Bad Light Curtails Cook And Trott’s Not Out Innings

Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott were not out when England closed on 103/1 after bad light prematurely ended the second day’s play at Durban on Sunday.

England 103/1 (Cook 31* Trott 17* Morkel 1/22)

South Africa 1st innings 343 all out (Smith 75 Kallis 75 Swann 4/110)

Andrew Strauss was the early aggressor in the opening partnership, posting his fastest half century in Tests at just better than a run-a-ball.

After the tea break however Morne Morkel slowed the England captain, bringing the ball in on the angle from round the wicket and Strauss survived an LBW after an appeal. Replays vindicated Strauss’s view he had inside edged the ball but no doubt lingered from his eventual dismissal – inside edging again on to middle and leg stumps on 54 off the earlier-aggrieved Morkel.

Trott arrived and instantly wound up the returning World number one-ranked bowler Dale Steyn who, in response to his painstaking routine marking his guard, bounced him.

Trott responded positively, getting on top of the bounce to guide the ball behind square for four and Graeme Smith reverted to the spin of Paul Harris to goad the number three.

Convincing footwork ensured Trott was not bogged down as in the first Test, the crispness of which was matched by Cook.

Cook cleverly went after Harris after deciding, with Makhaya Ntini unconvincing and Jacques Kallis medium-paced, to hit Harris out of the attack and force the Proteas to rely on two seamers.

Cook’s intent was unfortunately curtailed though as senior umpire Aleem Dar decided the fading natural light matched yesterday’s benchmark for the Test.

Stuart Broad earlier struck the crucial blow of removing AB de Villiers, nicking off to Matt Prior, and Graeme Swann waded in with three LBWs to leave South Africa 285/9.

Steyn however upstaged England’s early morning wicket-taking and bludgeoned 47, including three sixes off Swann, in a frustrating last-wicket partnership of 58 with Ntini.

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