×

We've got news for you.

Register on SowetanLIVE at no cost to receive newsletters, read exclusive articles & more.
Register now

Kuhn stands tall at lunch

South Africa’s Heino Kuhn survived a fraught first morning in swinging and seaming conditions‚ which brought him blows on the hand and the head‚ in the second test against England at Trent Bridge on Friday.

Kuhn was 34 not out at lunch‚ which South Africa reached on 56/1 after Faf du Plessis chose to bat and Hashim Amla was unbeaten on 16.

Dean Elgar opened the innings with Kuhn‚ and they were separated in the ninth over with only 18 runs scored.

James Anderson induced a slashed drive from Elgar and Liam Dawson‚ in the gully‚ dived to snare a fine catch.

Kuhn needed medical attention after being hit on the glove by Stuart Broad in the eighth over and again in the 12th after taking a bouncer from Mark Wood in the head.

He survived both incidents and batted on with focused discipline despite a 20-minute interruption for rain.

Kuhn batted for 101 minutes‚ faced 76 balls‚ and hit seven fours.

As announced on Thursday‚ Du Plessis — who missed the first test at Lord’s to attend the birth of his and his wife Imari’s first child — replaced JP Duminy and Duanne Olivier came in for Kagiso Rabada‚ who was banned for the match for disciplinary reasons.

A third change to South Africa’s team was the inclusion of a fourth seamer‚ Chris Morris‚ at the expense of batsman Theunis de Bruyn.

England won the first test by 211 with a day to spare on Sunday.

Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.