The final Test of the four match series slated to start at the Old Trafford will be a humdinger of a contest. It’s pretty easy to predict to nature of the competition which will unfold as both England South Africa have either being superiorly dominant on their day or ended looking like a total misery throughout the Test leg.
All the three matches have been won by a margin of over 200 runs with England leading 2-1 after their superb show at The Oval in the third Test. A couple of changes in their team line up has paid rich dividends for the hosts as they now look like a much stronger team.
South Africa, who made a roaring comeback after being down 1-0 after the Lord’s defeat, has been hit by injury woes at the wrong time. Vernon Philander, one of the strike bowlers, is yet to recover fully from his injury trouble. His fitness status has caused skipper Faf du Plessis sweat about the selection decisions and game plans.
The familiarity of the venue is another factor which tilts the advantage in the favour of England. The hosts carry a solid record at Old Trafford having won every single Test since 2001. They have also won 8 out of the last 10 Tests at this venue with the other two ending as draws.
Meanwhile, South Africa has very little to gauge on in terms of experience at this particular place as they last played here way back in 1998.
Players in focus
In the current England squad, former England skipper Alastair Cook has a wonderful record at this venue and ruled the batting charts with three tons and three fifties in seven Tests from his overall tally of __ runs, averaging 62.90.
When England, last played at this venue, current skipper Joe Root smashed 254 against Pakistan after England batted first and Cook registered a ton and an unbeaten fifty in the second innings.
In the bowling department, local boy James Anderson, who is set to undergo a unique experience of bowling from his own bowling end at his home ground, is best of the current bowlers with 21 wickets in six Tests.
For South Africa, it will be the first time any of the current players will play at this venue. Therefore, no one has a track record here.
Pitch report
The pitch has always been the mean yet generous kind, offering something for everyone but slightly trickier for the batsman. The toss-winning skipper almost always opts to bat first. In fact, the last 10 toss winning skippers have opted to bat first on all occasions (7 wins, 2 losses and 1 defeats).
The batsman have to cope with the new swinging ball carefully early on and let the bowler have an upper hand in the opening session of the morning session. Later on, the pitch tends to get eased up making it easier for the batsman to bat. However, as the days progress, the spinners also tend to have a greater advantage as well, apart from continuous help for the seamers. Therefore, batting remains challenging if the bowlers stay competent and so not lose steam after a poor session.
Weather Forecast
Delays, as well as the wet ball problem, can be expected as rain is predicted to be around for the duration of the Test.