England name unchanged squad for Test series decider against SA

31.08.2022 - 12:53 news24.com

England on Wednesday named an unchanged 14-man squad for next week's third and deciding Test against South Africa at The Oval.The hosts levelled the series at 1-1 with a dominant innings and 85-run win inside three days in the second Test at Old Trafford.Captain Ben Stokes scored 103 - his first Test century as skipper - and wicketkeeper Ben Foakes 113 not out.England's victory followed South Africa's almost as crushing innings and 12-run win in the first Test at Lord's.That is the only defeat England have suffered while winning all the other five of their six matches since Stokes replaced Joe Root as permanent red-ball captain at the start of the season.Barring late injuries and the fact they have not added a second specialist spinner to their squad in addition to Somerset left-armer Jack Leach, it now looks likely England will deploy the same XI that won in Manchester when the third Test at The Oval in south London starts on Thursday 8 September.That would leave uncapped batsman Harry Brook still waiting for his Test debut.Pacemen Craig Overton and Matthew Potts will struggle to force their way into a seam attack where Ollie Robinson marked his return to Test cricket with match figures of 5-91 at Old Trafford.England squad:Zak Crawley (Kent), Alex Lees (Durham), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Ben Stokes (Durham, capt), Ben Foakes (Surrey, wkt), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jack Leach (Somerset), Ollie Robinson (Sussex), James Anderson (Lancashire), Harry Brook (Yorkshire), Craig Overton (Somerset), Matthew Potts (Durham)

cricket Ben Stokes England Test James Anderson Ollie Robinson Zak Crawley Jonny Bairstow Alex Lees Harry Brook Craig Overton Jack Leach Matthew Potts Manchester South Africa county Kent county Durham county Sussex county Somerset

Ben Stokes: 149 runs at 37.3; 10 wickets at 15.7; one catchIf he threw his wicket away too often, when he really needed to build an innings, he delivered the best knock of the series with a superbly constructed century at Old Trafford. At times, he was unplayable at second change, a ferocious strike bowler swinging and seaming an old ball and a parsimonious stock bowler, maintaining a threat while choking off the runs. Lest we forget, he also engineered a 2-1 win from the wreckage of an innings defeat at Lord’s and has earned the right to meet criticism of his all-out attacking philosophy and loyalty to his players by simply directing his critics to the scorebook. Grade A

England vs South Africa, 3rd Test, Day 5 Live Updates: England Need 33 Runs To Seal Victory

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England vs South Africa, 3rd Test, Day 4 Live Score Updates: England Look To Extend Lead

England vs South Africa, 3rd Test, Day 4 Live Score Updates: England will look to extend their lead further when they take the field against South Africa on Day 4 of the ongoing third Test at the Oval, London. Ollie Pope top-scored with fine knock of 67 as England managed to take a 34-run lead in the first innings of the ongoing third Test against South Africa at the Kennington Oval. At stumps on Day 3, England were 154 for seven Ben Foakes and Ollie Robinson unbeaten on 11 and 8 respectively. Marco Jansen bagged four wickets while Kagiso Rabada picked up two scalps. Earlier, Ollie Robinson took five before Stuart Broad also took four wickets, helping England bowl out South Africa for a paltry total of 118 on Day 3 of the ongoing third Test. Robinson returned figures of five for 49 while Broad ended the innings with a four for 41 spell. (LIVE SCORECARD)

Watch: Emotional Tribute To The Queen Before England vs South Africa 3rd Test

Before the third Test between England and South Africa got underway at The Oval in London, the ground paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, who died on Thursday. The match was supposed to start on Thursday, but the first day's play was washed out with rain. Friday's play was called off in memory of the Queen. The match started on Day 3 of the Test, with both teams entering the field with the crowd standing in silence. The players passed through a military guard of honour.