Proteas edge ahead after fire scare
Africa shrugged off a ground evacuation because of a fire alarm to reach 38 for one in the first Test against New Zealand on Friday, a lead of five runs.
With the game evenly poised after an absorbing first three days, both sides were hoping looming rain over the weekend did not dictate the outcome.
“It does seem pretty even but we don’t know what the weather holds. But hopefully we can make a game of it, it’s always nice to get a result,” said South Africa’s man of the moment Keshav Maharaj.
Maharaj claimed his first five wicket haul to halt the New Zealand innings at 341 with a Kane Williamson ton and the heroics of an injury-hit Ross Taylor giving them a 33-run first-innings lead.
BJ Watling, who contributed to New Zealand’s total with 50, believed a result was still possible with “one crazy session” that could change the balance.
“We’ve just got to (take) each session at a time and see what that leaves us with,” he said.
“You can’t play a game of cricket expecting it to rain because sometimes it doesn’t and you get caught out. It’s just the nature of the beast.”
South Africa lost opener Stephen Cook for a duck in the first over of their second innings and, despite a 20-minute delay when the University Oval was evacuated after a fire alarm in the main grandstand, they survived without further loss until bad light stopped play.
Firemen who searched the area blamed steam for setting off the alarm and when play resumed, in gathering gloom, New Zealand’s spinners were unable to find success against Hashim Amla, who was unbeaten on 23, and Dean Elgar (12).
Cook was caught behind off Trent Boult without scoring on the fourth ball, and walked rather than seek a review -although replays were unable to detect the ball hit the bat.
ROOT, HALES TONS LEAD ENGLAND TO VICTORY
Centuries by Alex Hales and Joe Root helped England complete a 3-0 clean sweep of the West Indies after the hosts were thrashed by 186 runs in the third and final One-day International (ODI).
Put in to bat, England racked up a sizeable 328, but the home team could muster only 142 in its reply. This was the Caribbean side’s heaviest loss against England in an ODI in terms of runs, while it also marked the first occasion since 1991 that England had swept an ODI series against the West Indies 3-0.
Back in the side after a twomonth injury lay off, Hales fired a 107-ball 110 to virtually take the game away from the hosts with a record 192-run second wicket stand with Root, who followed up his match-winning 90 not out in the second game in Antigua with a 108-ball 101.
West Indies needed victory to avoid a series sweep and also pick up valuable ranking points that would help the team earn automatic qualification for the ICC World Cup 2019, but the team came up short.
FIFA SETS UP HUMAN RIGHTS PANEL
Fifa, stung by criticism that it overlooks human rights in countries staging its tourna ments, has set up an advisory panel to address the issue.
South Africa and Brazil, which hosted the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, were criticised over alleged human rights violations.
FIFA said the new panel wil meet for the first time on Monday “providing FIFA with advice on all issues that the board members may consider relevant for the implementation of FIFA’S human rights responsibilities”.