South Africa crushes hopeless England

England lost their first Super Eight game of the World Twenty20 yesterday at Trent Bridge after posting their lowest total in the short form of the game.

The tournament hosts were bowled out for just 111 with a ball of their innings still to go, a meagre total that South Africa overhauled with ten balls to spare.

The pick of the day's performances were from South Africa's bowlers, notably Wayne Parnell, who took 3-14, and from Man of the Match Jacques Kallis, for his 2-20 bowling figures and 57 not out off 49 balls.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
Mike Selvey, the Guardian: "Consistency, says Andy Flower. We have to strive for consistency. But thus far in this tournament, England have been ­consistent only in their inconsistency. One day they are down, the next up, the ­following down again: England have become the Tower Bridge of Twenty20. Here, they came up against an extremely good South Africa side and once again bottomed out, batting abysmally against top-flight bowling backed up by outstanding fielding. Bowled out for their lowest score in Twenty20 internationals, they were then unable to take the early wickets that the situation demanded, allowing South Africa the luxury of a leisurely stroll to victory."

Paul Newman, Daily Mail: "Paul Collingwood went into England's first Super Eight game claiming he would discover what South Africa's weaknesses were. The answer was emphatic - they do not appear to have any. England were totally outclassed at Trent Bridge last night against a dynamic, intimidating South Africa side justifying their status as favourites for the World Twenty20 title by taking their game to a level beyond England's reach. The victory over Pakistan which saved England from an ignominious early exit had lulled fans into a false sense of optimism about Collingwood's chances of leading the tournament hosts to the latter stages."

Richard Hobson, the Times: "The unexpected loss to the Netherlands could be put down as an aberration, but there is no hiding from the truth of this overwhelming defeat. Even with the vagaries of 20-over cricket, a brilliantly athletic South Africa would beat England something like eight times out of ten. The gap between the sides last night was genuine and wide. Paul Collingwood had predicted that England would expose weaknesses that had been covered through the group stage. Instead, South Africa treated the host side like their plaything, teasing them this way and that in front of a 16,000 crowd." ·