England dominated the first day of the second Test against South Africa at Old Trafford after the visitors were bowled out for just 151. England were just 40 runs behind South Africa with seven wickets in hand when the first day’s play came to an end.
Earlier, Dean Elgar’s decision to bat first after winning the toss proved costly as English swing bowlers exploited the overcast condition to wreak havoc in the South African camp. Two veteran English bowlers namely James Anderson and Stuart Broad picked up three wickets each.
Much to the comfort of the hosts, the weather improved significantly as they came to bat in their first innings. Although they lost three crucial wickets in Joe Root, Alex Lees and Ollie Pope cheaply, Zak Crawley and Jonny Bairstow appeared determined to rebuild the innings. Bairstow was unbeaten at 38 while Crawley remained not out at 17 from 77 deliveries.
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Broad later told BBC, “We fancied having a bowl. We felt the clouds would help the ball move a little bit. I wasn’t that disappointed to lose the toss. I was amazed how much the ball nipped today.”
England had lost the first Test within three days and are currently trailing the series 0-1. They hope to take a sizeable first innings lead against the visitors to win the Test in order to level the series.