experienced players. Could go on to win big from here... 3-1 perhaps, especially if Steyn is injured.

I hope Steyn makes it, cricket needs its great fast bowlers. Saffas in a bit of disarray, but that was always likely when talent such as Graeme Smith and especially Jacques Kallis have called it a day.

Kallis balanced their side for sure, they don't seem to have any other bowlers who can bat even a bit, although nobody was ever likely to be as good as Kallis. Too much pressure on ABDV to carry them at the moment especially if he's keeping, but that does at least mean a chance of us seeing the delightfully named Quinton De Kock in this series.

De Kock looked a player when he first appeared, particularly in the LOI stuff, so not sure what's happened to him. Another massive miss for them is Vernon Philander, because he does get some lower order runs as well as being a top bowler.

The Saffers are in a mess. The batting is poor. They are relying on ABDV and Amla. Elgar stepped up in the first inns, but the rest, well... Duminy is a walking wicket for Moeen (I did notice when batting with the tail this morning, Duminy left facing Moeen to his batting partners) and Bavuma...not good enough. It seems there are a few players in there to fill the SA non-white quota. The Saffers couldn't manage a 100 partnership in any Test this year.

Rabada looks good to come in for Steyn, but England will strengthen with Jimmy coming in for Woakes.

The Saffers are seemingly relying on their good record in Cape Town. If England turn them over there, and go 2-0 up, this series is only then going one way.

Because we only seem to go to SA irregularly, and of course not at all post d'Oliveira, I've got no idea as to the traditional nature of Saffa pitches, other than it's more seam than spin.

If you're able to watch and aren't, tune in immediately. Ben Stokes is smashing them to all parts of Cape Town - 189 off 152 and accelerating

Fastest double hundred by an englishman, second fastest all time!  Hats off to that man.

And in the meantime, Bairstow is serenely heading for a hundred.

And how much did that mean to him!!

258 for Stokes now.

What a splendid morning.

Proper emotion that! Great work Jonny but Stokesy, absolutely incredible son. Crap way to get out but who gives a flying one?!

What a comical end.

Eventually out for 259, SA even cocked up getting him out - AB dropping a relative dolly and then Stokes letting him run him out as he was laughing so hard

Nice over though, 6,6,w,6

Declaration. Good luck Saffers.

85/2 and Stokes took the second wicket. Nice.

That was an absolute pummelling from Stokes and Bairstow to the Saffers bowling attacked. They went at just under 8 an over (196 off 25)...in a test match.

It's still a good wicket but if England can remove Amla and ABDV early tomorrow, you get the inkling that another Saffer batting collapse is just around the corner.

450 runs yesterday but today 212 and just the one wicket with a watchful 159 odd from Amla, echoing Atherton's match-saving, unbeaten 185 at Jo'burg in '98.  Too early to predict whether or not any wickets will "skittle", but if not then this is heading for a draw.  Can't see us making a tempting declaration if they don't follow on as that would be taking sportsmanship to new levels, given we are one up in the series.

So after being in a hotel unable to watch the cricket when Stokes was making history I had to make do with TMS.

Got back Sunday night thinking hooray, I've still got my free sky subscription.

Ive watched the dullest pile of old cock for the last 2 days.

Oh well.

If things carry on the way they are today we could actually end up losing this match.....

Don't panic, early wickets followed by middle order solidity is the way of this match. And Compo is a man for a crisis.

Sorry, I misread, Compo is a man to cause a crisis

Got away with a draw. Amla has stepped down as Saffers captain to be replaced by ADBV.

And here we go again.

Good pitch this.  Typical England so far.  Bowled allright but a bit short, let them get a few too many in the end. Come in have a bit of poor batting and then rally.  Stokes and Root currently looking interesting. If they are still there at the end of play we'll be in a very interesting situation.

If they're still there at the close of play and the run rate doesn't drop we'll be ahead

Ooops.  Off goes Stokes.  Good stuff anyway.

Could this be another Broad run through an innings? all 3 so far

That catch from Taylor sounds a stunner. Broad now with 4 for 1 in 4 overs

5 in a spell for Broad, when he's on he's something else.

46-7!! Think Broad must have recovered from his bug.

Stokes is turning into a real threat with the ball. He's been very much the '4th' seamer for a while, but that unit looks good with him in it now.

All done and dusted.

Its making the embarrassing scoreline against Crewe at the moment slightly more bearable.

Final test today. Woakes in for the injured Finn, bit of a conservative selection when it would have been a good chance to debut Footitt. We've dropped Amla again, so it goes.

Another great/flukie catch by Taylor.

Stokes bowls Amla, 104 runs after he's dropped. Saffer Cook closing in a ton of his own.

Shocking collapse by England this morning to lose the last match of the series.
We have lost 7 "final" test matches out of the last 8.
I know we had already won the series but it is a pitiful way to end it.

Well done to the England team for a great series win, but please, at least put up a fight.

I don't really mind if we lose every last test match if we win every series. It's a bit like those dead last day of the season games where you play the kids really, it's difficult to play with the same intensity. England of the 90s used to specialise in winning those games in Ashes series where they'd otherwise been annihilated. I prefer this model.

 This series has been a bit like the summer Ashes, we won, without being convincing. I suppose a good habit to have.

 The Saffas, shot themselves in the foot with selection, which was approaching England's 80's/early 90's style incompetence.

 So where are we? 

Cook, goes on if he wants to.  Hales, rightly had a his turn, but not convinced, who's the next cab of the rank? Compton, good batting helped win first test, so probably goes on. Root, goes on. Taylor, not wholly convincing, but has probably done enough, brilliant fielding helps. Stokes, key man. Bairstow, shit keeper, decent bat. Can he improve? Moeen, lucky to be around when there is no other option. Woakes, good cricketer not test class wit bat or ball. Broad, yes. Jimmy, will probably be glad to get back home. Finn, gets people out, injuries and action issues a bit of a worry.

Buttler's done it again. 101 off 73, positively sedate by his standards

Flat track, hit and hope merchant

Lot of flat tracks around then...

Swindon's (via Goatacre) Liam Dawson's just been named in the England 15 man squad for the World T20, not played for England before but has been playing well for England Lions.

Well done Liam. Only 7+ years after the honour of having his very own thread on the TEF...

http://thetownend.com/index.php?topic=29881.0

Whatever happened to Johnno?

Unlike many a TEFer, and I include myself here, he grew up.

If it's who I think it is, he works for the (Northern) Irish FA.

There were two blokes in IFA tracksuits at Port Vale, maybe he was one? I don't know, so they didn't help.