England vs South Africa LIVE: Cricket score and third Test result as England seal series victory
England notched the 33 runs they needed to win the game at The Oval and secure a 2-1 series victory over the Proteas
England polished off the remaining runs they needed to beat South Africa by nine wickets in the third Test at the Oval on Monday morning to secure a 2-1 series victory.
Openers Zak Crawley and Alex Lees were still at the crease as the hosts began the day requiring just 33 runs for victory after bad light stopped play on Sunday evening.
Lees was dropped by Proteas wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne from the third ball of the morning and then survived another scare when a thick edge flew over Keegan Petersen at third slip to go for four but the Proteas made a breakthrough on the penultimate delivery of the third over of the day, with Lees’ fortune finally running out as a review showed he had been trapped lbw by Kagiso Rabada.
The Durham batter was out for 39 with England 22 runs from clinching the series but Ollie Pope joined Crawley at the crease to quickly knock them off, as the under-fire opener eased the pressure on himself somewhat by ending unbeaten on 69 and cap a remarkable summer for England’s Test team.
Follow reaction to the third Test below:
England 28-1 (6.3), Pope 9, Crawley 5, Rabada 0-22 (3.3)
Review! This is a close one as Rabada jags the ball back into Crawley off the pitch and he leaves it alone. The ball thuds into his pads but the batter is stood on off-stump.
The umpire turns down South Africa’s appeal so Dean Elgar sends it upstairs with a review.
Ball-tracking shows that Crawley had shuffled across his stumps and the ball didn’t move enough. It was going on to miss the wickets and missing outside the off-stump.
England 28-1 (6), Pope 9, Crawley 5, Jansen 1-6 (3)
Jansen is getting the ball to nip and swing from his left-arm over the wicket angle. Crawley is leaving the ball on length when it’s near his off-stump and one delivery cuts back and flies over the top much to the excitement of the South Africans.
The England opener takes a single of the last ball of the over with a push into the leg side.
England 26-1 (5), Pope 9, Crawley 4, Rabada 0-22 (3)
Ollie Pope loves batting at The Oval, he averages 88 in first class cricket at this ground.
Kagiso Rabada drags a couple of deliveries short and Pope pulls him confidently away for consecutive boundaries to end the over.
England trail by just 92 runs now.
England 18-1 (4), Pope 1, Crawley 4, Jansen 1-4 (2)
England’s number three is Ollie Pope who pushes the ball into the offside to get off the mark immediately. Crawley watches the ball closely and gets through the rest of the over.
It’s been a good, disciplined start from Marco Jansen.
Wicket! Lees 13 (6) b. Jansen, England 17-1 (3.1)
Bowled him! Marco Jansen sends down what seems to be a simple straight ball on a good length. The ball nips through Alex Lees’ gate and clips the top of middle stump.
England lose their first wicket!
England 17-0 (3), Lees 13, Crawley 4, Rabada 0-14 (2)
Alex Lees is getting England off to a flyer here. He latches onto a wide one from Kagiso Rabada and punches him through the offside for four runs!
Then he flicks a full delivery off his pads into the leg side for three more to move up to 13 from five balls.
England 10-0 (2), Lees 6, Crawley 4, Jansen 0-3 (1)
Alex Lees collects three runs from Marco Jansen’s first over. He guides the first ball through square leg for two before pushing one into the offside for a single.
Jansen - who is a left-arm seamer - then looks to push the ball across Zak Crawley who leaves the ball on length to see out the over.
England 7-0 (1), Lees 3, Crawley 4, Rabada 0-7 (1)
Rabada angles his first ball into the pads of Lees and he flicks him away through midwicket for three runs to get off the mark. Zak Crawley - who is underpressure to get a big score - gets his first runs with a glorious drive for four!
The final ball of the over sees Crawley slip one to Keegan Petersen at point and South Africa appeal for the catch. The umpires send it upstairs and a replay shows that Crawley hit the ball into the pitch before it bounced out to Petersen.
Good start for England.
England 0-0 (0), Lees 0 Crawley 0, Rabada 0-0 (0)
The players head back out onto the ground with Alex Lees and Zak Crawley opening up for England. Kagiso Rabada will take the first over for South Africa.
The visitors need to make a good start with the ball to have any hopes of staying in this game.
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