[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

December

Tuesday 17th - FC [two-day] vs South African Invitation XI, Benoni (Match drawn)
Friday 20th - FC [three-day] vs South Africa A, Benoni (Match drawn)
Thursday 26th - 1st Test vs South Africa, Centurion (South Africa win by 107 runs)


January

Friday 3rd - 2nd Test vs South Africa, Cape Town (England win by 189 runs)
Thursday 16th - 3rd Test vs South Africa, Port Elizabeth (England win by an innings and 53 runs)
Friday 24th - 4th Test vs South Africa, Johannesburg (England win by 191 runs)
Friday 31st - OD vs South African Invitation XI, Paarl (England win by 77 runs)


February

Saturday 1st - OD vs South Africa A, Paarl (South Africa A win by 4 wickets, D/L)
Tuesday 4th - 1st ODI vs South Africa, Cape Town (South Africa win by 7 wickets)
Friday 7th - 2nd ODI vs South Africa, Durban (Match abandoned)
Sunday 9th - 3rd ODI vs South Africa, Johannesburg (England win by 2 wickets)
Wednesday 12th - 1st T20I vs South Africa, East London (South Africa win by 1 run)
Friday 14th - 2nd T20I vs South Africa, Durban (England win by 2 runs)
Sunday 16th - 3rd T20I vs South Africa, Centurion (England win by 5 wickets)


March

Saturday 7th - FC [three-day] vs Sri Lanka Board President's XI, Katunayake (Match drawn)
Thursday 12th - FC [four-day] vs Sri Lanka Board President's XI, Colombo (Match abandoned due to coronavirus outbreak)
Thursday 19th - 1st Test vs Sri Lanka, Galle (Match abandoned due to coronavirus outbreak)
Friday 27th - 2nd Test vs Sri Lanka, Colombo (Match abandoned due to coronavirus outbreak)

[themaclad]

Went to the Cape Town test in 1996 lost in three days to Paul Adams

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Always great to have a winter tour of South Africa or the West Indies, daytime cricket broadcasts to fill up frosty days.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Two-day warm-up ends in the standard draw. Root, Denly and Sibley all retired after half-centuries on the first day; Jimmy Anderson returned to the bowling attack after his injury and picked up a wicket on day two, but Broad, Archer and Leach were all missing due to illness.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Root leaving it to Broad, Archer and Leach to decide whether they're up to the first Test after missing the warm-ups through illness. Second game ends in a draw, Anderson picking up two wickets this time.

[themaclad]

FIRST TEST CENTURION PARK 26/12/2019 TO 30/12/2019

Supersport Park is a cricket ground in Centurion, Gauteng, South Africa.

It was renamed from Centurion Park after television company Supersport bought shares in the stadium. The capacity of the ground is 22,000.

The Titans cricket team, have played most of their home games here since 2004. The ground was home to the Titan's predecessor team Northerns (cricket team) (previously Northern Transvaal) since 1986.

This ground was a venue for 2003 Cricket World Cup and the Indian Premier League 2009 which took place in South Africa. It was also selected as a venue for ICC Champions Trophy 2009 and hosted the final on 5 October 2009, one of the greatest achievements for this stadium. Sachin Tendulkar also scored his 50th Test Match century on this ground.[1][2]

It hosted an Australian rules football practice match in 2008 between Carlton and Fremantle.

Supersport Park also hosted a domestic and continental Sixes tournament, where home side, the Titans, came out on top in the domestic competition, and South Africa winning the continental competition against Kenya in the final.

From 2018/19 summer the ground usually hosts the Boxing Day Test.



Records and statistics
First Test South Africa v England - Nov 16-20, 1995
last Test South Africa v Pakistan - Dec 26-28, 2018

First ODI South Africa v India - Dec 11, 1992
Last ODI South Africa v Sri Lanka - Mar 6, 2019

First T20I South Africa v Australia - Mar 29, 2009 Scorecard
Last T20I South Africa v Sri Lanka - Mar 22, 2019 Scorecard

[themaclad]

Win toss bowl playing 5 seamers

[themaclad]

South Africa 79-3 at lunch Jimmy wicket first ball of the game

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

277-9 at close, Quinton de Kock leading a recovery from 111-5.

[themaclad]

South Africa 284 all out (de Kock 95, Philander 35, Curran 4-57) v England

Peaky bowlers and some blind resistance, Sam Curran defied both to capture four wickets and lead England into a comfortable position at the close of play on the opening day of the first Test against South Africa at Centurion, despite the clear discomfort of several of his team-mates on and off the pitch.

With Stuart Broad toiling gallantly, though still showing some signs of fatigue after being bedridden for days with the illness that has swept through the England camp, Jofra Archer well below his best having suffered from the same bug and Ben Stokes spending a large chunk of time off the field feeling unwell after tea, Curran took charge of the tourists' five-pronged pace attack after Joe Root had won the toss and sent the hosts in.

Curran's haul of 4 for 57 from 19 overs included the important wicket of Quinton de Kock, who appeared almost oblivious to his side's plight when he came in with South Africa floundering at 97 for 4 and raced to a 45-ball fifty. But, just as his century came into sight, de Kock was tempted by a Curran ball of impeccable length and with a hint of movement, edging to keeper Jos Buttler to be out for 95 off 128 deliveries.

Curran had also broken up an 87-run partnership for the sixth wicket between de Kock and debutant Dwaine Pretorius when he had the latter caught by Root at first slip for 33 off 45.

Earlier it looked like James Anderson - playing his 150th Test - might have slotted seamlessly back into his role as England spearhead after five months out with a calf injury when he had opener Dean Elgar out to a leg-side strangle on the first ball of this four-Test series. But a period of frustration followed as Anderson and Broad struggled to make further inroads.

Curran came on at first change, however, and after seeing his initial delivery pounded through the covers for four by Aiden Markram and an edge off the same batsman fall just short of slip two balls later, he had Markram out to an errant shot, chipping straight to Jonny Bairstow at midwicket.

More frustration followed for England's bowlers with Faf du Plessis and Zubayr Hamza posing a threat before a timely breakthrough from Broad sent Hamza on his way, caught at second slip by Stokes for 39. Hamza had looked comfortable and balanced, as exemplified by a gorgeous cover drive to the boundary off Broad upon which he held his pose like a statue and moved to 39. But then, on the very next ball, the 24-year-old Hamza - playing his third Test - prodded at a Broad delivery he could well have left outside off to Stokes, who held a the low catch with ease.

When Curran had South Africa's other debutant, Rassie van der Dussen for just 6 off 34 balls with a clever delivery angled across the right-hander and landing safely in the mits of Root at first slip via an edge, they could take some encouragement from producing a much-needed wicket in difficult circumstances.

England consolidated when Broad had du Plessis caught by Root for 29. It was Broad's 400th Test wicket this decade and put South Africa in trouble at 111 for 5. But that was the cue for de Kock and Pretorius to mount their resistance.

De Kock struck three boundaries in five balls off Curran from the first nine deliveries he faced. His 18th Test fifty included nine fours and meant he had made six 50+ scores in eight Test innings at home this year.

De Kock's innings was not without a nervous moment - or two, both off Root. He sent a Root delivery high into the air over the bowlers head, but it dropped just short of Anderson as he and Archer ran in from mid-off and mid-on when the batsman was not out 24. Then, on 35, de Kock edged Root to slip, where Stokes was unsure whether it had carried to him. With umpire Chris Gaffaney suggesting it hadn't, the soft signal of not out stood.

Once Curran had dismissed both, Archer chimed in with the wicket of Keshav Maharaj, a lean return on a tough day. England remained without the bowling services of Stokes, who returned to the field after spending time in the shade attempting to rehydrate. When Broad removed Kagiso Rabada in his second over with the second new ball, and on the last delivery of the day, he looked thrilled - and exhausted.

"That was very nice," Curran told Sky Sports of Broad's last wicket, which gave him 3 for 52 off 17.4 overs. "Rooty wanted that two or three overs with the new ball to try and strike. It was tough work but I thought we stuck at it pretty well."

On de Kock, Curran said: "You watch him in one-day cricket, he just plays his shots. In Tests he plays his natural game. Fair play to him, he played his way and he got to a good score."