England staged a remarkable comeback to defeat South Africa in the Group B match at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, winning by just 6 runs. It was a low scoring game, but it was anything but dull, keeping the fans on the edge of their seats as it twisted and turned towards the final conclusion. South Africa had been on top all day, but Jimmy Anderson, for whom many pundits had called to be axed before the game, took the wickets of AB de Villiers and JP Duminy, with the run out of Francois du Plessis sandwiched in the middle to give England every chance of victory. The result continued to look like it could go either way, but with just 7 runs needed and just 2 wickets in hand Strauss recalled Stuart Broad to the attack. He proceeded to remove Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel to give England the victory in a thriller.
There was a lot riding on this match, particularly for the English, who needed a win to boost their chances of progressing to the Quarter Finals after their shock loss to Ireland left them vulnerable. The South Africans were just as keen to continue their World Cup form, whilst there is always a little added incentive when they play England due to the bad blood with South African born Kevin Pietersen.
England skipper Andrew Strauss won the toss and decided that his England side would bat first on a flat, grassless pitch, but a brave decision from South African captain Graeme Smith to open with the left arm orthodox spin of Robin Peterson proved to be a shrewd move. Peterson bowled beautifully for his captain, picking up both England openers with his very first over. He then removed Ian Bell, and England were reeling at 15 for 3. A good partnership of 99 gave England a chance of posting a decent score, but after both fell, Bopara making 60 and Trott continuing his good form with 52, England collapsed to be all out for 171. Peterson finished with 3 for 22 off 8 overs, Imran Tahir cleaned up the tail impressively to finish with 4 for 38 and Morne Morkel bowled tight in his seven overs to finish with 2 for 16.
England's score didn't look like it was going to be enough as Smith and Hashim Amla added 63 for the first wicket for the South Africans, before Graeme Swann struck and had Smith caught behind for 22. Amla followed soon after for 42, Kallis was dismissed for 15, but de Villiers and du Plessis steadied the ship and South Africa were seemingly cruising at 124 for 3.
That's when Strauss took a gamble of his own, and turned to Anderson. Anderson bowled the in-form de Villiers with a ball that only just grazed the top of off stump, and only Matt Prior realised that the ball had indeed hit the stumps. It took an umpires review to confirm that de Villiers was out, and in the next over some sharp fielding by Bell at short leg had du Plessis on his way back to the pavilion run out. Anderson appeared to have Duminy caught down the leg side in the next over, but despite replays appearing to back up the on-field decision, it was overturned and Duminy had a reprieve. Two balls later there was no doubt, as a beauty from Anderson shaped back into Duminy, sliding between bat and pad to bowl him. Three wickets in 11 balls without adding to the score had South Africa reeling.
Strauss continued to pull the changes, and Michael Yardy struck again for England, having Robin Peterson caught by Prior, and the South Africa were now in big trouble at 127 for 6. Morne van Wyk and Steyn put on 33 and South Africa looked like they were going to win, but Bresnan came into the attack and van Wyk chopped a short ball from him onto the stumps with 12 runs left to get.
Steyn assumed the senior role when Morne Morkel came to the crease, and they moved the score to 164. Again it looked like South Africa would get the runs, but Stuart Broad was brought back into the attack by Strauss and he trapped Steyn lbw with his first ball. Three balls later Morne Morkel played at a wide delivery and it found the edge, Prior took the catch and the English players were overjoyed. It was England's fourth close result from four matches this series, but after feeling they should have won their last two - the tie against India and the loss to Ireland - they will be glad to have finished on the right side of the ledger.
One of the key messages out of the South African camp during this World Cup is that they aimed to remove the 'chokers' tag that they are often labelled with. A loss like this will only increase the scrutiny, and Smith will have to work hard to make sure that this result doesn't damage his players' confidence.
England on the other hand will take a lot of confidence out of this game, and the two points for the victory make their passage through to the Quarter Finals a lot easier than it would have been had they lost this match.
Strauss spoke of his relief after the match, saying "we (England) were down when we lost the Ireland game, but the guys stood up admirably. We were a lot more disciplined and we are delighted by the victory". Strauss also said that there were many things England needed to work on before their match against Bangladesh on Friday.
Smith didn't look like a happy man after the game, but did say that that it "was a great game, but it is sad we wound up on the wrong side". He said South Africa would now turn their attention to their game against India next Saturday.
Ravi Bopara, recalled to the England side for this match in place of Paul Collingwood, was given the Man of the Match award for his polished 62 after coming to the crease with the score at 15 for 3. His inclusion was crucial for England, and his innings under pressure proves that he is someone who can perform in the big games.
Anyone who thinks One Day cricket is dead only needs to watch a match like this to see just how exciting it still can be. It was yet another thrilling match in a World Cup that has been full of quality cricket.
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