Compton, Taylor hold up South Africa

“We know the challenge ahead of ourselves and, as boring as it sounds, we always try and focus on what we can control: our side, our preparation and making sure we get ourselves ready for the battle”.

However, Broad said that England are not reading too much into South Africa’s defeat in India and predicted a close-fought series between two teams whose recent fortunes have been very similar.

Compton was 63 not out and helped Taylor rescue England with a 125-run partnership on the opening day of the four-test series against the top-ranked Proteas.

“Conditions are tough when you are coming on and off for rain”.

“The others” are everybody but Alastair Cook and Joe Root, who have monopolised England’s run scoring.

That feeling changed in the second half of the session as Compton continued to counter South Africa’s aggression with a pacifism that would impress any Buddhist, and Taylor played a feisty innings that the optimistic among England’s fans might see as the embodiment of its fearless new era.

“What an opportunity it is for him to play”. Taylor who has just three Tests to his name played out of his skin to weather the storm, with Steyn, Morne Morkel and Co. firing in thunderbolts towards the batsmen.

After further interruptions due to the weather, Test debutant Alex Hales (10) became Dale Steyn’s second victim following his dismissal of Cook.

Woakes’ pace and control were impressive during the limited overs campaign in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the all-rounder continued in a similar vein at the start of the tour to earn a first Test recall since August 2014.

“It’s absolutely vital he plays the way he plays for Notts. One of the biggest mistakes you can do as an global player is to think you have to play a different way”.

“It was good fun in the middle, it was just enjoyable”.

One of the curiosities of Dale Steyn’s magnificent career is that his Test record against England is comfortably the worst – albeit that’s a relative term – of the opposition he has faced.

A risky single to get off the mark also hinted at nerves but Compton steadied himself on the back of a few solid defensive strokes. I have been training hard with the trainer, lost a couple of kilos, so it was nice to get back on to the field today.