The Reverse Sweep

England vs South Africa - too close to call again?

We were fortunate enough to attend the inaugural lunch of the Wisden 150 Club at the Kennington Oval earlier this week where Michael Atherton and Allan Donald relived their memorable contretemps at Trent Bridge in 1998 as well as other notable encounters between the two.

Whilst the Chatham House Rule prevents us from divulging what Messrs Atherton and Donald actually said whilst we enjoyed a glass or two of a rather fine Bordeaux, we were reminded that clashes between South Africa and England tend to be extremely close.

Think back to 1994 where Devon Malcolm’s nine for 57 squared the series at The Oval, or 1995 where after four drawn Tests including Atherton’s famous 185 not out at the Wanderers South Africa prevailed in the final Test at Cape Town. Three years later in England, the home side came back from one-nil down to take the last two Tests and the series. Then in 2003, having ended Nasser Hussain’s reign as skipper and scoring double hundreds in each of the first two Tests, Graeme Smith saw his side pegged back at The Oval to see the series end two Tests apiece.

England then won another close series in South Africa in 2004/05 as they toned up for a titanic Ashes series six months later. The two-one score-line was reversed in the summer of 2008 when Smith finally led his side to a series win in England and saw the back of another home skipper in the shape of Michael Vaughan. Finally, in 2009/10, England somehow escaped with a drawn series having secured thrilling nine-wicket down draws at Centurion and Newlands.

By now you probably get the picture – England and South Africa Test series are always close and if anything this upcoming series could be the closest yet as there does not appear to be a hair’s breadth between the sides. Whilst the series is scandalously being played over just three Tests – especially as it pits the best two teams in the world against each other (forget the updated ICC rankings published at the weekend, which surely erroneously placed Australia at number two), a thrilling contest awaits.

As the home side, England probably just have the edge, but an opposition containing batsmen such as Smith, the classy Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis and the underrated AB De Villiers plus a bowling attack of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Vernon Philander and Imran Tahir will provide Andrew Strauss’ team with an almighty Test.

After a seemingly never-ending diet of Twenty 20 and fifty over cricket, the series cannot come soon enough even if the biblically bad weather will no doubt rear its ugly head. We’re so excited, we’ve even started updating this blog again!

Where next?

Who gets in an England-South Africa composite XI?

The pursuit of greatness & the England cricket team

The Plan by Steve James | Book review

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County Championship XI of the week #1

Martin Guptill (Derbyshire) - With his side just 22 runs ahead on 1st innings, the New Zealander struck a brisk 137 to help set up a win and prove there is more to him than the safe pair of hands that probably helped end the Test career of Phil Hughes.

Billy Godleman (Essex) - Equalled his career best score with a patient 130 to put Essex in charge against a weak Gloucestershire side at Chelmsford. 

Luke Wells (Sussex) - The 21 year old's fourth first-class hundred may have been in vain at The Oval, but Mark Ramprakash was so impressed that not only did he compare Wells to Alastair Cook, but added that Wells was "possibly better technically".

Riki Wessels (Nottinghamshire) - The budding web site entrepreneur showed he can bat a bit too by striking his first Championship hundred for Notts as his side recovered to beat Worcestershire after being bowled out on the opening day for 118. The extra publicity should do his flourishing business the world of good - perhaps Alan Sugar should consider donning the pads too?

Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire) - He may not be the finished article with the gloves, but his brilliant hundred at Headingley not only helped save Yorkshire against Kent but confirmed he is a real contender for the number six spot in England's Test side.

Tom Maynard (Surrey) - Revived Surrey's 1st innings with a brisk 86 not out and then added a crucial 136 with Rory Hamilton-Brown in the 2nd innings to give his side a decisive advantage. A good start to the season for one of our XI to watch. 

Mat Coles (Kent) - Doesn't get in for his supposed strongest suit with the ball, but for his maiden first-class hundred from number nine at Headingley. His all-round aspirations appear to be well-founded. 

David Wainwright (Derbyshire) - Starred in his first game since moving from Headingley by bowling his side to victory over Northants with figures of six for 33.  

Vernon Philander (Somerset) - It was hardly surprising that the man who takes wickets for fun at Test level opened his Somerset account with a five wicket haul at Taunton. Ended up with match figures of seven for 81 from 38 overs. 

Robbie Joesph (Leicestershire) - Took 12 wickets on his debut for the County as Leicestershire recovered from losing wickets to the first two balls of the match at Grace Road and equal the number of championship wins they managed in the entire season last year.

George Dockrell (Somerset) - Only appeared once last season, but an immaculate exhibition of spin bowling, which saw him take six for 27 in 20.1 overs and eight wickets in the match against Middlesex at Taunton means we will see much more of the talented Irishman in 2012.

Where next?

County Championship preview: Our XI to watch in 2012

Read our Division 1 previews: Durham, Lancashire, Middlesex, Notts, Somerset, Surrey, Sussex, Warwickshire and Worcestershire

Division 2 previews: Derbyshire, Essex, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Kent

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

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County Championship 2012 Preview: Division 1 - Somerset

We predicted that Somerset would finally end their wait to win their first Championship last season. We were wrong. Can County Cricket's perenniel bridesmaids conquer history in 2012? They even finished second on a solo trip to the South Pole.

Strengths

The arrival of Vernon Philander as the overseas player - even if it is only until May - could prove inspired if his spectacular introduction to Test cricket is anything to go by. Then there is the small matter of run machine Marcus Trescothick - the best batsman and the rosiest cheeks in County Cricket. Chuck in the supremely talented James Hildreth, Jos Buttler, Craig Kieswetter and Lewis Gregory and Somerset have the nucleus of a very strong and exciting side. 

Weaknesses

After so many near misses in all of the domestic competitions over the last three seasons, one has to wonder if Somerset have enough of the killer instinct to win trophies. Some of the younger players have been too inconsistent in the Championship and when Philander departs will the bowling attack left behind be strong enough to win enough matches to claim the title? They are also likely to lose Buttler and Kieswetter to England for limite overs internationals.

Main man

In the last five seasons, Marcus Trescothick has scored close to 7500 runs in the Championship at an average of 64 with 25 hundreds to usurp Mark Ramprakash as the outstanding batsman in County Cricket. If Somerset are to challenge they will need more of the same from their captain.

Look out for

Confusion if Somerset actually manage to win anything. Who would they throw the bouquet to having finally become the bride?

Prediction

5th - Philander and Trescothick could give them a flying start, but once the South African leaves who other than Steve Kirby is going to take a regular supply of wickets?

Where next?

Read our Division 1 previews: Durham, Lancashire, Middlesex, Notts, Somerset, Surrey, Sussex, Warwickshire and Worcestershire

Division 2 previews: Derbyshire, Essex, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Kent, Leicestershire, Northants and Yorkshire

2011 County Cricket Review: including Heroes of the Season, Best and Worst XIs, and a whole host of other nonsense

County Cricket 2011 Heroes: Marcus Trescothick

Vernon Philander joins the great Victorians

County Championship 2011 Preview - Somerset 

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

Vernon Philander joins the great Victorians

The early days of Test cricket was a pretty hideous time to be a batsman. Uncovered pitches were bad enough, but it was a murderous cast of bowlers that portended doom.

Cast in the Devil's image himself, this motley crew wreaked havoc on Victorian batsmen and administrators alike as Test matches came and went at the pace of a modern Twenty 20 game.

The names still trip off the tongue and strike fear onto any unsuspecting batsman casting an eye on cricket's history: Charlie 'Terror' Turner, George Lohmann, Tom Richardson and the Demon himself - Frederick Spofforth.

To these Four Horsemen of batting apocalypses can now be added the name of 'Vicious' Vernon Philander who has become the fastest man to 50 Test wickets in over 116 years. Only the Terror (6 Tests) and Richardson (7) in history have beaten or equalled Philander's merciless haul.

In just six and a half Tests, Philander has 51 wickets at a ridiculous average of 13.58 including six five wicket hauls and two ten wicket matches. His strike rate is a wicket every 24.5 balls - the best by a country mile of any bowler with 50 Test wickets. Indeed, his overall stats are 209 overs with 40 maidens and 51 wickets for 693 runs.

Any which way you cut it, Vicious Vernon's stats are staggeringly good, which kind of begs the question as to why the South African selectors waited until he was 26 before handing him his Test debut?

The batting paradises of the sub-continent will doubtless provide Philander's career stats with a more modern hue, but anyone that can put Dale Steyn in the shade must be a pretty remarkable bowler.

Where next?

Vernon Philander, Vinod Kambli and hitting the ground running

Annus Orior Oriri Ortus: The breakthrough Test XI of 2011

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Annus Orior Oriri Ortus: The breakthrough Test XI of 2011

Well, we’ve already picked our best and worst Test XIs of 2011 at The Reverse Sweep and with (for once) perfect timing our final XI of 2011, which was published yesterday on All Out Cricket features those who made their bows in Test cricket and made an instant impression.

Why perfect timing, you may ask? Well, it may have escaped your attention that David Warner yesterday made the joint fourth fastest Test hundred in history and the quickest by an opener. Clearly though his inclusion in our XI is the biggest milestone he has yet achieved in his short Test career.

To see who else joins him in our XI having appeared for the first time on the Test stage and enjoyed an annus orior oriri ortus (the closest we could find in Latin to 'breakthrough' if you were interested) please head over to All Out Cricket to read our Breakthrough Acts XI of 2011.

Where next?

Annus mirabilis: The best Test XI of 2011

Annus horribilis: The Worst Test XI of 2011

Who are cricket's likely future greats?

Read our Cricket Review of 2011

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

Vernon Philander, Vinod Kambli and hitting the ground running

Vernon Philander would be forgiven for thinking Test cricket isn't that difficult after all having snared 24 wickets at a George Lohmann-esque average of 12 in his first three Tests.

Included in his swag bag are four five wicket hauls, which is already one more than Andrew Flintoff managed in his entire Test career. The equivalent for a batsman would be four centuries in his first six Test innings, which is certainly mightily impressive.

However, a number of cricketers have made lightning starts to their Test careers only to fade into oblivion soon after.

For instance Philander would do well to heed the story of Vinod Kambli, who burst onto the Test scene with two double hundred, two further hundreds and an average of 113 from his first seven Tests. But Kambli's fast start proved to be the falsest of false dawn and his career ebbed away as quickly as it started. 

Philander looks a good bet to sustain his excellent start and appears to be the final cog in a potent looking South African bowling attack. With Somerset giving him a leg-up to prepare for the series with England later next summer, the name Vernon Philander could soon be on the lips of every England batsman.

Where next?

Vinod Kambli - An unfulfilled career

An XI of Test one cap wonders

No bowlers, no chance for Sri Lanka

Australia - The Great Entertainers

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

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2nd Test: South Africa v Australia - South Africa marks out of 10

Graeme Smith - 5: Undone by Johnson first time around and the extra bounce of Lyons in the 2nd innings. Gamble to bring on Tahir in the final throes of the chase failed.

Jacques Rudolph - 5: Looked well set in both innings before two tame dismissals. Will need to start kicking on to resist the claims of Alviro Petersen for his spot in the side.

Hashim Amla - 9: Was content to be circumspect as Kallis blasted away at the other end on day one, before playing what appeared to be the crucial knock of the Test with his 2nd innings hundred. Averages over 70 since the start of 2010 and on this form has a claim to be the best batsman in the world today.

Jacques Kallis - 6: 1st innings 54 off just 41 balls was very un-Kallis like, before the big man was out-foxed by Cummins second time around. Disappointing with the ball again: he now averages 53 with the ball since the start of 2010 in stark contrast to the 80 he offers with the bat. Can he now be classed as an all-rounder?

AB De Villiers - 7: A pair of fluent fifties only tells half the story as his shocking 2nd innings dismissal poking at one from Cummins started South Africa's slide.

Ashwell Prince - 6: Nice 50 on day one before needlessly holing out to mid-on and then run out by Amla second time around.

Mark Boucher - 5: Safe enough with the gloves, but his batting powers look in decline as evidenced especially by his ridiculous dimissal in the 1st innings when his side needed him to dig in. 

Vernon Philander - 8: Two Tests, two five-fors and 14 wickets at 14. Where has he been? Bowled intelligently throughout and led the attack admirably as Steyn and Morkel failed to deliver in the 2nd innings.

Dale Steyn - 7: Brilliant in the 1st innings to inspire the South African fightback and Australian collapse, but not at his best second time around and will rue his late drop of Cummins. Useful 41 with the bat looked to have made Australia's target too stiff.

Morne Morkel - 5: Disappointing on a ground that usually suits him - think England in 2010. Can be a top bowler but is inconsistent too often.

Imran Tahir - 5: Mopped up the tail nicely in the 1st innings as a good leg-spinner should, but perhaps a bit disappointing second time around. But it was only his 2nd Test and Tahir is clearly a better option than Paul Harris.

Where next?

2nd Test: South Africa v Australia - Australia marks out of 10

1st Test: South Africa v Australia - South Africa marks out of 10

1st Test: South Africa v Australia - Australia marks out of 10

Dale Steyn's formidable statistics

What Jacques Kallis had for breakfast this morning

Has Ricky Ponting lost his punch?

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

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1st Test: South Africa v Australia - South Africa marks out of 10

Graeme Smith - 9: Guided his side to victory with his fourth hundred in a successful fourth innings run chase - the first man to do so in Test history.

Jacques Rudolph - 5: His first Test in five years and he made two appearances in the middle on the same day. Made 18 and 14, but he can't be judged on this crazy game.

Hashim Amla - 8: Amla is to batting what Beethoven and Sinatra are to music, Shakespeare to writing and Olivier to acting. Was given two lives and made the Australians pay with a sublime hundred. Bradman must have been some batsman to have had a career average over twice that of Amla.

Jacques Kallis - 3: Undone on review by Bowden and bowled too short on day one, but at least he was there when the winning runs were scored. 

AB de Villiers - 3: Another to fall victim to the merciless Bowden on review as the South African first innings collapse reached epic proportions.

Ashwell Prince - 2: Missed a full and straight one from Watson to register an unwelcome golden duck.

Mark Boucher - 4: In all the hullabaloo, it was easy to forget that Boucher registered his 500th Test catch when he snared Hughes in the first innings.

Vernon Philander - 9: A stunning debut by anyone's standards even if conditions helped. Put the ball in the right place and was rewarded with eight wickets.

Dale Steyn - 9: Bowled magnificently on day one to show that he is the best bowler in the world today by a country mile: hostility, pace, movement and aggression, Steyn has it all.

Morne Morkel - 8: Bowled too full on day one, but his radar was well and truly functioning on day two as he and Philander inspired the mother of all collapses.

Imran Tahir - 4: Struggled against the quick feet of Clarke, but this was not a pitch or a match for a leg-spinner to make his Test bow.

Where next?

1st Test: South Africa v Australia - Australia marks out of 10

Michael Clarke, Lara Bingle and Australia's 47 all out

Dale Steyn's place in the cricketing pantheon alongside Sachin Tendulkar

Dale Steyn's duel with Michael Clarke

Cricket Heroes: Hashim Amla

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Michael Clarke, Lara Bingle and Australia's 47 all out

If Michael Clarke thought life had been too unpredictable during his time with Lara Bingle, then he may wish to reconsider after an extraordinary second day in the 1st Test at Newlands yesterday.

It was the day that Crowded House could have reformed and conceivably reprised one of their biggest hits with a slight twist – forget four seasons, this was four innings in one day.

It should have been so different. After Clarke’s brilliant 151 (an innings that has now acquired the value of Italy’s national debt after what followed) had steered his side to 284 and Shane Watson had dismantled the hosts for 96, Australia’s advantage should have been impregnable.

But just as against Pakistan at Headingley in 2010 and England in the Boxing Day Test at the MCG five days later, Australia were found wanting in seam and swing friendly conditions.

This was the third time that Australia had been bowled out for less than 100 in 12 Tests. Prior to that they had only failed to make three figures once in 277 Tests stretching back 26 years. This batting is more brittle than the most severe case of osteoporosis.

Let’s make it clear this was nothing to do with the pitch. Sure Vernon Philander, Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn put the ball in the right place, and yes it nibbled around a bit, but the fault lies squarely with the batsmen.

Watson and Ricky Ponting (whose decline has now reached epic proportions) missed straight deliveries to be leg before, Mike Hussey played a loose shot and as for Brad Haddin, well the wicketkeeper could conceivably be charged with dereliction of duty after a brainless charge down the wicket to Philander when his side were already 18/5.

A clearly stunned Clarke fronted up bravely at the close of play and said that the batting had been “disgraceful” – he couldn’t really have said anything else.

47 all out after being 21/9, a Test thrown away and severe question marks over the future of certain players like Haddin – the pile in John Inverarity’s in-tray has just got a whole heap bigger.

Where next?

Dale Steyn's place in the cricketing pantheon alongside Sachin Tendulkar

Australian cricket's Royal Wedding

Shane Warne comes out 

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes 

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