SA VS ENG TESTS

Right then, that concludes our proceedings of this first Test match. It has been a dominant performance by the Proteas and with that, they have grabbed crucial World Test Championship points as well from this historic win. The caravan will now move to Manchester for the second Test. That game is set to take place on Thursday, 25th of August at 3.30 pm IST (10 am GMT). Our build-up though begins a lot earlier. So do join us for the same. Till then, goodbye and cheers!

Kagiso Rabada the Player of the Match. He says that is special to contribute to a team win and adds that to do it in Lords’s is pretty special. Tells that he did not even know about the stats, he just tried to follow his process and stick to his strengths, and then the rest took care of itself. Talks about his learnings from the 2017 tour and says that is all about getting the lengths right and adjusting with the Duke ball. He applauds Keshav Maharaj for his performance in this game and says that he has been an outstanding performer for them over the years. Also mentions that his two wickets really helped them. Signs off by saying that he is looking forward to the next game.

Dean Elgar the captain of South Africa says that this is a brilliant effort from the boys and they did not expect the game to finish so quickly. Tells that they wanted to bat long and hard and tells that Anrich Nortje's spell changed the game. Mentions that his decisions come with positive intent and he likes his boys to express themselves. Adds that they played in a South African way, their unique way. Talks about his captaincy and says that it depends on his gut feeling and the move to bring Keshav Maharaj was his gut feeling and then Anrich Nortje bowled with the speed of light. Also credits Sarel Erwee and tells that the partnership between them has been quite good and adds that he is an experienced player and wants his boys to enjoy this win.

Ben Stokes the skipper of England tells that they are disappointed to lose but they cannot drift away from their plans after just one loss. Mentions that they will continue to play the way they are playing and it is just about execution which they did not do well in this game and credits South Africa for the way they played. Adds that all the captains before him have also been criticized for the way the team has played and says that it is a part and parcel of the game. Says that they can’t give excuses about not having red-ball cricket before this game. He credits Ollie Pope for the way he played in testing conditions and sarcastically adds that he wants to win the toss in the next game.

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Earlier in the Test, Dean Elgar won the crucial toss and made the perfect decision to bowl first. His bowlers justified his decision to bowl first as they bundled out England for 165. Kagiso Rabada was the one who grabbed a five-wicket haul in the first innings and Ollie Pope scored 73 and was the stand-out player for England. Coming to bat, the openers of South Africa put together 85 runs and set a perfect platform and the right tone for the others. Keshav Maharaj and Marco Jansen then put on a fiery stand of 72 runs and kept South Africa in the driving seat. They eventually ended up getting a lead of 161 runs which did prove enough in the end. Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad were the picks of the bowlers for England.

A tough loss for England! This was the first time, England were batting first under their new head coach and captain, Ben Stokes, and things have certainly not worked for them. They were bundled out for 165 runs in the first innings and 149 in the second. Their bowling too was not up to the mark in this game. None of their batters got going while coming to bat for the second time. They started off well, Zak Crawley and Alex Lees put on an opening stand of 20 runs but they failed to carry on. Zak Crawley was the first one to depart and after that wickets kept falling in a heap. Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad then put on a counter-attacking stand of 55 runs and gave their side a slight glimmer of hope. But Stuart Broad perished soon and then there we no further partnerships created. England were eventually all-out for 149.

It's been a complete team performance from the visitors! They had put England under the pump after the first session and made sure to capitalize on that moment in the second session as well. They have bowled exceptionally well, and have bamboozled the English batting line-up. They grabbed 8 wickets in the second session of the game and sealed a comfortable victory.  Lungi Ngidi was the man to grab the first wicket of the second session, he got rid of Joe Root for a timid score. Anrich Nortje then followed that up with 3 quick wickets and put England under immense pressure. Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad then put on a stand of 55 runs and gave the crowd at Lord's something to cheer about. But that did not last very long as Kagiso Rabada came in and broke the stand between them. Marco Jansen then wrapped things off by grabbing the final two wickets.

South Africa have pulled off an emphatic victory at the home of cricket, Lord's! They have managed to stop the juggernaut of this strong England Test team and have continued to shine in the longest format of the game. Before the game, Dean Elgar did mention, that they are not afraid of the 'Bazball' approach by the English team and he and his side have certainly lived up to what he said. It's been a surreal performance from the visitors, and with this win, they have taken a 1-0 lead in this 3-match Test series.

OUT! BOWLED! That's it! South Africa win! What a performance this has been, a true team effort. They stayed true to their strengths playing old-fashioned cricket with great grit and determination and delivered a solid performance in the end. Coming to the ball - This is very full and swings away late from middle. James Anderson skips down the track and backs away a bit too much. He tried to dig it out but is too late as the ball goes onto shatter the stumps. Marco Jansen is elated and so are other players, they truly deserve this win. South Africa win by an innings and 12 runs!

Good late swing for Jansen! This is on a fullish length, on off. James Anderson looks to drive it away but the ball swings away and beats the outside edge of Jimmy's blade.

Another play and a miss! On a good length and outside off. James Anderson drives away from his body but misses.

Serves a good-length delivery, outside off. James Anderson tries to drive it away but misses.

Good length, outside off. Jack Leach pushes it towards point fielder.

On a length, on off. Leach gets the inside edge onto his pads as he looks to defend it.

NO BALL! Back of a length, on off. Leach dabs it towards point. Another no ball from Rabada.

Back of a length, around off. Leach guides it towwards backward point. Anrich Nortje moves sharply to his right and stops it with a dive.