After a domineering victory at Lord’s, the excitement is palpable for the Proteas. Starting off with a ferocious display from the pacers to a reasonably strong outing with the bat, here comes the chance to seal the deal with a game to spare.

Any doubts over Kagiso Rabada’s availability were emphatically quashed when he took a brilliant 5-wicket haul during England’s first innings. And if we top it off with the precision of Lungi Ngidi, the unrelenting velocity of Anrich Nortje, and the immense potential of Marco Jansen, it’s a dream team in the making.

South Africa have checked most of the boxes on the way to Old Trafford, but that doesn’t imply that there are no lingering question marks.

Let’s zero in on the Proteas batting unit. Dean Elgar and Sarel Erwee have been a very reliable opening pair, with the latter starring in the previous game. Keegan Petersen has been a sound presence at first drop, but as of late, the weaker links have been Aiden Markram and Rassie van der Dussen at No 4 and No 5, respectively.

Markram has managed a meagre 151 runs in 9 innings this year with a best score of 42, and van der Dussen has scored 233 runs in 11 innings with a best score of 45 since the current WTC cycle began. Neither player’s recent returns make for good reading, and more so in van der Dussen’s case given his greater experience.

Ryan Rickelton and Khaya Zondo are the two reserve middle-order options, and there’s a chance that one of them may get to play. If that’s the case, it’s likely that van der Dussen will be the one to make way.

For England, the series is on the line and this is the make-it-or-break-it match. They have plenty to fix both in the batting and bowling departments, as neither clicked to the extent they hoped for in the opening game.

During the first innings, apart from an impassioned 73 from Ollie Pope, there was little resistance from any of the others. And the second innings fell apart at the seams (pun intended), with the discipline and surgical accuracy from the Proteas pacers prevailing by a wide margin.

The bowling didn’t quite fire on a surface that was noticeably conducive, in spite of the calibre and reputation of James Anderson and Stuart Broad. Matthew Potts is still new to the scene, but he had a mostly forgettable time with the ball. But on a more positive note, skipper Ben Stokes continued to ask questions and got a few important breakthroughs to keep his side in contention as the game was gradually slipping away.

It might be just one bad game for Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow, but England will desperately expect major contributions from both of their star batters, who outperformed against last year’s WTC finalists – New Zealand and India.

Potential XI’s

Most will generally agree when it comes to keeping a winning team the way it is. But conversely, it makes logical cricketing sense to switch out a player who hasn’t been in form for the better part of the last 12 months in order to accommodate a promising player who’s eagerly been waiting on the sidelines.

In addition, it took a couple of 40’s down the order to drive the Proteas above the 300 mark. The relative dearth of middle-order runs is accountable, and it’s an issue that should be proactively addressed. The only question is whether they’ll play the young left-hander in Rickelton, or the more seasoned right-hander in Zondo.

And of course, there’s the third option – playing the same XI, which shouldn’t be a surprise if it happens.

Finally, it’s needless to say that the bowling lineup selects itself.

Elgar (c)
Erwee
Petersen
Markram
1 out of van der Dussen/Rickelton/Zondo
Verreynne (wk)
Jansen
Maharaj
Rabada
Nortje

England have multiple problems to fix, but the squad doesn’t necessarily have a whole lot of bandwidth.

For starters, Zak Crawley hasn’t passed 50 in 14 Test innings, but both captain and coach have reaffirmed their unwavering support for the young opener. He will want to capitalize on the remaining chances in this series to bounce back and make a strong impression.

Secondly, the bowlers didn’t appear to be consistently threatening. And they have two options when it comes to replacing the inexperienced Matthew Potts. They could opt for an extra yard of pace with the return of Ollie Robinson, or they could go for Craig Overton, who can chip in with some lower-order runs. They released their XI the day before the Test.

Lees
Crawley
Pope
Root
Bairstow
Stokes (c)
Foakes (wk)
Broad
Robinson
Leach
Anderson

Weather

The match starts on Thursday at 12pm (SAST).