Kallis peaks in the shadow of Table Mountain

JACQUES KALLIS, the timeless rock of South African cricket, crushed the life out of England's hopes of first day domination at Newlands today.

Playing in his home town where he averages 65 in Test cricket, Kallis stood firm while all around him crumbled. But they're used to that in Cape Town. It's his sixth Test hundred here.

With his side 1-0 down in the four-match series, Kallis alone kept the huge New Year Test crowd from collectively jumping over the edge of Table Mountain next door, just has he had in the opening Test at Centurion.

Without him they might have been humiliated like Australia were in their New Year Test in Sydney, skittled for 134 by Pakistan.

Kallis, 34 but "still playing my best cricket" as he told us two weeks ago, went to his 100 off 175 balls, crashing Kevin Pietersen's occasional off-spin to the fence. Magnificent. After 133 Tests and 10,000 Test runs at an average of over 50, the man just keeps on going, despite fracturing a rib last October.

By the close for bad light, he had scored 108, just as he had after the first day at Centurion. If he stays in, with the promoted bowler-batsman Dale Steyn providing capable support, the South Africans stay in the series. They were 51-3 and 127-5. But now they're 279-6. Honours even after a bizarre day.

To my right, the towering cliffs of Table Mountain are partially obscured by the vast containers of the South African Breweries factory next door to the cricket ground.

There are 16,867 fans here who have paid thousands for the privilege of attending the third Test of a finely balanced series between England and South Africa. And yet, after approximately 48,312 lagers they're as quiet as church mice.

And out in the middle, at 5.15pm in the middle of the African summer, the floodlights are on.

None of it makes any sense. Men in long white trousers battling away for five days in the rain or sweltering heat... and then the umpires take them off because it's getting too dark but everyone can see perfectly.

And Graeme Smith, their captain, walked off at lunchtime having a furious argument with Kevin Pietersen, England's South African-raised batsman. They went to school in different cities but share so much in terms of attitude and aptitude.

Perhaps he was angry because he'd won the simple toss of a coin which decides so much in Test cricket just once in 11 attempts.

And every so often we all stop to watch the television contradict the umpires, with the new decision review system adding further confusion to the modern game.

And out in the middle now, as we approach the close of the rain-delayed opening day, nobody can really so who's winning.

First it was England, when Jimmy Anderson ripped out Ashwell Prince, caught behind for nought, in his first over. Graham Onions that had Smith dropped by the otherwise perfect Graeme Swann an over later at 1-1. England, unchanged despite Paul Collingwood's dislocated left index finger, had won the toss and elected to bowl. It looked like the right decision under heavy skies which delayed the start by half an hour.

South Africa were crawling back when Hashim Amla was trapped lbw by Onions before lunch. Then Graeme Smith went the same way after lunch.

Jacques Kallis and AB De Villiers were pulling South Africa back in the game, but when they'd taken their nation from 51-3 to 127-4, AB had a rush of blood and Swann was back as captain Andrew Strauss took the catch at silly mid-on. A ball later it was all England as JP Duminy suffered his second successive golden duck and Swann took his 16th wicket of the series.

Kallis alone kept South Africa going, staying first with Mark Boucher and then Steyn, adding over 50 with both. This one is in the balance. But what a bizarre balance it is.

South Africa Friedel while England burn... but Onions ensures the draw

SOUTH AFRICA'S 29-year-old debutant Friedel de Wet pushed England to the brink of defeat at Centurion last night with a fiery new ball spell which had 9,000 sun-baked Centurion fans on the edge of their grassy hillocks.

In the end, his phenomenal spell was not quite enough. England ended 228-9 with Graham Onions surviving a torrid last over from Makhaya Ntini to roars from the Barmy Army... and groans from the locals.

Unsung hero Paul Collingwood played his part too, looking on from the other end as the tail collapsed around him. He ended with 26 off 99, but like his obdurate resistance against Australia at the first Test in Cardiff last summer, it was worth at least twice that.

But in truth, the afternoon belonged to De Wet, who finally ended local disputes over his selection when he tore through the England late order just as safety was arriving over the cloudless horizon. Taking the new ball with England apparently secure at 205-5 with 13 overs to come, he got the stubborn Jonathan Trott, the hopeless Ian Bell and the non-batting wicketkeeper Matt Prior in quick succession.

Then, from the other end, South Africa's barely-spinning slow bowler Paul Harris got Stuart Broad to edge one and, after a painful review, he too was gone and England were 206-8. They'd lost four wickets for four runs in seven overs.

Last week there was a reported dispute between chief selector Mike Procter and coach Mickey Arthur about picking De Wet, who bowls for the Lions of Johannesburg, ahead of Wayne Parnell.

But Procter held firm and when Dale Steyn pulled up with his hamstring on the morning of the match, it was De Wet who stepped up, bowling a massive Steve Harmison-style wide with his first ball.

But he has improved steadily throughout this game and with the pitch finally showing some bounce - as opposed to the odd, low scuttler - from the Hennops River end, he came to life.

That initial new ball spell, four overs, three maidens, three wickets for two runs, will live long in the memory. First Trott hurt his thumb trying to fend off an absolute snorter and AB De Villiers took a sensational one-handed catch at first slip. Trott was gone for a fine 69 off 212 balls.

But Ian Bell, who left a straight one in the first innings, lasted just four overs before he fished at De Wet and wicketkeeper Mark Boucher took another fine, one-handed catch to his right.

Next up? Matt Prior. Our non-batting wicketkeeper. He was gone in a trice, another edge to Boucher, nine balls, no runs.

With the much-loved Ntini, winning his 100th cap here, having no such luck with the new ball, captain Graeme Smith turned to his gentle spinner Paul Harris, who took five wickets in the first innings. And it worked a treat. Stuart Broad, who relishes situations like this, prodded at Harris's fourth ball and the entire team of close-in fielders went up, as did the umpire's finger.

Broad, on nought, nil, nada, quack-quack after seven balls, demanded a review - his father Chris is, after all, a match referee and he'd felt hard-done-by first time round - but the television just confirmed what we knew already. A substantial touch to Boucher, who had now taken three catches in four overs.

But of course, England's secret weapon had yet to come out to join the canny Collingwood, who got a quiet half-century in the first innings.

Graeme Swann. Five wickets in the first innings, none in the second. A Test-best 85 in the first innings and a massive job to do here with seven-and-a-half overs left. The crowd were in good voice, the Barmy Army attempting to out-sing the locals. Bedlam. Everyone had been asleep half an hour before.

While Durham’s Graham Onions sat nervously in the dressing room to our right, Swann and Collingwood plugged away, attempting to stem De Wet's tide and seeing off Harris.

Six to go, five to go, four... but then Smith turned to Morne Morkel, his third paceman. Remember, the injured Steyn is currently the world’s No1.

And bang, with his fifth ball, he catches Swann in front. The finger goes up. They call for a review, but it’s too close. We have to stick with the on-field umpire. He’s gone for two off 22 balls.

Onions to face Morkel’s final ball. He survives.

Three to go. One wicket to fall.

Before De Wet’s arrival, this game had been dead, killed by the two South Africa-born batsman, Kevin Pietersen and Trott.

Even when KP ran himself out suicidally an over after tea for a fine 81, England still looked safe at 4-172. The crowd were starting to go home, the caterers were packing up.

But while we fiddled, Friedel burned with ambition. And when the new ball was thrown to him, he finally produced the kind of bowling South Africa have been calling out for throughout this sun-burnt Test.

So to the penultimate over. Onions survives three from Morkel with reasonable aplomb but then, inexplicably, takes a single off the fourth, a Yorker which nearly squirted through.

Collingwood goes for the single off the fifth... hoping to face De Wet’s last over. But he overcooks it. The ball reaches the boundary and he’s sent back with another four to his name, and he can’t get the last one away.

So it’s Onions to face the final over from Makhaya the Magnificent. Controversially, De Wet is rested after a spell of seven overs, 3-11. I’ll take you through it.

1: Gets a bat on a widish one, but not the full bat.

2: Plays and misses. Close to an edge. We’re all edgy.

3: Solid, right behind a good ball.

4: Gets a bat on it in front of his pads, plumb in front.

5: Solid, could have had a single cover.

6: A huge roar from the Barmy Army as Onions survives. He turns to the flag-waving Brits in their corner, and shows a fist. He’s done it. A 12-ball knock for one run, but it’s worth a roar. England have survived for a draw.

We live to fight another day. In Durban on Boxing Day for the second Test, where rain is predicted.

Grim Smith 1, Strauss 0... and Swannie's moustache

GRIM SMITH won the opening battle of the Boer War in Johannesburg yesterday, blasting England captain Andrew Strauss for not wanting to play in tonight’s Twenty20clash at the Wanderers.
Grim, spelt Graeme, may just have done his rivals a favour by calling Strauss’s non-playing role into question yesterday — England’s Johannesburg-born captain Strauss is now considering playing after opening bat Alistair Cook succumbed to a virus overnight.
Smith will no doubt take the credit for that. He’s that sort of bloke.
He has been in charge of the Proteas since the departure of the disgraced and now-departed Hansie Cronje five years ago. And he has come a long way since his first clash with England at the tender age of 22, when his record-breaking batting spoke louder than his clumsy words.
As the two nations go into a torrid schedule of 11 showdowns in 10 weeks, Smith — who has taken his team to No1 in the world rankings in both forms of the game — saw fit yesterday to have a go at Strauss’s decision to miss the two Twenty20 internationals this weekend and give the captain’s armband (if only cricketers had them) to Paul Collingwood.
Having scored 72 and 117 not out in England’s opening two tour wins, there are those who feel Strauss might have made the difference when England were all out for 89 and crushed by four wickets in a Twenty20 warm-up against South Africa A on Tuesday night.
Smith, who averages over 50 in Tests, said when asked about Strauss’s reluctance to play in the shortest form of the game: “It does surprise me. It’s very difficult to keep chopping and changing and I think it will be difficult for your coach Andy Flower to be working with a different captain with a different outlook.
“Who handles team meetings, who runs the show? Those are questions it’s difficult for me to answer but it must be an interesting dynamic within the side.
“He’s scoring runs, he has been successful in one-day cricket over a period of time, maybe it’s something he is reassessing in his own mind but it does surprise me that on a tour like this having started so well that he’s not playing a part.”
Smith won’t have it all his own way on this tour though. The last time the pair met, Strauss was the runaway winner.
It was a Champions Trophy qualifier at Centurion last month, an injured Smith needed a runner and the England captain said no.
Despite a Grim ton, South Africa were comperhensively beaten and the hosts crashed out of the competition.
Smith insists: “There are no personal hard feelings. It is going to be competitive. I guess we’re trying to work out at the moment how Andrew is going to go about things. He has been a very quiet individual whenever we have played against him, almost stuck in the background, a clean and tidy type of character.
“I think he is trying to be a lot sterner and tougher in his ways and maybe he thinks the England environment needs that. He is much more outspoken now, I guess the captaincy does that to you so it will be interesting to see how he goes this summer.”
On a less serious note comes news of Graeme Swann’s moustache, another stunning exclusive. You may need a magnifying glass and spectacles, but it IS there, stubbornly clinging on just above the top lip as England warmed up for tonight’s Twenty20 clash against South Africa in Johannesburg. Swann himself twittered last night: “Oh dear, my so-called ’tache is a disgrace. A semi-ginger, patchy disgrace! Still I must stick with it... at least until ordered to shave!” A less light-hearted twitter from Swannie this week reads: “‘This part of Joburg is safe as houses,’ said our liaison officer. Round the next corner? Bullet-ridden car, news crews, body bags!” Paceman Jimmy Anderson echoed that sentiment: “Just seen the aftermath of a shooting near the hotel. Cars full of bullet holes. Very scary.”