Joe Root led England to a first victory under his leadership against South Africa as the tourists capitulated and lost all 10 of their wickets in one day, following a similar collapse from their hosts.
They now take a 1-0 lead into their next Test on Friday with England looking to make it two series wins in two against South Africa.
Batting wise, England were indebted to Joe Root, Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad who all led well, but it was the all-round efforts of Moeen Ali with the bat and ball that led England to victory.
Ali took 10 wickets in the match and scored 94 runs, with a superb 87 in the first innings taking England out of sight following Joe Root’s outstanding 190.
The all-rounder was named the man of the match and his performances have seen him rise up to fourth in the ICC Test all-rounder rankings, one place higher than Ben Stokes.
Ali is statistically better than Stokes right now then. While this point will, of course, be argued in more than one pavilion, Ali’s rise is good for the team, the man himself, and Ben Stokes.
Stokes is the type of fiery competitor that take a good team and turn them into a great one. Be it heated exchanges with the opposition, steaming in and firing down balls during his spell or doing a demolition job with the bat, Stokes is obviously a player that looks to be the best in every element of the game.
Ali’s rise above him won’t be something that worries the all-rounder too much, with the rankings not always indicative of who is the better player. For England, their talisman is Ben Stokes and, when he is on form, he is one of the most explosive batsmen in the game today.
He will likely see Ali’s rise as a challenge more than anything, and that is credit to the man himself. Many would brood over this, but Stokes seems like the type of player that will take the new rankings as the issuing of a challenge.
After all, few would dispute that Stokes is England’s best all-rounder. He is blockbuster and, when the chips are down, he is the man England usually turn to.
With both players constantly striving to be the best, it will see England become better. The Three Lions are desperate to become the best in the world, and with both players constantly striving to be the best, they could fire England to the top of the world rankings yet.
