- Live updates from the final day of the first Test
- Broad: ‘Australia start fights and moan when someone comes back’
- Day four report: Root dismissal leaves England facing defeat
- You can email Daniel here or tweet him here
65th over: England 166-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 13) I’m slightly surprised Williamson hasn’t brought Astle on - what’s the worst that could happen? Why is here even there though? De Grandhomme doesn’t look like taking a wicket, and the runs don’t matter; none come from this over, but England won’t mind that at all. Another maiden, and the large man has now sent down four to Stokes.
64th over: England 166-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 13) The game is drifting, but New Zealand won’t mind; the new ball is due in a little while, and they’ll fancy a couple of wickets with that.In the meantime, Wagner charges in another maiden; are Astle’s leggies going to get a shot?
63rd over: England 166-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 13) New Zealand’s lead is 203 as De Grandhomme begins another over, looking to get Stokes driving. But he only plays at two of six balls, and that’s another maiden. Will Williamson keep it going, or look to intervene?
62nd over: England 166-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 13) England’s problem this innings is that they’ve lost a wicket each time they’ve looked set. And they’re looking set if not at ease again, Bairstow glancing two around the corner. Wagner’s looking to slant the ball across him, and have him caught on the off side but so far he’s resisting temptation to flash ... and there he goes, looking to drive and not getting enough of it.
61st over: England 164-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 11) De Grandhomme tries to tempt Stokes into having a shy outside off, and Williamson has two catcher there for the purpose, but he denies himself and then is beaten past his outside edge as the ball shapes away. Another iaden.
Trent Boult's got the England batsmen to play at nearly 75% of the deliveries he's bowled this innings, an indicator of how stump to stump he's bowled.
That's the most for any bowler in any innings in this Test so far with James Anderson's 73.5% at the second spot.#NZvEngpic.twitter.com/44fgdAYSmh
60th over: England 164-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 11) Wagner comes into the attack, slanting the ball across Bairstow and failing to force him to play, until he fetches one from outside off, driving it to cover, who does enough. Maiden.
59th over: England 164-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 11) Stokes plays out a maiden from De Grandhomme. He’s looking comfortable, aware of his where his stumps are nad picking length wel.
“You need to get on Tim Minchin’s video about Prejudice,” chides Jordan Wagner. “It’s quite funny being in Australia at the moment, its all falling apart for them.”
58th over: England 164-4 (Stokes 16, Bairstow 11) Southee smacks through cover for three, then Bairstow misses looking to turn a single away behind square on the leg side, but they run a leg bye anyroad. Meanwhile, in commentary they’re still discussing whether Root should’ve retired hurt last evening, and whether play would’ve closed with that, and whether he could’ve come back in this morning. Stokes then under-edges a single, and England are toddling along nicely, which is to say that we’re about ready for another wicket.
57th over: England 159-4 (Stokes 12, Bairstow 11) De Grandhomme into the attack, replacing Boult, and Bairstow throws hands at wide one, picking out Southee at cover; he misfields and they run two.
56th over: England 157-4 (Stokes 12, Bairstow 9) Stokes pokes on to mid on, then Bairstow gets away chasing one down the outside of his pad ... and dropped! Watling will fancy he should’ve got to that, especially having got a glove to it, but instead the ball penetrates his glove and scoots to the fence. And next up the same result, only via lovely on drive, before an outside edge dies well in front of second slip. A single follows, and that was an eventful over.
55th over: England 147-4 (Stokes 11, Bairstow 0) Boult is too full and Stokes turns him towards the midwicket fence for three; “Looks in decent touch for someone who’s not played,” muses Athers. Bairstow then plays out five dots, and has now gone 13 balls withour breaking his duck,
54th over: England 144-4 (Stokes 8, Bairstow 0) When the last time England had two gingas in the side? I’m not having Collingwood and Bell, who were passive rather than shtick like these two ninjas. Stokes get a single to deep square, and Bairstow defends the two remaining deliveries well enough, though he remains on 0 and on a pair.
53rd over: England 143-4 (Stokes 7, Bairstow 0) These two batsman are proper, but their averages aren’t great, which is to say if they have a good day, good luck stopping them, but if they don’t they probably won’t hang about. Stokes pulls Boult’s fourth ball around the corner for a single – nicely, actually – and it’s the only one of the over, whose final delivery is a peach, back of a length, slanting across Bairstow just outside off, and he’s got no idea whether or not to play. So he does, tentatively and into the ground.
52nd over: England 142-4 (Stokes 6, Bairstow 0) Malan looked good for most of that innings, but you can’t get away with standing still when the bowlers are as good as Boult and Southee. He said he was still rusty, and perhaps that’s the evidence – he’s got something specific and definitive to work on before the second Test. Wicket maiden.
This is a very similar delivery to the one which fluked Malan four last over, back of a length and moving away. Malan doesn’t need to play at this, but it’s so pretty he can’t help it, caught on the crease again, and an edge flies to second slip. I reckon New Zeland might win this one.
51st over: England 142-3 (Malan 23, Stokes 6) England will be ok with how this has gone so far. Malan has looked solid and though Stokes isn’t there yet, the bowlers aren’t as hot as they have been, not getting the help that they have been. Boult has a short mid on in place, dead close to the stumps, but yerman plays out a maiden easily enough.
50th over: England 142-3 (Malan 23, Stokes 6) Southee squares up Malan, who brings the bat down and slices four off the edge down to fine third man. The ball is in all sorts of states, pink flaking off it – perhaps Steven Smith has extra-sensory perception.
49th over: England 138-3 (Malan 19, Stokes 6) A question: has any fast bowler been as good when they retired as Morne Morkel is going to be? Obviously his life plans are none of my business, but as far as I can see it, he’s still improving, and more of a wicket threat than he ever was. We’re going to miss him. Anyway, Stokes gets a leading edge on Boult’s third delivery, just between the bowler and De Grandhomme at mid off; they run two. They’re the only runs from the over, and Stokes isn’t quite timing it yet.
48th over: England 136-3 (Malan 19, Stokes 4) Southee looks lively, beating Malan immediately with some away movement. But the length isn’t right thereafter, so Malan gets rid of the rest of the over with neither alarm or surprise. Maiden.
47th over: England 136-3 (Malan 19, Stokes 4) Boult’s first ball bounces nicely, but towards Stokes’ far hip, and he turns it to leg for four. The Barmy Army sing Jerusalem and applaud themselves; ledges.
Boult has the ball...
Out come the batsmen.
Right then, we’re nearly ready to go. It’s a fine day.
I daresay Wagner will enjoy bowling at Moeen Ali, who does not love the short ball. And then there’s Stuart Broad...
Apparently, Boult, Southee, Wagner get wickets quicker than Walsh, Ambrose Bishop and McGrath, Gillespie, Lee. Decent.
“Very pleasant for us,” says Neil Wagner of Joe Root’s dismissal last evening. You’ve got to laugh.
Malan reckons the first hour will be important. Wahey!
Malan is talking on Sky, and says he still feels rusty. How is that right? The point of a Test series is be testing, and to find out the best team. That requires both sides to be at their, er, best. People.
I read earlier than it’s possible that CA could ban Smith and Warner for life. What an absolute piece of nonsense.
Email!“Do you think we can head off the inevitable obsessive/destructive picking at the scab of Steve Smith and his wide-boy antics by simply rhapsodising about Kane Williamson?” asks Robert Wilson. “Whether for the creamy tartness of his fluid but adamantine strokeplay, the perfect deadpan of his modesty, his perky handsomeness or his letter-perfect superhero alter-ego name, Williamson has it all. This is what a proper cricketer looks and sounds like. A proper man too.
Of course, I’ll look very foolish when it is discovered that he secretly eats babies, kicks kittens and refuses to admit that Die Hard is a Christmas movie. But it’s a big world and there’s room enough for everybody.”
So who is going to play the crucial innings or innings? Humour me. Malan looked in good touch by the close last night, so he’s the obvious pick. Thing is, it’s only 98 overs to bat – a lot, but it’s not loads – but there are no batsman as brilliant as Ian Bell, the key man last time England skanked out of it in New Zealand. If they happen to have a good day, the ball will go, but if they don’t, who’s going to stick it out nonetheless? Moeen Ali has done so once in his career – brilliantly, it must be said, in defeat to Sri Lanka in 2014 – and that’s about it. The home side are favourites, I’d say.
Well, it’s been quite the week. England bowled out for 58, lots of rain, lots of excellence, and now we convene for the denouement. It’s hard to see how England get out of this – ok, it’s expletive impossible to see how England get out of this – because every reason for comes with a more compelling one against. There’s plenty of batting still to come ... but for all the flair, it’s hard to pick a man never mind a pair to take it deep. The pitch is playing fairly well ... but so are Trent Boult and Tim Southee. England have batsmen good enough to deliver under intense pressure ... England are far more accustomed to collapsing under slight pressure. And so on.
Oh yeah, and we’ve seen a few things go on in Cape Town, all of which, added to all of this, reminds us that despite everything, Test cricket is the absolute best, and we should never, ever forget that.
Continue reading...