RABADA GETS HIS REVENGE ON STOKES

Pace ace removes England dangerman to launch fightback

KAGISO RABADA roared his approval after finally forcing his way past his old sparring partner Ben Stokes with a superlative yorker to bring South Africa right back into a Test and series that was drifting away from them.

Time and again Rabada and the rest of South Africa’s weakened attack had gone past the edge of every English bat but Stokes was dragging this decisive final Test back in their favour before a late and desperately needed strike.

Stokes could not have done more to justify Andrew Flintoff’s generous praise of him as he lifted England to a position where they were poised to push for their first home series win over South Africa in almost 20 years. The watching Flintoff could not have been more enthusiastic about the world- class qualities of Stokes as a batsman, let alone an all-rounder, when he told Sportsmail that England’s talisman could become the best they have had.

And it was at the Old Trafford ground Flintoff used to grace that Stokes again showed the battling qualities that earned him a century at The Oval and a maturity to rescue England from what was becoming a precarious position.

Stokes, tested time and again by Rabada (right), looked to have fought his way through to the close when just eight balls remained of an excellent day’s Test cricket and he stood on 58 after a partnership of 65 with Jonny Bairstow.

But Rabada, who again exchanged words with Stokes, produced the ball of the day to send back his nemesis and leave the Test evenly balanced, with Bairstow still there and England on 260 for six.

How Stokes was needed by England as time and again their batsmen got themselves in — and then time and again got themselves out.

This is the Test where England really could do with settling on their top order before three matches against a depleted West Indies that could cloud the picture before the biggest series of them all in Australia this winter.

Yet England were left again with just as many questions as answers as the two batsmen with most work to do to cement their places led the way in throwing it away after doing the hard work.

For Keaton Jennings, another dismissal that exposed his uncertain footwork and balance looks certain — barring any secondinnings heroics — to bring a temporary end to a Test career that began so well with a century against India.

And Dawid Malan wasted a golden opportunity to earn himself an run in the side when he aimed a wild drive at the impressive Morne Morkel just before tea to fall cheaply for the third time in three Test innings.

There is not as much concern about Tom Westley after the composed start to his Test career but he was another in testing conditions to fail to go on to the big score that was in reach when he battled his way to 29.

At least Westley fell to an outstanding catch from Quinton de Kock after again showing glimpses of class, notably a whipped four off Keshav Maharaj that had a bit of Kevin Pietersen about it.

Even captain Joe Root was guilty of wastefulness after he had gone part of the way to justifying another bold call to bat first on a day which looked made for bowling on an under

prepared Old Trafford pitch. Root had his slices of luck on his way to becoming the third youngest player behind Alastair Cook and Sachin Tendulkar to reach 5,000 Test runs, notably when De Kock left a regulation chance off Morkelrkel when he had made 40.

But Root’s penchant for being eing dismissed between 50 andd a hundred resurfaced when he tried to whip Duanne Olivier r through the legside and was palpably lbw despite optimistically reviewing Aleem Dar’s decision.

The absence of Vernon Philander, this time with a back spasm, and Chris Morris had left South Africa a frustrated and placed a huge ge burden on the shoulders of Morkel and Rabada.

But England, fighting to rid themselves of the inconsistency ency that has plagued them, could not take full advantage of an attack of just three specialist seamers and their surprise leading wicket- taker in this series, Maharaj.

Only Cook was undone by a quality piece of bowling when he looked set to repeat his matchdefining first day performance at The Oval last week as Maharaj drifted one to take his outside edge. Stokes settled England’s nerves but their position could have been worse had Dean Elgar been adjudged to have cleanly caught Bairstow off an inside edge on to his pad off Maharaj when he had made four.

The ‘ soft’ signal of Kumar Dharmasena on the low catch was out but he was over-ruled by TV official Joel Wilson, who decided that the foreshortened images provided too much doubt over whether Elgar had got his fingers under the ball.

As all too often happens, technology confused the situation rather than clarified it but Bairstow lived to fight another day and now England need him and the tail to take them above what would be a par score of 300 today.