Ken Borland

South Africa did not tax the England batting in their second innings as they raced to a nine-wicket victory in the third Test at The Oval on Monday, although Kagiso Rabada did finally get some reward for his efforts as he took the wicket of Alex Lees.

England were chasing just 130 to win the Test and the series 2-1, and they resumed on Monday morning just 33 runs short of that target. They rattled off those runs in just 27 minutes off 33 deliveries, with Zak Crawley finishing on a high as he scored a morale-boosting 69 not out off 57 balls, finally showing his true ability.

Rabada once again had Lees dropped early on, wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne this time reacting late and snatching at a regulation chance in the first over of the day, but the great fast bowler did eventually get his man when he trapped him lbw for 39. He needed a review to do it, and even that was rather half-heartedly requested by the Proteas.

Rabada was named as South Africa’s Player of the Series by England coach Brendan McCullum for his 14 wickets at 23.35, and Proteas captain Dean Elgar made a point of thanking his bowlers for their effort, while highlighting that their batting had been rank bad.

“We need to give our bowlers a lot of credit, but it boils down to our batting. We need to be point-blank about it, we just did not execute, we failed in that department,” Elgar said.

“First-innings runs are so crucial in England and with the overhead conditions and the Duke ball, the pitches were always doing something. But if you apply yourself and get in, then it will get easier,” Elgar said.

One of the big surprises of the second afternoon when England put themselves in a wonderful position to win the second Test against South Africa through centuries by Ben Stokes and Ben Foakes was that Proteas captain Dean Elgar did not lean more heavily on fast bowler Anrich Nortje at Old Trafford on Friday.

The explosive paceman had claimed three of the wickets to fall as Stokes and Foakes came together on a difficult 147/5, but Nortje had only eight balls against the pair at the start of their partnership before understandably having a break. But much to the batsmen’s delight, he did not reappear for 30 overs, by which time their partnership was already worth 92. The failure to use Nortje in the first 35 minutes after lunch was particularly baffling.

But the 28-year-old said after the second day’s play that he was happy with captain Dean Elgar’s plans and it was simply a great pitch to bat on. South Africa will certainly hope so as they go into the third day 241 runs behind.

“It was a really good wicket to bat on and I don’t think one should look too deeply into who bowled when and from which end,” Nortje said. “It was obviously a much drier pitch compared to Lord’s.

“So we had to go 100% according to the conditions and Dean had a plan according to what the situation told him. I had a decent stint from both sides.

“We had to go according to conditions and sometimes utilise the spinners at both ends. And as the ball got older, it became even harder to bowl. But we bowled our best balls and they batted very well,” Nortje said.

While many onlookers felt Elgar had given Stokes and Foakes early birthday presents by keeping Nortje or even Kagiso Rabada away from them straight after lunch, Nortje praised the duo for their discipline and determination at the crease as they added a match-turning 173 for the sixth wicket.

“When they first came in, that was definitely the key period for the day, that was the major time after we got wickets in the morning. We tried to keep that pressure on, it was the ideal period to try and get some more sticks.

“At the start of the day it felt like there was plenty of opportunity, balls were missing the bat here and there, and we really felt in it. But they absorbed pressure really well, a few things went their way and they turned the momentum,” Nortje said.

Bleak Bulls coach Jake White did not care much to discuss the nitty-gritty of the match but rather made thinly-veiled digs at referee Andrew Brace following his side’s 18-13 loss to the Stormers in the United Rugby Championship final in Cape Town.

While it was a game in which the bounce of the ball probably did not go the Bulls way, they were also penalised nine times compared to the five of the Stormers. But the home team also dominated in terms of territory (54%) and possession (55%) and, in terms of the scoreboard, the ultimate difference was that they scored two tries to one.

The Bulls also paid for not making more of their early dominance, only scoring seven points in the first half.

“We should have been up more at halftime but there were certain things that we just couldn’t control,” White said. “The referee can only blow what he sees and I thought the referee was outstanding, he saw what he saw.

“There were a lot of things we couldn’t control and you’re never going to be able to. It hurts, it really hurts, those little things. You can’t argue with the referee.

“Right before halftime, they were in our half once and they got a penalty for offsides. We were in their half six times and we did not get any penalties.

“I thought Deon Fourie and Steven Kitshoff were outstanding at the breakdown, but I don’t want to be seen as a whinger but a couple of times they went for the ball, missed, go back again and get rewarded. You can’t control that,” White fumed.

To make the 58-year-old’s mood even worse, the Bulls have also been knocked out of his beloved Currie Cup at the semi-final stage, losing 30-19 to Griquas.

“There are no positives, we lost twice in one weekend, which is the most we’ve suffered in a long time,” White said. “Other teams treated the Currie Cup as a development project, we’re going to have to do the same.

“The Stormers just kept building pressure and the game was never going to go away from them. The longer that pressure went on, the more things we couldn’t control and the game got away from us.

“We were never going to win this game,” White said.

Madosh Tambwe is enjoying a commanding United Rugby Championship campaign on the wing for the Bulls, but is set for a big payday in France with Bordeaux Begles reportedly making a large offer for his services, something the 24-year-old did not wish to comment on on Monday.

While the Kinshasa-born Tambwe is believed to not be eligible for the Springboks because he does not have a South African passport, his performances in the URC have certainly raised questions about whether he could one day play international rugby.

Former Springbok captain Jean de Villiers, who played 15 of his 109 Tests on the wing, says the backing Bulls coach Jake White is giving Tambwe is paying off.

“Madosh is certainly playing well, but he’ll be coming up against the tougher teams now at full-strength. So if he can compete with them and put in good, consistent performances, we could see him stake a claim to step up to international level.

“He’s moved around quite a bit in his career, but we can see at the Bulls the impact a coach who believes in him is having. Madosh is a natural finisher, which is what you want in a wing.

“Look at Makazole Mapimpi: he has the ability to be in the right place and can score tries out of nothing, and I think Madosh could do the same.

“The way he handles the kicking game has been questioned in the past, but he has really improved there and his decision-making in defence has improved too,” De Villiers told The Citizen on Monday.

The 2007 World Cup winner said in order for Tambwe to force his way into a well-stocked Springbok back three, he needs to cut out the little mistakes that are amplified at Test level.

“At national level, you’re looking for a wing who can really limit his mistakes, that and finishing ability really make up the best wingers.

“Madosh just needs to bring his error-rate down a bit, things like losing the ball in contact or being tackled out into touch. But they are small things,” De Villiers said.

The Bulls are apparently willing to let Tambwe go early from his contract, with the compensation they will be paid by Bordeaux allowing the Pretoria franchise to target the signature of the Sharks’ World Cup winning wing Sbu Nkosi.

The Sharks have confirmed an offer from the Bulls is on the table, but “negotiations still have to happen”.