England 67 for 1 (Cook 31*, Westley 19*) v South Africa
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Duanne Olivier dismissed Keaton Jennings for 17 © Getty Images
Alastair Cook and Tom Westley made light of both the overcast conditions, and another insubstantial contribution from Keaton Jennings at the top of the order, to guide England to a healthy 67 for 1 after winning the toss and choosing to bat first in the fourth Investec Test at Old Trafford.
After several days of the most stereotypically grim Mancunian weather imaginable, the match managed to get underway on time, albeit under heavy cloud and on a surface that, though ostensibly dry, could hardly have avoided absorbing a considerable amount of moisture in its preparation.
And sure enough, England found the going tough from the outset, even in the absence of the one South Africa bowler most likely to have thrived in the seam-and-swing conditions. After battling through illness in the third Test at The Oval, Vernon Philander succumbed to a back spasm on the eve of the match, as did another valued member of their fast-bowling stocks, Chris Morris – whose pace and aggression had been instrumental in their second-Test fightback at Trent Bridge last month.
But while Morne Morkel and Kagiso Rabada were in harness with the new ball, hammering out an edge-threatening line and length to England’s brace of left-handed openers, such gaps in South Africa’s ranks were far from the forefront of Cook’s and Jennings’ minds.
Jennings, whose 48 in the second innings at The Oval had been a streaky but valuable reminder of his battling qualities, once again failed to dispel the gathering doubts about his Test aptitude with a battling but unfulfilled innings of 17 from 37 balls that nevertheless counts as his fifth-highest score in 11 Test innings. After cashing in on a brace of wayward deliveries from the recalled Duanne Olivier, he was lured forward by a sharp delivery outside off, for Quinton de Kock to take the catch that ended an opening stand of 35.
However, Jennings could and perhaps should have been dismissed by his fourth ball of the match. Having clipped Rabada sweetly off his pads for his first boundary of the innings, he was trapped in no-man’s land by the follow-up, and inside-edged a ballooning catch off the pad flap that Rabada hared after in his followthrough but couldn’t quite snaffle.
A short-leg would have gobbled the chance with his eyes closed, but it was a position that Faf du Plessis steadfastly refused to fill, with the seamers’ full lengths persuading him to keep his slip cordon stacked instead.
Cook, true to his phlegmatic approach, was tested time and again in the channel outside off but managed through a combination of skill, luck and judgment to avoid any that exploded off the deck past his edge. His most productive scoring area, unusually for the first morning of a Test match, was straight down the ground, where he placed two fractionally overpitched deliveries from Morkel and Olivier with dead-eyed timing.
Cook did have one moment of discomfort against the sharp pace of Rabada, who hurried him on the pull as he combatted a round-the-wicket bouncer, and gloved a top-edge over the keeper’s head for four. Tom Westley, his Essex team-mate who once again looked composed in his third Test innings, likewise had a technical let-off on 15, when he flashed hard and uppishly over the slip cordon to pick off a streaky four against Olivier.
South Africa stuck to their task in the helpful conditions, and never allowed England’s run-rate to get out of hand. They suffered another momentary injury scare when Keshav Maharaj, their left-arm spinner, left the field for treatment, seemingly on a dodgy hamstring, but he was back on the field and bowling before the end of the session, even beating Westley with a beauty in the final over of the session.
In Maharaj’s absence, Theunis de Bruyn, Morris’s allrounder replacement, provided Cook with a few dicey moments with his wobbling medium pace, a mode of delivery – like his mentor Graham Gooch before him – that has often caused him more concerns than raw pace.
Prior to the start of play, a presentation was made to James Anderson in front of the Pavilion to mark the official naming of the James Anderson End, to complement the Brian Statham End opposite and commemorate the most successful Mancunian Test bowler in history. It remains to be seen whether Anderson feels obliged to open the bowling from said End when England’s turn comes to bowl.
Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo