Zak Crawley guides England to verge of series win against South Africa

11.09.2022 - 22:57 theguardian.com

When South Africa declined the offer to push back their flight home and extend this third Test by a day, there were concerns – however trifling in the grand scheme of things – that an enticing series decider could well end up a case of what might have been.

Instead, only biblical rain or an unthinkable clatter of wickets on the final day will prevent England from completing their sixth Test victory of the summer and thus their best home season in 18 years.

They will resume on 97 for no loss needing 33 more runs to reach a target of 130 before a celebration delayed by bad light can finally begin.

It follows the second evening in a row where the players were forced off early and this time, at 6.37pm, boos rang around the Oval.

cricket rowing bowling win Ollie Robinson Jimmy Anderson Zak Crawley Marco Jansen South Africa

England started the day at 97-0 needing another 33 to win and picked them up in 27 minutes for the loss of Alex Lees for 39. Crawley finished on 69 not out, with Pope unbeaten on 11. The victory made it six wins from seven Tests this summer, following a 3-0 beating of New Zealand and a win over India, all following an awful run that brought one win from the previous 17 Tests and led to the arrival of Ben Stokes as captain in place of Joe Root.

England's Zak Crawley scores 69 not out as Kent opener steers team to victory in third Test against South Africa at The Oval

Zak Crawley helped steer England to victory against South Africa in the third Test at The Oval on Monday morning.

England wrap up series and successful summer with win over South Africa

England took just under half an hour to administer the coup de grace to South Africa on the final morning of the Test summer at the Oval, romping to a nine-wicket victory in the deciding match in front of a scattering of fans for whom the allure of free tickets and the guarantee of a home victory had proved strong enough to justify the journey to Kennington.

Zak Crawley, Alex Lees propel England towards victory in third Test against South Africa

Both batsmen came into the Test under scrutiny following a poor series, but Crawley raced to 57 from 44 balls with some dominant strokes, and Lees is unbeaten on 32. The latter was dropped off the first ball of the innings by Marco Jansen at fourth slip, a regulation chance from the bowling of Kagiso Rabada, and England used that good fortune to propel themselves towards a series victory.

England vs South Africa, 3rd Test Day 4: Zak Crawley Takes England To Verge Of South Africa Series Win

Zak Crawley's dynamic unbeaten fifty took England to the brink of a series-clinching win over South Africa in the third Test at the Oval on Sunday. England were 97-0 at stumps, needing just 33 more runs to reach a modest target of 130 on Monday's final day to take the three-match contest 2-1. The often struggling duo of Alex Lees (32 not out) and Crawley (57 not out) were both unbeaten at stumps. Victory would give England a sixth win in seven Tests since their new leadership duo of captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum took charge at the start of this season.