England defeated in tour opener

It is a measure of the way England have been outplayed by South Africa A at Potchefstroom this week that not even a spot of divine intervention could prevent them from slumping to an embarrassing seven-wicket defeat, shortly after tea on the third and final afternoon. And yet, for a bizarre two-hour interlude, it seemed that they might just escape to Port Elizabeth with an undeserved draw, as the highveld's eclectic weather closed in on them for the second match in a row.

At lunch, there was little inkling of the dramas to follow. England had lost their last three wickets for 36 runs to set the South Africans a mere 135 for victory and, as the players left the field, that requirement had been whittled down to 72 with nine wickets still standing. Two overs after the resumption, however, the ground was shaken by a massive clap of thunder as a lightning bolt landed not 100 yards behind the pavilion and, after picking themselves up off the turf, England's startled players fled to the dressing-room for safety.

With huge patches of blue sky still overhead, the scoreboard flashed up the message that play had been delayed by "dangerous weather", which was a novel description of the situation, and there was a 20-minute delay while the umpires waited for the threat to pass by. Eventually - and reluctantly - the team re-emerged, and England briefly seemed electrified by the events as Simon Jones and Steve Harmison grabbed a wicket apiece to remove South Africa's established batsmen, Andrew Puttick for an authoritative 45, and Justin Ontong for 23.

At 101 for 3, the rains closed in as well, and South Africa A began to fear that their victory would be whipped from under their noses. But after a further hour-and-a-quarter hiatus, the outfield dried out as the sun returned and JP Duminy and Ashwell Prince hurried along to victory, with Simon Jones leaking four fours in one wayward over.

The only spot of good news for England was the form of their captain, Michael Vaughan, who earlier in the day converted his overnight 82 into a defiant century to give his bowlers something to work with. Resuming on 154 for 7, England's intentions were made plain in the very first over of the day, as Vaughan clipped the legspinner Ontong through mid-on for four, before hoisting him over the sightscreen for six.

Hoggard, his diligent overnight partner, couldn't hang around for long, however, and in Charl Langeveldt's second over of the day he snicked a high chance to Ashwell Prince at third slip (164 for 8). Vaughan reached his century with successive drives for two, but moments later he was gone as well, caught behind by Boucher as he swished at a wide one from Charl Willoughby. His effort had lasted 151 deliveries, with 13 fours and two sixes, and followed on from his Man-of-the-Series efforts against Zimbabwe. Maybe there was some sporting merit in that series after all.

It was left to Prince to set the seal on the innings, as he snaffled a Jones miscue in the covers, to give Langeveldt his seventh wicket of the match. Hoggard then gave England hope with a pearler of a delivery to remove Martin van Jaarsveld in the very first over, but neither he nor Harmison could find the necessary discipline, and Puttick was especially ruthless on their frequent loose deliveries. Only Andrew Flintoff was capable of putting a break on the run-spree, although he was once again troubled by a spate of no-balls.

England spent the rest of the day utilising the facilities rather better than they had been, as Mark Butcher and his fellow batsmen were put through their paces on the same strip of turf that had proved their undoing over the weekend. For a side that has been undefeated for almost exactly 12 months this defeat has been, quite literally, a bolt from the blue.