Ben Stokes: England’s second Test win over South Africa is the benchmark

England captain Ben Stokes praised his side for producing a “benchmark” performance that swept South Africa aside inside three days at Emirates Old Trafford.

Stokes started his reign with four adrenaline-fuelled run chases against New Zealand and India before crashing back to earth with a thumping defeat by the Proteas at Lord’s last week.

England got themselves back to winning ways in Manchester, knocking over the tourists for 151 and 179 to triumph by an innings and 85 runs with two days to spare.

Despite the bruising nature of the result it was a performance that required more determination and more nuance than the tub-thumping thrillers that lit up the early part of the summer.

Ben Foakes knuckled down for a determined century, with Stokes also digging deep in the early stages of his first ton as skipper, while Zak Crawley shelved his natural attacking instincts to survive an important passage on the first evening.

Their collective resolve was tested again on Saturday as Keegan Petersen and Rassie van der Dussen defied them in a frustrating 43-over stand before an inspired double strike from Stokes ended their resistance.

“I think what we did incredibly well was assess that we didn’t feel this was a wicket where we could go out and play in the way that we’ve spoken about,” he said.

“Cricket is about how you bat, bowl and field and I think that the way we batted, bowled and fielded this whole game is the benchmark of the standards we’ve set. I think that is real progress for the side.

“It didn’t feel like a wicket where you could stand there and hit through the line because of the variable bounce that it was offering. Some balls were going through and bouncing, some were skidding at a good pace.

“It was an amazing