Graham Onions Takes Third of England’s Late Wickets
Graham Onions’s late removal of JP Duminy saw England recapture the advantage on the first day of the second Test against South Africa at Durban.
Duminy was plumb LBW, so obvious was the decision that Onions continued his follow through to Andrew Strauss at slip to celebrate with barely a glance at the umpire.
England’s third wicket for ten runs in the final 29 balls of the day stole back the momentum temporarily held by Proteas veterans Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis.
James Anderson struck the first blow of the morning in just the third over, inducing Ashwell Prince to nick off to Graeme Swann on two.
And when Stuart Broad struck in his first over to trap Hashim Amla leg before also on two, Smith’s decision to bat first looked mistaken at 10/2.
Smith and Kallis however regrouped and compiled 150 in a partnership which spanned 45 overs and 5 balls and which might have been more, if not for the slow outfield restricting boundary fours.
When England desperately needed to break the stand, Swann struck the crucial blow, showing why his field setting from round the wicket was entirely justified.
The decision not to position a silly point was repaid when Swann drifted a ball across Kallis who pushed forward, confidently given the lack of man in front of him, and edged to Paul Collingwood at slip on 75 – the Nottinghamshire spinner again showing he can beat the world’s best on either side of the blade.
Smith and the incoming AB de Villiers then contrived to provide England the run out of Smith as de Villiers sent Smith back and Alastair Cook beat his turn to regain his ground – running in with the ball and breaking the stumps without the need to throw.
Onions capped a great fightback for Andrew Strauss’s men after tea – exaggerated by the umpires’ decision to take the players off for bad light with England in the ascendancy.
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