Under-19s suffer bruising defeat

A second successive batting collapse saw England Under-19s slide to an eight-wicket defeat inside two days of their tour match against a University Sports South Africa XI.

After dismissing the hosts for 124 in their first innings - which represented a lead of just five - England were skittled for 111 today at the ASBA Oval in Johannesburg.

And the Universities XI belied the low totals to chase down the 107 needed for victory for the loss of just two wickets.

Paltry scores of 119 and 111 leave England’s batsmen with plenty to think about before the one-off Test against South Africa Under-19s, which starts on Saturday. Liam Dawson will reclaim the captaincy from Sam Northeast in Benoni.

England began the second day in a position of relative strength after Atif Sheikh’s heroics with the ball on day one.

The Universities resumed on 74 for eight but added a further 50 runs for the last two wickets. They were eventually dismissed for 124, Derbyshire’s Sheikh the standout bowler with 5-48.

Scott Borthwick battled hard for his 25 but received little support from his colleagues

Abongile Sodumo was the scourge of England, not for the first time in the match. He finished unbeaten on 33 from 39 balls, shepherding the tail to good effect.

England’s deficit was negligible, but they found the combination of wicketkeeper Sodumo and medium-pacer Christoffel Viljoen impossible to handle in their second innings.

Viljoen took 6-27 in 9.1 overs, five of them caught behind by Sodumo, as England were dismissed for a Nelson score. Richard das Neves’ off-spin accounted for 3-15.

The Under-19s’ chief resistance came from Scott Borthwick (25), Northeast (20), Jaik Mickleburgh (18) and Hamza Riazuddin (16).

Durham all-rounder Borthwick and Essex batsman Mickleburgh briefly threatened a recovery, putting on 43 for the fifth wicket. But once Mickleburgh fell with the score at 80, USSA homed in.

A fourth-innings target of 107 was no foregone conclusion given the batsmen's previous struggles, but Maurice Aronstram guided the Universities with a well-paced 65 not out from 75 balls. The opener struck Azeem Rafiq for six to settle the match.

Rafiq, the Yorkshire off-spinner, was England’s successful bowler. He claimed the only wickets to fall - those of Ashley Fernandez and Petrus van Biljon - in returning figures of 2-22.

In a match which saw 18 wickets fall on the first day, and a further 14 on the second, Sodumo’s feat should be noted. The 26-year-old gloveman from the Eastern Cape took seven catches in England’s first innings and five in the second.

Although this is not a first-class match, Sodumo’s tally of 12 dismissals is only one short of the first-class record of 13, held by Zimbabwean Wayne James for Matabeleland in 1995/96.

Scorecard - USSA XI v England U19, Tour Match, Day 1, Jan 26 2009 (41 KB)
Scorecard - USSA XI v England U19, Tour Match, Day 2, Jan 27 2009 (40 KB)