Steve Finn likely to miss fourth Test against South Africa

Those sort of catches win you games.

I’ve been impressed with his bowling – in fact in the first couple of Tests, you’d probably say he was our best bowler.

The world’s number one ranked team has already lost the series to Alastair Cook’s tourists, with frontline fast bowler Steyn missing both the drawn second Test in Cape Town and England’s victory in Johannesburg which gave Cook’s side an unassailable 2-0 lead.

“I had a look at the players that were here, there was a lot of potential but potential never won anything, there’s a lot of hard work to be done yet”, the England coach told the European Central Bank website. “It’s now up to the 11 that get picked at SuperSport Park to turn things around and find something special”.

“The wicket offered a little bit off the seam and in the air and for a six foot six bowler there is a bit of bounce there as well”.

Steven Finn has today been officially ruled out of the remainder of the test match series against South Africa as well as the limited over games which follow the series after picking up a side-strain in the latter stages of the 3rd test.

In the ICC Player Rankings for Test Batsmen, England’s Joe Root has reclaimed second position after scoring his ninth century in his 38th Test. Root’s 110 helped England to take a slender 10-run lead for which he has been rewarded with a jump of two places.

Broad moved past Bob Willis into third on the list of England’s all-time Test wicket takers with 330.

Broad has leapfrogged Steyn into first place while the South African has been battling with groin and shoulder injuries and unable to keep up his phenomenal record.

“It’s always a decent attitude but I think to field well and pick up those half-chances the energy and the attitude has got to be more full on”.

Stephen Harmison was the last England bowler to get to the top of the International Cricket Council rankings, in 2004, with Ian Botham also achieving the number one spot back in 1980.

He added: “The bowlers can’t do their job without the batsmen getting scoreboard pressure out there – Rooty’s hundred was one of the best I’ve seen him score”. The fourth and final test starts in Pretoria on Friday (local time).