England make steady start

England's openers experienced contrasting fortunes against South Africa in reply to the tourists' 484 in the final npower Test at the AMP Oval.

Captain Michael Vaughan, who topped the world ratings earlier this year, had looked to be in fine touch but made only 23 while Marcus Trescothick's 64 not out left the hosts on 165 for two at the close of play.

Vaughan has failed to record a half-century in the eight innings since hitting his ninth Test ton against the South Africans at Edgbaston in the series opener. He had struck four boundaries when Shaun Pollock enticed an expansive drive for Herschelle Gibbs to hold onto the catch at third slip.

The tourists' celebrations were exaggerated by the fact it was Pollock's 300th Test victim, following only 18 others to the mark.

Vaughan's opening partner Trescothick took 23 deliveries to get off the mark, square-cutting Makhaya Ntini to the ropes to do so, and played in a more circumspect manner than usual, bringing up his half-century from 129 deliveries.

While he dropped anchor, Mark Butcher found the boundary with regularity before being defeated by an Andrew Hall delivery which shaped in and trapped him lbw.

That brought Graham Thorpe to the crease on his home ground, following a year's exile from international cricket, and having registered three successive ducks against the South Africans at this level, the 34-year-old leg-glanced a single to break that trot.

When bad light drove the players from the field four overs before the scheduled close, he had shared 87 for the third wicket with Trescothick.

England's fightback earlier in the day, as they seek to level the five-match series, was checked by a frustrating last-wicket stand, worth 52, between Pollock and Ntini.

Pollock reached his half-century from his 64th delivery, a huge six over long-off from Ashley Giles' spin and milked the bowling while Ntini kept him company.

After trying numerous bowling combinations to finish things off, Vaughan turned to James Anderson and the Lancashire paceman demolished Ntini's stumps with a full delivery to complete South Africa's demise from 290 for one.

It might have been even more emphatic, after claiming five wickets in the opening session of the second day.

Martin Bicknell gave England hope of dismissing their opponents quickly with a double strike and two run-outs further aided the cause.

Needing to knock over their opponents in good haste to stand any chance of levelling the series, Bicknell made an immediate breakthrough in the first full over of the morning when left-hander Jacques Rudolph played around a full delivery to be trapped leg before.

Rudolph came to the crease this morning to face a solitary delivery from James Anderson, whose wicket in the final over last night saw South Africa close on 362 for four.

Bicknell, 34, took his personal return to two for six from 23 balls when Mark Boucher, who had already edged short of the slip cordon, was adjudged to be caught behind by Alec Stewart, playing his 133rd and final Test.

Television replays suggested Boucher had struck his pad but England's good fortune, provided by umpire Srinivas Venkataraghavan, kept up the momentum.

All-rounder Jacques Kallis, who was the hero with the ball in the crushing Headingley win which put the tourists 2-1 ahead, reached his half-century from 84 balls, including six fours and a huge six struck off left-arm spinner Giles in yesterday's final session.

It took a huge slice of good fortune to break a developing seventh-wicket stand when a Pollock mishit deflected off the hand of Giles, fielding off his own bowling and into the stumps with Kallis out of his ground.

That was built upon when Andrew Flintoff produced some reverse swing in the following over to trap Andrew Hall leg before and having not gained a run-out in the previous four matches of the series, England incredibly executed a third in the same innings when Mark Butcher's throw to Giles from deep-extra cover defeated Paul Adams' despairing dive at the bowler's end.