Only 20 overs of play were allowed on day one in Worcester, with South Africa going into day two on 58-1 against the England Lions.
It was a frustrating day for the tourists, who only have two more days to fine-tune their plans ahead of the Test series against England. One man who won’t be too disappointed with the way things went however, was Heino Kuhn, who passed the first test in national whites with a watchful 30.
The lineup might give us a sense of who will be picked for the first Test at Lord’s next week, with Chris Morris receiving the nod ahead of Duanne Olivier as the third seamer. Vernon Philander is in a race against time to be fit for the Lord’s clash, and will have to prove his fitness over the coming days.
Dean Elgar is experiencing his first match as captain of the side, as he’s standing in for Faf du Plessis, who became a father on Thursday. That’s good news for the Proteas, as Du Plessis is now likely to be available for the first Test. Elgar couldn’t back up his new role with the bat however, as he fell just 3.2 overs in, with George Garton (1-13) forcing the edge for five.
A lengthy delay then followed, and if it wasn’t rain, then it was bad light disrupting proceedings. The batsmen did come back out, and Hashim Amla scored an unbeaten 16 in the 46-run stand with Kuhn. They’ll hope for clearer skies on Friday, as it will be their last chance for a hit.
Photo: Nathan Stirk/Gallo Images
