Before this Test series commenced, there was pressure right on the hosts even before a ball was bowled. In the last three Test series between England and South Africa played in England before this one, the result for the hosts was so bad, that it eventually ended in the form of the skipper resigning. To add to that, this time around, England were fielding a new candidate for captaincy after Alastair Cook called time on his captaincy career earlier this year.
England and Joe Root more importantly, however, responded with an utmost maturity to the challenge as the hosts decimated South Africa in the four match series. For the first time in 20 years, the home team won a series between England and South Africa.
Thanks to a heroic display from Moeen Ali throughout the series, England went 3-1 up at Manchester to thrash South Africa colossally on the fourth evening. Post the win, skipper Joe Root was beaming with joy with the end result.
“Really pleased with the way this series has gone,” Root said. “The way our guys have responded to pressure has been great stuff. We knew we had a lot of runs. That partnership between Faf and Amla did build some pressure. But the way we responded again epitomizes this whole series.”
“Throughout we’ve had to come over different challenges. We’ve been brilliant in these last two games. Have got a lot of hard work to do in the future, but yeah, great series. It’s important to look at the conditions. When you have match-winners like we have with both bat and ball, it’s a great luxury to have. A very proud moment,” Root added.
For his 25 wickets and scoring well over 250 runs, Moeen Ali was named the Man of the Series, and the all-rounder was all smiles.
“The crowd helps a lot especially when things are tough. It’s been a fantastic series. They played very well, they’re two world class players (Faf and Amla partnership). It was about being patient as a team. We knew one wicket would be crucial. It was a great pitch to bowl, especially today I felt it was nice if we just land it in the good area and put some revs. I didn’t really back my defence too much last evening so I just went out there and played a few shots. The No. 8 position offers the license.”