[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

November

Friday 27th - 1st T20I vs South Africa, Cape Town (England win by 5 wickets)
Sunday 29th - 2nd T20I vs South Africa, Paarl (England win by 4 wickets)


December

Tuesday 1st - 3rd T20I vs South Africa, Cape Town (England win by 9 wickets)
PP - 1st ODI vs South Africa, Cape Town - Indefinitely postponed due to Covid-19
PP - 2nd ODI vs South Africa, Paarl - Indefinitely postponed due to Covid-19
PP - 3rd ODI vs South Africa, Cape Town - Indefinitely postponed due to Covid-19


January

Thursday 14th - 1st Test vs Sri Lanka, Galle (England win by 7 wickets)
Friday 22nd - 2nd Test vs Sri Lanka, Galle (England win by 6 wickets)


February

Friday 5th - 1st Test vs India, Chennai (England win by 227 runs)
Saturday 13th - 2nd Test vs India, Chennai (India win by 317 runs)
Wednesday 24th - 3rd Test vs India, Ahmedabad (India win by 10 wickets)


March

Thursday 4th - 4th Test vs India, Ahmedabad (India win by an innings and 25 runs)
Friday 12th - 1st T20I vs India, Ahmedabad (England win by 8 wickets)
Sunday 14th - 2nd T20I vs India, Ahmedabad (India win by 7 wickets)
Tuesday 16th - 3rd T20I vs India, Ahmedabad (England win by 8 wickets)
Thursday 18th - 4th T20I vs India, Ahmedabad (India win by 8 runs)
Saturday 20th - 5th T20I vs India, Ahmedabad (India win by 36 runs)
Tuesday 23rd - 1st ODI vs India, Pune (India win by 66 runs)
Friday 26th - 2nd ODI vs India, Pune - 09:00
Sunday 28th - 3rd ODI vs India, Pune - 05:00 BST

[themaclad]

Won toss and bowl

[themaclad]

England 183 for 5 (Bairstow 86*, Linde 2-20) beat South Africa 179 for 6 (van der Dussen 58, S Curran 3-28) by five wickets

Jonny Bairstow's highest T20I score carried England to a final-over victory over South Africa in the first T20I in Cape Town.

Most players perform at their best when they feel valued and secure. But others - notably Kevin Pietersen in 2012 - seem to be at their best when they have a point to prove.

Bairstow appears to fit into this second category. Having forged an excellent reputation as an opener in ODI cricket, he would have been understandably disappointed to be demoted to No. 4 in the T20I team as England preferred Jason Roy and Jos Buttler at the top of the order. Having already seen his Test career falter after he was asked to move up the order and relinquish the gloves, he could be forgiven wondering if history might be repeating itself.

But from his first delivery - when he quite beautifully threaded the field with a dab to the third man boundary - he looked in imperious touch. And if there were times he hit the ball murderously hard - a heaved six over long-on off the back foot from deep inside the crease off Tabraiz Shamsi - there were also moments, such as when he guided the ball behind point with precision, when he demonstrated his touch and timing.

England were in some trouble during Bairstow's early moments at the crease. While South Africa made 57 for 1 in their six-over Powerplay, England were restricted to just 34 for 3, with all those promoted above Bairstow dismissed.

For a while, as Bairstow and Ben Stokes thrashed the ball around Cape Town, memories were revived of their vast stand of 399 in the New Year Test of 2016. On this occasion they added 85 off 8.4 overs, until Stokes heaved a long-hop down the throat of long-on and England's innings stalled. With 25 balls remaining, they still required 55.

But a nine-ball over from Beuran Hendricks - the 17th of the innings - was taken for 28 runs by Bairstow to put England back on track. And while Lungi Ngidi conceded just five and took the wicket of Eoin Morgan from the 18th, the nerveless Sam Curran thrashed his second ball for six off the faultless Kagiso Rabada to keep England in the hunt.

Even then there were seven required from the final over. But with Bairstow pulling the first ball of the over for four and carting the second for six over mid-on, England clinched a five-wicket victory with four deliveries remaining.

Whether this proves Bairstow's point - that he belongs at the top of the order - or the team management's - that he can play an important role in the middle-order - is debatable. But by producing a high-class innings and also seeing his side home, Bairstow must have gone a long way towards making his place in the side safe.

Linde's fine start

Given the pace options available to South Africa, you wonder how much time England gave to thinking about the left-arm spin of George Linde ahead of this match. As it happened, though, Anrich Nortje - the quickest bowler at the IPL - was omitted so South Africa could include two spinners in Linde and Shamsi.

Linde, on T20I debut, enjoyed a particularly impressive day. Bowling two overs in the Powerplay, including the first of the innings, he gained a surprising amount of turn and, having dismissed Jason Roy, edging an attempted cut, from the second ball of the innings, had the world's top-rated T20I batsman, Dawid Malan (brilliantly) caught sweeping a few minutes later. In all, he conceded just 20 runs from his four overs - the most economical return in the match - and contributed with that bat, too, hitting 12 from six deliveries at the death.

Tom Curran fails to take chance

At the start of this year, Mark Wood bowled with such pace and hostility in South Africa - albeit in Test cricket - that it seemed hard to imagine a scenario where England would leave him out. Since then, however, he's spent more time carrying drinks than charging in and was recently given just a limited-overs central contract. Sometimes it seems England don't appreciate quite what a gem they have in Wood.

Sure enough, he was left out again here. But, in a funny way, his case for selection might have been made for him by the struggles of the man who won the nod ahead of him. For Tom Curran conceded 55 here - his worst T20I figures - including four sixes. None of his colleagues conceded more than one six and there were only seven in the South African innings.

Curran started well enough. His first ove in the Powerplay cost only three. But his second was plundered for 24 - the most expensive of his T20I career - as Faf du Plessis appeared to target him.

It wasn't that he bowled especially poorly. It was more that, without the extra pace offered by the likes of Wood, his control of length has to be immaculate. But here he bowled either short or on a length and, without much variation from his cutters, was carted for each of those sixes over the leg side. With England using this series in the hope of settling upon a T20 World Cup line-up, it may have proved an expensive evening for Tom Curran.

Sam Curran shines


It was a much better day for Sam Curran. After winning the race for selection against Moeen Ali - in truth, after the impressive IPL Curran enjoyed, he was always going to play - he took the new ball and took a wicket in the first over. His two Powerplay overs cost a respectable 13, with four of those runs coming from an edge just wide of slip.

But it was his bowling when he returned for the 14th over that was most impressive. Going round wicket, cramping the batsmen for room and demanding they attempt to hit to the longest boundary, he claimed two more wickets - his 3 for 28 was the best return of his brief T20I career - with an accurate and surprisingly sharp bouncer complemented by cutters that left the batsmen struggling to settle against him. Later, his six from the penultimate over calmed England's nerves just as it appeared South Africa could hold on.

Afterwards Curran reasoned that the regular cricket he had enjoyed at the IPL going into this series had given him something of an advantage in terms of rhythm. But it was another remarkably mature performance from a 22-year-old who already seems to have been around for years.

[themaclad]

England 147 for 6 (Malan 55, Shamsi 3-19) beat South Africa 146 for 7 (de Kock 30) by four wickets

Dawid Malan justified his standing as the top-ranked batsman in T20I cricket with a match-winning half-century in the second match of the series against South Africa in Paarl.

On a surface upon which nobody else could pass 30, Malan produced an innings of 55 from 40 balls to see England to a victory which gave them an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. The final game takes place in Cape Town on Tuesday.

This was not, in many ways, a typical T20. With the pitch offering just a little grip, run-scoring proved problematic throughout the game and England's reply looked some way off the pace until well into their chase.

So, instead of the skills for which this format is famed - the big hits, the audacious strokes, the outrageous strike-rates - Malan was instead obliged to demonstrate a calm head and an ability to pace the innings.

He did so beautifully. After 30 deliveries, Malan had scored just 25. But he held his nerve and, from his next nine balls, thrashed five fours and a six as he timed England's chase to something close to perfection.

Although he wasn't quite able to see England home - he was quite brilliantly caught by Reeza Hendricks, demonstrating both the presence of mind and athleticism to keep the ball in play on the long-off boundary - by the time he was dismissed, his side required just a run a ball. Despite a characteristically excellent final over from Kagiso Rabada, which brought the dismissal of Sam Curran, Chris Jordan was able to squeeze the penultimate ball of the match behind square for the run England required to seal the result.

It was the ninth time Malan had passed 50 in his 18 T20I innings. And, on the ground where he made his first-class debut back in 2006, you suspect it would have been one of the more satisfying ones. It was also the sort of performance which justifies his on-going selection ahead of Joe Root.

And while England may feel there is still room for improvement in their performance, they may take satisfaction from winning a tight game on this sort of surface. With the T20 World Cup scheduled to played in India, this is the sort of pitch - and, perhaps, the sort of low-scoring match - to which they will need to become accustomed if they are to fulfil their dream of holding both the 50-over and 20-over World Cups at the same time.

Slow going

South Africa started well enough. They were 49 for 1 after one delivery of the sixth over (England were 29 for 1 at the same stage) and surely targeting a score in excess of 160. But their over-reliance upon Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis was underlined once more by the struggles of the middle-order.

Once de Kock was dismissed, from the second delivery of that final powerplay over, South Africa only managed two boundaries off the bat in the next 12-and-a-half overs (there was one set of wides that went to the boundary) and none at all from the first ball of the 10th until the fourth ball of the 18th. Rassie van der Dussen, who faced 29 deliveries for 25 unbeaten runs without managing a boundary, found life especially difficult.

Inevitably, thoughts strayed to what might have been, had the likes of AB de Villiers, Rilee Rossouw and Colin Ingram been part of this middle-order.

Archer and Rashid re-affirm their value

Perhaps such an analysis of South Africa's innings is unfair as it doesn't reflect the slower-than-expected surface or provide enough credit to England's bowlers. Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid, in particular, bowled beautifully in conceding 41 between them from their eight overs. The pair delivered 22 dot balls between them and only conceded one boundary each.

Archer's record is, perhaps, particularly impressive as he tends to bowl the majority of his overs in the powerplay - he typically bowls two upfront - and at the death. Despite this, since the start of the IPL, he has conceded just 4.62 runs an over on average in the 30 overs of powerplay overs he has delivered.

Whatever issues England may have to resolve ahead of the T20 World Cup, those two spots are, fitness permitting, certain.

The record holders

Both Jordan and Rashid achieved records of sorts during the South Africa innings. With the wicket of de Kock, Jordan drew level with Stuart Broad as England's top wicket-taker in this international format. Both men have now have 65 with Jordan having slightly the better strike-rate but Broad maintaining the better average and economy rate.

Rashid, meanwhile, drew level with Graeme Swann as England's top T20I wicket-taker among spinners. Both have 51 wickets, with only Jordan and Broad above them among England players. A glance at those stats also provides a reminder of what a top player Swann was for England: his wickets came in a dozen fewer games than Rashid and with a favourable economy rate (6.36 to 7.57), average (16.84 to 25.41) and strike-rate (15.80 to 20.10). The game may well have moved on, but those remain excellent statistics.

Impressive though such figures are, England still do not have anyone within the top 10 of T20I wicket takers. Lasith Malinga, with 107 wickets, leads the way.

Shamsi's best

Tabraiz Shamsi didn't deserve to be on the losing side after a career-best T20I performance.

Shamsi, the left-arm wristspinner, claimed 3 for 19 as he made excellent use of a large playing area that made six-hitting more problematic than in the first game, and a surface offering just enough grip to aid his spin. In dismissing Jos Buttler, who was beaten by drift as he charged down the pitch, Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes, who both mishit sweeps, he went a long way towards derailing England's reply.

The decision to recall Anrich Nortje in place of Beuran Hendricks, who delivered a game-defining 17th over on Friday which conceded 28 runs, also added depth to the South Africa attack. Nortje bowled with pace and precision in conceding just four from his first two overs and twice striking Malan on the body.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Never seen anyone so miserable about hitting the winning run than Malan last night, stranding himself on 99 not out

A great whitewash though, bodes well for the ODIs.

[themaclad]

First 50 over game off Virus

[themaclad]

Next match at Paarl also off as hotel staff at the bubble hacve the virus, think that will be the end of the tour, meanwhile Banton pulls out of BBL as he's had 6 months in the bubble and his mental health is suffering which is no surprise

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Actually makes you appreciate just what a tough task creating a bio-secure bubble is, and how efficiently it was done in this country. Shame we probably won't be getting the ODIs, but safety has to come first.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Tour officially abandoned with two further positive tests in the England camp. There's talk of the ODIs simply being indefinitely postponed, but with even the healthy players getting bubble fatigue, I'm not sure this is an experience they'll be eager to repeat.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Sri Lanka and India tour dates confirmed and added to the list.