England vs South Africa, 3rd T20I at Nottingham, ENG vs SA, Sep 14 2025 - Ball by Ball Commentary

The captains pose for some pictures with the trophy in the indoor school. That'll all from us for England's international summer... but we'll be back on Wednesday to bring you the live action from Malahide, for their first T20 against Ireland. Until then, it's thanks from me, Miller and Venkat.

Harry Brook says it was disappointing to be washed out today. "It's a shame that the weather has ruined it again. We only played one T20 game, but the way that we played the other night was phenomenal. For us to do that against a very strong side gives us a lot of confidence. The batting line-up that we've got, we could do that [score 300] three or four times. [Captaincy?] Good fun. First summer as captain. It's different but we've got a good group. [Break pre Ashes?] Got about a month now. I'll go on holiday, soak up the sun ahead of New Zealand and the Ashes."

Aiden Markram says it's a tough series to sum up. "We had a lot of motivation today to put in a good performance and rectify a few things, but frustrating with the weather." He says he learnt in Manchester that South Africa need to be "more adaptable" with their plans. "We're tracking towards that World Cup. [Highs and lows?] It's a good conversation to have among the group... Good lessons. The other night was a tough performance, completely outplayed. [Great year for SA cricket?] You want to win. Today was an exciting opportunity, a must-win game. It's as close as you can get to a World Cup. But when the weather is like this, there's not much you can do. [Pakistan next?] Two or three weeks off now. It's going to bring its own unique set of challenges."

We've got a presentation coming up shortly. Phil Salt is player of the series. 0 off 1 and a dropped catch in Cardiff, but he made up for it in Manchester. "It was good to put that performance in on Friday night. Little bit of frustration with the weather. We put the pressure on early [on Friday]... It was about keeping the pressure on... I've opened the batting with Jos a lot now. [Ireland?] Very good trip. They're a good team and have had some good results at home, so we've got a job on our hands."

4.18pm: Match abandoned. It was only a matter of time... and the time is now. A miserable afternoon in Nottingham, which means that one of the weirder bilateral T20 series of recent times ends in a 1-1 draw. South Africa won a soggy smackabout in Cardiff, England romped to a remarkable win in Manchester, and the rain has won out this afternoon.

The latest time that play can start for a five-over match is 5.46pm. That's still 90 minutes away, but the rain is still falling and it'll surely take a while for the ground to be made fit to play on.

Jane: "In fairness to McCallum, the one thing about which he wasn't exactly positive (Mark Wood's fitness) may prove to be the most revealing part of that interview" -- Yes, intriguing... interesting to see if he's involved for Durham in their last couple of Championship games as previously hoped.

4.00pm: "Worst the rain has been all day," Vish tells me. The written press have just been asked to pick their player of the series... sounds like this match is circling the drain.

Smiffy: "McCullum tries to be positive in his attitude, how he discusses the team and the cricket that England play and that's a bad thing?" -- There's no pleasing some people!

Maddy: "Mccullum has talked about everything except about this match LOL!!" -- Not much to talk about, in his defence! Still chucking it down at Trent Bridge. Feels like a matter of time until they pull the plug.

3.40pm: Still raining in Nottingham. My best guess is that we are unlikely to see a ball bowled this afternoon, but nothing official on that front just yet, and I thought the same on Wednesday... in the meantime, India have started well against Pakistan in Dubai. Follow that one here

Sam: "McCullum seems like an excellent salesman for poor products. No matter the result, the tone is incredibly optimistic." -- He's hardly going to come out and say 'we've got no hope for the Ashes', is he?

3.35pm: McCullum slinks off from the Sky pod after a long chat. Interesting to note that Ashes selection is imminent. A few key decisions await: who will be England's back-up spinner? Will they take a back-up keeper - most likely Jordan Cox - or rely on Ollie Pope? Who will fill the final seam-bowling spot in what McCullum calls their "cartel"? Will Chris Woakes be considered for selection?

On England's white-ball teams, McCullum says: "There's lots that has pleased me. If you look through that batting line-up, it looks incredibly powerful. It's got a slightly different look to it with the emergence of Jacob Bethell... All the guys have done really well... We've got some very good bowling options when it comes to white-ball but the seamers need to keep upskilling so that in various conditions we can be slightly more adaptable. Time is on our side when it comes to the one-day team, because the next big event is 2027. When it comes to T20, I feel like we're not too far away."

McCullum is asked about England's schedule, and whether he has any say in it. "No, I don't have an input," he says. "It's done a fair way in advance. The landscape is shifting. The Hundred is a huge tournament... It's generated significant revenue for the franchises, and I'm assuming that the money for the players is going to go up. It's not ideal, the scheduling, but we've got to find ways to adapt to that schedule."

3.29pm: The rain briefly stopped, but Vish tells me it has restarted again. Sigh.

On Harry Brook, McCullum says: "He's good. He's coming towards the end of the season. He'll definitely benefit from the freshen-up before we head down to New Zealand then onto Australia... He's a great bloke, great cricketing mind, great connections throughout the group. I think he's going to do a wonderful job in the role that he's in."

"How are you?" Nasser Hussain asks McCullum, about his own workload. "My putting's gone, but everything else is pretty good," he jokes. "I'm sound. It's an incredible position to be in, to be able to work with some of the most talented players in the world... I've got a great boss in Rob Key, we've got great captains in Ben Stokes and Harry Brook. I feel very humbled to be in this position. There's always a balance with the family stuff... But thoroughly enjoying it."

On Joe Root, McCullum says: "In this game, statistics are held in such high regard... Joe has been unbelievable. It takes a very strong, giving character to come away from the captaincy, fall back into the ranks, and give what he's given to the group... I wouldn't be surprised if he had a huge series down there."

McCullum says Shoaib Bashir has been "superb" for England, and predicts he will be well-suited to bowling in Australia. He says his average of 39 reflects the fact that he hasn't been given favourable conditions, particularly with England's preference to bowl first. On England's second spinner, he suggests that Leach, Dawson and Rehan are all in the mix. "Whoever we pick, we'll be confident, if needed, that they'll all perform... We'll let you know in a week or so."

Asked about England's preparation in Australia - with only one intra-squad match scheduled - McCullum says: "Times have changed... There's a lot less downtime afforded to people. You've got to be conscious of being able to give them downtime... If there was an exact way to prepare that guarantees you success, everyone would do it. But there isn't... We have a white-ball series in New Zealand. There will be some crossover there." He says they'll also use the Lions tour to Australia to send a few players out there ahead of time. "We've won, I think, every first Test of our away series since we took over."

Ben Stokes is "progressing well", McCullum adds, after the injury he sustained in Manchester. "He'll be ready to go... I anticipate that he'll be fully fit and ready to go in that series." Asked how England would cope without Stokes, if he pulled up injured, McCullum says: "There's a multitude of things which can unfold. We've got a few thoughts in our head... We've got a few options up our sleeve."

"He's progressing. We've taken things pretty carefully. He's had a couple of minor setbacks," McCullum says, asked about Mark Wood's fitness. "When he's at his best, he terrifies opposition batters." Could they pick Archer and Wood together for the first Test? "You need to land an early blow... But you've got to work out which conditions suit which bowlers, knowing that it's a five-Test series. In principle, yes, you'd like to unleash some fast bowlers early in the series."

McCullum says he feels England are exactly where they want to be heading down to Australia, highlighting the settled batting line-up and a "cartel" of fast bowlers. "Now, it's how we handle the pressure... What an opportunity that is. It's an unbelievable opportunity. It's going to be a cracking series. We know Australia are a very good cricket team... The prize at the end is worth the fight."

McCullum is asked why England fade away towards the end of Test series. "There's only been a couple of series [like that]," he says. "Before that, to come back from 2-0 down in the Ashes... It can be slightly situational. You're always trying to look after the health of the army... It's something we'll continue to try and work on."

3.13pm: Still some fine rain, Vish tells me from Trent Bridge. Doesn't look heavy, but there are still umbrellas up in the stands.

"Jof knows what the big prize is," McCullum says, asked about Jofra Archer's workload heading into the Ashes. "As we look forward to the New Zealand series, we'll have to be careful to make sure he's cherry-ripe." He says the needle in the India series was "good spice" which "added to the theatre and the drama... I was delighted with the way the guys reacted. It was a great sign of the unity in the team."

3.08pm: Still looks pretty miserable at Trent Bridge. Brendon McCullum has wandered over to the Sky pod for a chat with Ian Ward and Nasser Hussain. "We balanced things a little bit better," he says of England's tempo with the bat in their Test series against India. "We grew up quite a lot through that series... We saw the emergence of the fast-bowling cartel we've been trying to build over the last couple of years. I left the series thinking we'd become a better team, despite the 2-2 result."

Dylan C: "It's time for England to look at using the Millennium stadium with its retractable roof." -- It has hosted some cricket before... have a look at this for a scorecard!

2.50pm: Miller has snuck off to prepare his Sunday roast, so I'm jumping in for the latest update... which is that nothing has changed. The rain is still falling, and the covers are. We'll start losing overs from 3.30pm. Still no update about the latest cut-off time for a five-over thrash.

Praglan: "Cooked early, got my drink in my hand and watching the rain on TV. Perfect Sunday afternoon"

2.32pm "We are at full cover capacity," says Vish. "Though Fidel won't approve..." Certainly not, our resident Lankan precipitation correspondent has very strong views about such things.

2.15pm "Heaviest it's been so far now, lot of umbrellas up in the crowd, players leaving very quickly now." Ho hum... nothing to see here... how are Liverpool getting on at Burnley?

Zain: "As a Pakistani supporting England Cricket and Manchester City, I've got a little less of a headache now with the rain around. At least there's less to manage with all the matches tonight. Hopefully, we still get a 5-over shootout later!" Indeed... there is this little humdinger looming later today.

2.10pm Markram and Brook are out there in the middle, but the rain has just got heavier... and the run-up covers are coming back on. It's official, toss delayed again.

2.08pm The toss is coming up at 2.10pm, it seems... we might yet get a handful of deliveries in before the heavy weather arrives.

2.05pm While we twiddle our thumbs, let's look back on a more thrilling encounter... the second match at Old Trafford on Friday was simply extraordinary, with England posting a massive score of 304 for 2, the first 300-plus total against a Full Member nation.

Darryl : "At least if we lose overs we won't concede 300 again"

Jon: "How annoying would it be to lose the series because of two 5-7 over slogs in damp conditions, having thrashed the South Africans on Friday night in the full length game."

2.02pm Still light rain, covers still on. Toss was due now, but obviously it has been delayed. The teams are out there warming up. There is an hour of leeway then we start losing overs. So realistically, if they aren't out there by about 5pm, this is toast.

There is still some talk of the toss taking place soon, however, so watch this space.

1.40pm Vish is at Trent Bridge now... heroic work. The skies are grey, the covers are already on. The omens are bleak. The wind is blowing in from the west ... howling the word "DOOOOOOM!" as it does so...

It's already raining, Vish says. "They've just unfurled another big cover on the right of the square..." Oh joy. Thankfully I bought a massive leg of lamb yesterday, so if you need me I'll be elbows-deep in salt, rosemary and garlic...

Peter: "so if the world doesn't actually end, we might have a five-over shootout at 9pm?" Please God no... yes, that would be splendid! Why not! Joking aside, the cut-off time will be earlier given this start-time is four hours earlier than on Wednesday.

1.36pm Some news coming out of the England camp. Saqib Mahmood has been ruled out for the near future after sustaining a knee injury. He's been replaced for the Ireland trip by Hampshire's Scott Currie, which is intriguing, seeing as he was playing for Scotland last year. He also played for Hampshire in the Blast final last night, but he might not want to be reminded of his key contribution...

1.15pm Good afternoon... welcome back to England's international summer. After a brief interlude for a memorable Finals Day, it's over to Trent Bridge for the third and final T20I against South Africa.

But...ahem, don't get your hopes up. Vish has just arrived in Nottingham, where the skies are grey and getting greyer. And if this rain radar is anything to go by... we might be better off watching the Manchester Derby...