Amy Satterthwaite’s 117-ball 137* helped New Zealand women post their sixth-highest ODI score and beat Pakistan women by 60 runs in a rain-curtailed match

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Nov-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAmy Satterthwaite’s 117-ball 137 powered New Zealand women to 309 for 4 – their sixth highest total in ODIs – before Pakistan women’s chase was interrupted by rain in the 35th over to give the home side a victory by 60 runs in Lincoln, by the D/L method.After New Zealand won the toss and chose to bat, captain Suzie Bates (34) and Rachel Priest (27) put on 53 for the first wicket. They were dismissed within 15 runs of each other, before Satterthwaite and Katey Martin put together a 150-run partnership, New Zealand’s highest for the third wicket. Martin’s 65 – her third half-century in four matches – was followed by Sophie Devine’s 29-ball 34 as New Zealand scored 91 runs in their last 10 overs.Four Pakistan bowlers went for over six runs per over, and nine wides were conceded in the innings. Maham Tariq, Sana Mir and Sadia Yousuf took a wicket each.Pakistan’s chase was pegged with Ayesha Zafar’s dismissal in the fourth over, before rain stopped play. After play resumed, Nahida Khan (33) and Nain Abidi (45) stitched together a 76-run partnership for the second wicket, before they were both dismissed in successive overs as Pakistan slumped from 85 for 1 to 85 for 3. Bates bowled Nida Dar soon after, to pick up her second victim, but rain intervened again in the 35th over bringing the game to a close with Pakistan on 142 for 4 – 61 runs behind the D/L-adjusted target of 203.Satterthwaite, whose score was the fourth-highest by New Zealand woman cricketer, said she kept track of such milestones but did not get carried away with them. “I’m certainly aware of them – anyone who knows me, knows I look at the stats a little bit, but it’s not something I tend to hold on to,” Satterthwaite said. “You just want to go out and perform your role and if that means you end up with a milestone then it’s an added bonus.”Satterthwaite credited her rich vein of form to a more relaxed approach. “I think probably being nice and relaxed is something I’ve worked on in domestic cricket. I wanted to be relaxed and focus on my strengths and what I can do. And then if a bowler bowls a bad one, you hit it.”The win gave New Zealand a 2-0 lead in the five-match series. The results of the next three matches will count towards points for the Women’s Championship, in which New Zealand are currently fourth and Pakistan seventh. The top four teams in the Championship will gain direct entry into next year’s World Cup in England.

The first ever Day-Night Ashes Test will be staged at Adelaide Oval next year, following the announcement of the 2017-18 Ashes schedule

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Dec-20162:54

‘Optimistic of playing at new Perth stadium’

Adelaide Oval will host the first-ever day/night Ashes Test next year, following the announcement of the 2017-18 Australian summer schedule.However, the WACA ground in Perth could be set to miss out of hosting the third Test, in favour of the new purpose-built Perth Stadium, subject to ongoing discussions with the Western Australia government.The series will begin, once again, at the Gabba in Brisbane, on November 23, and will conclude with back-to-back Tests at Melbourne and Sydney over the Christmas and New Year period. The fifth Test, at the SCG, begins slightly later than usual, on January 4.

Ashes itinerary 2017-18

• 1st Test, Gabba – Nov 23-27
  2nd Test, Adelaide Oval (d/n) – Dec 2-6
  3rd Test, Perth (venue TBC) – Dec 14-18
  4th Test, MCG – Dec 26-30
  5th Test, SCG – Jan 4-8

As has been the case in previous Ashes campaigns, England’s tour party will be given ample opportunity to acclimatise before the series begins, with several warm-up fixtures set to be built into the final itinerary.”We recognise how big the Ashes is for both home and travelling fans, and the early announcement of the schedule for this series will allow fans here in Australia and abroad to plan their Ashes summer,” Cricket Australia’s CEO, James Sutherland, said.”We’ve now played two Tests in Adelaide in day/night conditions, it’s been very well received and we think that it’s the place to go for the day/night match next year. We didn’t want to play two at this stage, we want to acknowledge the ECB for their support and indeed our players for supporting the day/night Test match.”I know there are some people who don’t necessarily view the day/night Test match as something that’s needed for Ashes cricket but we think there’ll be more and more day/night test cricket coming up and the success of Adelaide in the last two matches is for all to see.”Sutherland said the Adelaide Ashes match was in safe hands given the success of the first two floodlit Tests against New Zealand and South Africa, aided by the close co-operation of the stadium management authority, the SACA and its highly regarded groundsman Damian Hough.

Limited-overs fixtures

• 1st ODI, MCG – Jan 14

• 2nd ODI, Gabba – Jan 19

• 3rd ODI, SCG – Jan 21

• 4th ODI, Adelaide Oval – Jan 26

• 5th ODI, Perth (venue TBC) – Jan 28

• 1st T20I, Australia v NZ, SCG – Feb 3

• 2nd T20I, Australia v England, Hobart – Feb 7

• 3rd T20I, Australia v England, MCG – Feb 10

• 4th T20I, NZ v England, Wellington Stadium – Feb 14

• 5th T20I, NZ v Australia, Eden Park – Feb 16

• 6th T20I, NZ v England, Seddon Park – Feb 18

• Final, Eden Park – Feb 21

“I don’t think it’s a risk anymore,” Sutherland said. “Day/night Test cricket has been very successful, we know and understand the stadium management authority in Adelaide and the SACA and the groundsman there they know the formula. It gets better and better and we’re very confident in day/night Test cricket.”Five one-day internationals have been scheduled in Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth between January 14 and 28, while a T20 international tri-series – the first of its kind – involving New Zealand will take place in February.Three matches will be hosted in Australia, and four, including the final, in New Zealand. Prior to this, the traditional Prime Minister’s XI will be played at Manuka Oval in Canberra against England as a T20 match on Friday, February 2. Sutherland said the triangular series had been a product of favourable circumstances but also a pointer to the future, when league structures would add to the context of bilateral encounters.”We’ve tried to give ourselves the most flexible approach to that by working with New Zealand and as it turns out England are travelling to New Zealand for a series immediately after so it tied in nicely to pick up a tri-series there,” he said. “There are less issues in overlap between T20 cricket and Test cricket.Lights take over at the Adelaide Oval•Getty Images

“We openly acknowledge Test cricket is our priority and we work around that. At times it’s not possible to make it all fit as well as we’d like, and that’s why we’re pushing so strongly for a different structure around international cricket that hopefully other countries are on board with and hopefully we’re heading in the right direction there.”Some of the ways in which the structure of cricket has been planned out sees one day series and T20 series being co-joined in the future as part of a league and so that’s an indication in itself that rather than playing ad hoc, random T20 matches we play them as part of a series and with greater context. Certainly my personal view is that would be a good thing to have more context around T20 internationals. not necessarily playing a whole lot more, but at least having some structure around that.”New Zealand Cricket’s chief executive, David White, said the tri-series initiative was a late addition to the programme and too good an opportunity to pass up.”To host matches against both England and Australia is an exciting development for New Zealand cricket fans,” White said. “There is a lot of history – and a healthy rivalry between the three sides, and we expect the series to be well supported.”The Australian women’s team will also host a home Ashes series next season, with that schedule and venues to be confirmed in due course.

The Perth Scorchers bid the WACA ground farewell with their third Big Bash League title in four years and a vintage performance straight from their tried-and-tested copybook

The Report by Will Macpherson at the WACA28-Jan-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:28

Macpherson: Most comprehensive BBL final result ever

The Perth Scorchers bid the WACA ground farewell with their third Big Bash League title in four years and a vintage performance straight from their tried-and-tested copybook. Their nine-wicket win came with 25 balls to spare, comfortably the most emphatic winning margin in a BBL final.Their triumph lifted one of the BBL’s peculiar hoodoos, as they become the first table-toppers to take home the title. The Sydney Sixers, whose women’s team won the WBBL earlier in the day, were the latest – and likely the last – victims of BBL cricket, the WACA way.Just like the final game of the regular season, and the semi-final, the Scorchers’ night could barely have run closer to their well-worn plan. Adam Voges won the toss and bowled, as they prefer to and 28 of 35 captains this BBL season have done. They took wickets in the Powerplay and strangled the Sixers, keeping them to 141. In the chase, their top order did the work in a belligerent Powerplay, then they sauntered home as if they had an early dinner reservation. Which they may well have done – the game was over in the blink of an eye.The plan is for the Scorchers to play next season at the new 60,000-seater Perth Stadium, across the river from the WACA but hulking, seeming bigger at each glance. Just another homogeneous state-of-the-art bowl, there will be no Fremantle Doctor, history or iconic floodlights. A third title (they have now won half of all the BBLs) intensifies the Scorchers’ undoubted aura but with the WACA goes some of the Scorchers’ strength.As much as the Scorchers’ quality and the long journey west, the wonderfully partisan crowds have made the scorching stadium a horrible place to visit; indeed there are vast swathes of Australia’s uninhabitable red centre that are louder than ‘The Furnace’ when the opposition take a wicket, but the celebratory roar is unique in the competition, and the new stadium has plenty to live up to. Every other BBL club aspires for a hostile atmosphere like the WACA’s and a club identity like the Scorchers.Every other club aspires to cricket like the Scorchers’ too. They have had the deepest squad, as evidenced by the fact that they did not need the Marsh brothers here, or Jason Behrendorff, their highest-ever wicket-taker, all tournament. Their team is built on consistency of selection and experience of the competition, and it evolves slowly. They have the clearest – and perhaps even most defensive – gameplan, and are immaculately drilled, too. At the WACA, particularly chasing, they are mighty tough to beat.This always looked a big toss, given Mitchell Johnson’s flying form and the Scorchers’ unrivalled propensity to squeeze. The Sixers, too, had batted first just once all season, and they managed 99 for 9 then. Their batting, marshalled by the specialist finalist Moises Henriques, is suited to the chase.And so it proved. Johnson began with a smile, then four dots, a single and another dot. At the other end, Daniel Hughes looked to tuck into Ashton Turner but soon holed out. Already, Sixers were scrambling, and in the next over Nic Maddinson was run out and Michael Lumb caught behind. It was all eerily reminiscent of the semi-final win over Melbourne Stars. Johnson took 1 for 13, with 16 dot balls. Again, he was on fire.Brad Haddin, as he tends to be these days, was there for a good time, not a long time, powering his way to 38 and adding 57 with Henriques, and particularly tucking into Tim Bresnan and Ashton Agar, who he stuck sweetly down the ground for consecutive sixes. But the eventual Player of the Match Jhye Richardson, selected ahead of Behrendorff, bounced out Haddin (it was very close to a no-ball), then did for Henriques and Jordan Silk in the same over.Johan Botha and the tail wagged, but Sixers’ hopes of 160 and a competitive match went with Henriques. Tim Bresnan, an inspired short-term signing whose T20 value has risen exponentially over the last fortnight, bowled beautifully at the death to nip any chance of a big score in the bud, dismissing Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshius and Botha.It seems generous to call what followed a chase. Sam Whiteman, the flair in a functional top order, came out swinging from the hip, sending Jackson Bird for six to the 60m leg-side boundary and a triptych of violent fours. Ben Dwarshius was then biffed for two sixes behind square. At the other end, Michael Klinger built an innings. The first seven overs brought 70.When Whiteman was stumped, out came Ian Bell, looking determined to be there at the end, cutting with élan and pulling with control. In the course of his unbeaten 71, Klinger made this his most prolific BBL season ever, and again overtook Aaron Finch as the league’s all-time top-scorer. Appropriately, it was he who struck the final blow, lofting Botha high and handsome down the ground. The WACA erupted, one last time.

The Australian spinners picked up seven wickets between them, but finished with economy rates higher than four in the tour game against India A in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Feb-2017
ScorecardThe Australian spinners got through a heavy workload – 28.5 overs for Nathan Lyon and 24 overs for Steve O’Keefe – and picked up seven wickets between them. But there might still be some issues to address. Both men could manage only three maidens each and finished with unflattering economy rates – Lyon’s was 5.61 and O’Keefe’s 4.20.A major reason for their troubles was Shreyas Iyer, who smashed his highest first-class score of 202 in only 210 balls with 27 fours and seven sixes, that’s 150 runs in boundaries. A minor reason could be that the pitch at Brabourne stadium was quite batting friendly. There were 982 runs scored for the loss of only 21 wickets over the three days of the tour game, which ended in a draw.There were a few high-profile players who couldn’t contribute much to that bounty. David Warner was dismissed for 25 in the first innings and 35 in the second. His opening partner Matt Renshaw had similarly low returns – 10 and 11. Glenn Maxwell – fighting for the allrounder’s spot in the Test XI – made 16 not out at No. 8 but when he was promoted to No. 3 on Sunday he was bowled for 1.Against this backdrop though, two of the India A players made their career best scores. Iyer was unbeaten, spending more than five hours at the crease. Plenty of that time was in the company of Karnataka offspinner K Gowtham, who made 74 off 68 balls with 10 fours and four sixes, that’s 64 runs in boundaries. They put on 138 for the seventh wicket at 6.08 per over. It was the second-highest partnership of the match behind Steven Smith and Shaun Marsh’s 156 in the first innings.

Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha has said the pressure will be on Sri Lanka to force a result and save the series in the third and final ODI of Bangladesh’s tour

Mohammad Isam 30-Mar-2017Only twice – barring the 2006 series against India that was washed out – in the last 31 years has Sri Lanka not won at least one game in an ODI series at home. As the third and final game of the series comes closer, they face up to the prospect once again, with Bangladesh keen to continue maintaining the pressure on the home side.Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha has said that his team is now more confident as they lead the series 1-0, and the home side would have to do all the running. The visitors won the first match by 90 runs before rain forced the second ODI to be abandoned after the hosts had put up a challenging total.”We are very much confident [of a series win] if we get our processes right,” Hathurusingha said. “I think we will do well against Sri Lanka. They are a very strong team at home. I can’t remember a time when they didn’t win a single game in a series, so it is a good position we are in. We are 1-0 up so we can’t lose the series. They have to play well, and we have to play our best game to come good.”Bangladesh became a more confident side during their Colombo Test win, which many of the players and Hathurusingha have said had something to do with a long team meeting after their crushing 259-run defeat in Galle.”When you win, everything looks good. The body language and effort on the field is the biggest change I have seen in the last few matches, after the Galle Test. They had a good one-to-one afterwards, and the boys responded to that very well. In the last game we were a bit lethargic after the first ten overs, but after that they were really good in the heat,” said Hathurusingha.Though he has been known to be a disciplinarian, Hathurusingha’s approach of giving the batsmen a lot of freedom has been attributed as one of the main reasons for Bangladesh’s progress as an ODI side in the last two years. The current mood within the team can be gauged by the overall improvement in the fielding and body language in the Colombo Test and the first two ODIs in Dambulla.Hathurusingha, when asked why many members of the second ODI’s playing XI weren’t at training at the SSC ground on Wednesday, said that he trusts the players’ preparation and understands how much the weather can have an impact on their physical well-being.”The thing is, we don’t need to train every day. If the players know they are prepared well enough, they can always have rest. It is very hard to play cricket in Sri Lanka. It is very hot.”When players are confident, and if I know they are prepared well enough, I want them to be mentally prepared and physically be rested for the game,” he said.

Kusal Perera and Thisara Perera were recalled to Sri Lanka’s ODI squad for the series against Bangladesh

Andrew Fidel Fernando17-Mar-2017

Sri Lanka squad

Upul Tharanga (capt), Niroshan Dickwella, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Asela Gunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Kusal Perera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Suranga Lakmal, Lahiru Kumara, Vikum Sanjaya, Thisara Perera, Sachith Pathirana, Seekkuge Prassanna, Lakshan Sandakan
In: Kusal Perera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Thisara Perera
Out: Chaturanga de Silva, Nuwan Kulasekara, Lahiru Madushanka, Jeffrey Vandersay, Sandun Weerakkody

Kusal Perera and Thisara Perera were recalled to Sri Lanka’s ODI squad against Bangladesh, but captain Angelo Mathews continued to remain unavailable due to injury. Other additions in the ODI squad included opening batsman Danushka Gunathilaka – fresh from an excellent run for Sri Lanka A – but there was no place for either seam bowler Nuwan Kulasekara or legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay.Upul Tharanga, who was stand-in captain during their 0-5 ODI whitewash in South Africa, will continue to lead the side in Mathews’ absence. While the management had hoped that Mathews would regain fitness in time for this series, the hamstring tear he sustained during the T20I series in South Africa continued to ail him.Both Pereras have returned to the ODI outfit after showing decent form in the ODI leg of the England Lions’ recent tour of Sri Lanka. Thisara had hit a match-winning 56 not out off 35 in the first unofficial ODI, and taken 2 for 17 in the second. Kusal, meanwhile, had struck two fifties in the three games he played.It was Gunathilaka, however, who headlined that series, with scores of 64, 121 not out, 44 and 51. He returned to the ODI squad after missing the South Africa series with a back complaint and his presence will create additional competition for the opening position. In addition to Gunathilaka, Kusal Perera, Tharanga and Niroshan Dickwella have all recently opened the batting in limited-overs cricket.Sri Lanka’s selectors have unusually selected just one specialist spinner in the 15-man squad, giving Lakshan Sandakan that place, but omitting the likes of Amila Aponso and Vandersay. Allrounders Sachith Pathirana, Asela Gunaratne, and Dhananjaya de Silva are capable slow bowlers however. Left-arm spinning allrounder Chaturanga de Silva, who was picked for that series in South Africa, has been omitted.On the seam-bowling front, Suranga Lakmal appears likely to lead the attack, with Lahiru Kumara and Vikum Sanjaya were also picked. Lasith Malinga has made his comeback from injury in the T20 format, but is yet to reappear in ODIs.The first of three ODIs is scheduled to be played in Dambulla, on March 25.

Gautam Gambhir said he had been infuriated by his side’s batting collapse against Royal Challengers Bangalore last week and pushed his team to show intent and defend a total of 131

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Apr-20171:30

Gambhir bullish about maintaining intensity

Gautam Gambhir describes himself as “easy-going, relaxed and a bit of a prankster” in the change room, but the Kolkata Knight Riders captain shed all of those traits when he addressed his team during the mid-innings break against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Kolkata on Sunday. After Knight Riders folded for 131 from a position of 65 for 1 in the sixth over, Gambhir made it clear to his players that anyone whose intent seemed to flag during the defence of their low total could lose their spot in the XI.”I wanted intensity from my team-mates. I wanted them to fight. I wanted them to win,” Gambhir said of his mid-innings address in his column for . “I told them whoever dropped on intent should understand that this could be his last game for KKR, at least in my captaincy.”Gambhir, who felt “hurt” by his team’s batting collapse, wrote that he was fuming during the break for the first time in his seven-year stint as Knight Riders captain, especially as the collapse came after a loss at home to Gujarat Lions.That dressing-room talk seemed to pay off, as Nathan Coulter-Nile struck in his first three overs to set the tone for the side. Gambhir said he had spotted Coulter-Nile’s potential during his time with Justin Langer in Perth, and described the bowler as “a mean-looking guy, strong as an ox”. Coulter-Nile finished with returns of 3 for 21, all top-order wickets, and earned the Man-of-the-Match award as Royal Challengers folded for 49, the lowest total in IPL history. Not a single Royal Challengers batsman scored in double-figures.”The Aussie bowled like the wind and I supported him with attacking fields,” Gambhir said. “My being under the helmet [at silly point] was more of a statement than a catching position.”Gambhir also stated that he does not mind losing Fairplay points in lieu of an attacking mindset on the field. “I don’t know whether TV cameras or microphones caught it but we were chirping all the time when RCB were batting,” he said. “I am happy to lose spots on the IPL Fairplay award list but I can not see my team slipping on the points table.”Praising his team’s catching, Gambhir said the highlight of the day was when Umesh Yadav’s short-pitched bowling troubled Chris Gayle. “And then there was another sight which would have pleased every supporter of Indian cricket,” Gambhir said. “Indian fast bowler Umesh Yadav having ‘Boss of Universe’ Chris Gayle ducking and weaving was highlight of the game.”Knight Riders are currently second on the table, with 10 points after seven games, and will play their next match against Rising Pune Supergiant in Pune on Wednesday.

It’s been a 41st birthday to remember for Durham captain Paul Collingwood, as he struck 127 off 174 balls to aid his team’s recovery on the first day of their County Championship Division Two clash against Glamorgan

ECB Reporters Network26-May-2017
ScorecardPaul Collingwood’s century underpinned Durham’s recovery•Getty Images

It’s been a 41st birthday to remember for Durham captain Paul Collingwood, as he struck 127 off 174 balls to aid his team’s recovery on the first day of their County Championship Division Two clash against Glamorgan at St. Helen’s in Swansea.However, it was also a day to remember for new Glamorgan captain Michael Hogan, whose three wickets in a four-ball spell saw him end his first day as skipper with a five-wicket haul. His figures of 5 for 49 helped to bowl Durham out for 342 by the close of play.The visitors wobbled early on, losing two wickets in the first eight overs of the match, including that of key opening batsman Keaton Jennings, clean bowled by Marchant de Lange for four in the fifth over. Subsequently, Stephen Cook was trapped lbw by Australian-born Dutchman Timm van der Gugten, leaving them 17 for 2.Hogan will have felt disappointed at losing the toss. But a poor start left the visitors up against it at 92 for 2 at lunch, having failed to capitalise on an ideal batting wicket, although Graham Clark and Cameron Steel built an 86-run partnership for the third wicket as the visitors began to rebuild.And Glamorgan certainly built on their own morning success with a quick wicket after lunch, Clark falling to a superb low slip catch by Nick Selman off Hogan, the visitors having reached 103 for 3.Steel brought up his fifty off 134 balls, hitting seven fours, but all eyes were on birthday boy Collingwood who had raced to 30, with six fours on all sides of the wicket, by the time his partner had reached the milestone.A useful 60 partnership came to an end when Nick Selman claimed his second slip catch of the innings off Hogan, as Steel departed for 59 to leave the visitors 163 for 4 in the 57th over. Just three overs later, Durham lost their fifth wicket as Ryan Pringle was caught by wicketkeeper Chris Cooke off de Lange for 5, and the visitors were struggling once again at 169 for 5.At tea, Durham were 183 for 5 and the skipper reached the half-century mark just after the break off 100 balls. A sixth wicket partnership of 91 with Paul Coughlin put the visitors back in the game as they claimed a second batting point. However, the stand came to an end when Coughlin was lbw to van der Gugten for 31 and the visitors were 260 for 6.Collingwood went on to reach his century off 158 balls, and had hit 17 fours on his way to 127 before he was trapped lbw by Andrew Salter. An eighth wicket soon followed, Stuart Poynter caught behind off Hogan for a useful 38 as Durham reached 342 for 8.Hogan claimed his second wicket in the over when he bowled George Harding off his second ball and completed a three-in-four-ball stint – and four in seven balls – when Chris Rushworth was caught behind off the last ball of the day to end Durham’s first innings on 342.

A 79-ball 71 from Michael Rippon helped Netherlands post 279. They then bowled Zimbabwe out for 130 to complete a consolation win at The Hague

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jun-2017
ScorecardFile photo – Michael Rippon’s 79-ball 71 carried Netherlands to a strong total•Peter Della Penna

Incisive opening spells from Shane Snater and Fred Klaassen ripped through Zimbabwe’s top order, leaving them 44 for 5 in the 13th over, in their chase of 280. Malcolm Waller struck a counter-attacking 50 off 43 balls, but without much support, Zimbabwe’s resistance didn’t last long. Roelof van der Merwe picked up the last three wickets to fall, completing a consolation win for Netherlands by 149 runs.Snater finished with figures of 3 for 30, while Paul van Meekeren and Logan van Beek claimed one wicket apiece. Zimbabwe were bowled out for 130 in the 27th over.After being put in to bat, Wesley Barresi and Stephan Myburgh put on a 53-run opening stand off 69 balls. Netherlands’ middle order – Ben Cooper (27), van der Merwe (32) and Peter Borren (29) – all got starts, but only Michael Rippon, batting at No. 4, went on to make a half-century. His 79-ball 71 carried Netherlands to 279. Fast bowler Chris Mpofu finished with 4 for 41.

Dean Elgar said he enjoyed the challenge of being under attack and playing in front of a hostile crowd after his hundred in defeat at The Oval

Firdose Moonda at The Oval31-Jul-2017Dean Elgar could have been dismissed for a duck off the second ball he faced in the second innings at The Oval. He was rapped by Stuart Broad on the pad, replays showed it pitched in line and was clipping but not enough to overturn Aleem Dar’s on-field decision, had England reviewed. Elgar survived.Elgar could have been dismissed for 9 off the 15th ball he faced. He edged James Anderson to Keaton Jennings at the third slip. The chance was low, Jennings shelled it and Elgar survived.Elgar might have been dismissed for 73 off the 114th ball he faced. He followed a Broad delivery down the leg side and England only half-appealed, though replays seemed to suggest the faintest of edges. Elgar survived. That is how Test cricket goes.Elgar was hurt when he had 33, off the 56th ball he faced, when Toby Roland-Jones hit on him on the hip. He was hurt before that, in the field, when Jonny Bairstow drove a delivery back to him, causing a bleeding and later bruised finger, and he was hurt after that, when he had 77, off the 122nd ball he faced, a short ball from Ben Stokes smashing into said bruised finger.That’s how Test cricket the way Dean Elgar knows it goes. And that is why he could at least reflect with satisfaction on an eighth Test hundred after South Africa’s defeat at The Oval.”I prefer not getting hit, to be honest, but you have to take the blows. It puts me in a different mindset. It’s like the challenge is a little bit more. I guess only an opening batsman could see it that way,” he said afterwards, sometimes looking straight ahead, most of the time staring at the bandaged finger that he will keep covered up until after the Old Trafford Test. “I haven’t taken this off yet and I’m not going to.”He is also not going to have an X-ray on it to determine how bad the damage may be. “That’s a waste of money. Let’s not go that way.”Though the medical committee will have the final word on Elgar’s availability – and they seem to be fairly lenient given the state with which they let Vernon Philander take the field – Elgar has declared himself “ready” for the decider, which is tailor-made for his approach. England’s attack is on the up, South Africa have their backs to the wall and Elgar wants to prop them up just as he did at The Oval. “It’s something that gets me going, chirping and stuff like that that is something that really gets me going. I enjoy that,” he said. “England are a big huff-and-puff bowling attack and when they are on top they are definitely going to bring their mouths as well.”Admittedly, “if the shoe was on the other foot I’m sure we’d be doing the same,” Elgar said. But for now South Africa have to accept their underdog status.It is not just the England team’s on-field chatter that they have to contend with, but partisan crowds, bigger than any South Africa experience at home, who bring all the fun of the fair with them. Despite the vocal support for the home team – and by implication, the joy when the visitors put a foot wrong – Elgar is enjoying the crowds as much as anyone. “It’s brilliant, that’s why you play the game. As a kid you witness that on TV and you hear the crowd singing the person’s name – you have to try and put it on your side as well, get motivated. You almost have to be a little more stubborn, tighter in your game plan, so you can use it in your own game.”The atmosphere was particularly rowdy when Stokes was at his finest, on the fourth afternoon. Stokes took out Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis in consecutive ball in a fiery spell which Elgar survived.”It’s a great occasion facing a guy like that,” Elgar said. “He’s a big-match player and he’s going to come hard, it’s a great battle playing against him. That’s what makes Test cricket so special still. People can’t say the game is dying when you have support like that happening, it seems to happen more when two big Test nations are playing against each other. It’s brilliant for the individuals. That’s what makes Test cricket so much better than any other format.”Later Stokes struck the body blow and Elgar survived, then swiveled his way to some of his finest pulls. And much later Stokes was at first slip when Elgar became the first victim of a Moeen Ali hat-trick and though he was both dismissed and hurt, it was still Test cricket the way he likes it to go. “It’s a freaky game, you will never be better than this game. There will always be a script written by someone else.”