England vs South Africa 5th Test

The test series between South Africa and England enters its fifth and final match on Friday, when the two teams square off in Centurion, near Pretoria. The tight schedule has made for fascinating viewing throughout the series, with every game lasting five days, and each one also swaying from side to side in terms of apparent control.It is England who have the edge now, and having won dramatically in Johannesburg, are no longer in danger of a series defeat.This is the ninth test to be played at Supersport Park, and South Africa have won six of the previous eight. However, the only team to have beaten them there is England in 2000, and they also accounted for the only draw, in 1995.England did well to dust themselves off after losing in Cape Town, and showed tremendous character to get back to winning ways. The two main heroes were Matthew Hoggard and Marcus Trescothick, but the match also marked a return to form for Michael Vaughan.The skipper batted extremely well to make 82 not out in the first innings and 54 in the second and despite losing his match fee for apparently criticising the umpires, it will be a game he looks back upon with fondness.Five years ago the tour of South Africa was his first with an England team, and it did not take long for everyone to realise the existence of huge amounts of potential. The game at Centurion was especially significant as a crucial 69 earned the Yorkshireman his first man of the match award.A poor record with the bat since becoming captain needs to be addressed, and it is important that he plays well once more so as to enter the off season in high spirits. The next time England play a test match is against Bangladesh in May. He is priced at 9/2 to top score for England and we feel this is worth taking. The openers, Andrew Strauss and Marcus Trescothick have done most of the work to this point, but there should be plenty of time for Vaughan at number four to have a substantial impact. With a 2-1 lead, he is also unlikely to declare as commendably brashly as he did in Johannesburg.Conducting a five test series in six weeks has taken its toll on both teams, with England perhaps worse hit by the fact that they have a limited touring squad, and are not used to the conditions. Mark Butcher has already gone home, and there are serious concerns over a calf injury to Steve Harmison and an ongoing ankle complaint for Andrew Flintoff. Geraint Jones, Ashley Giles and Simon Jones have all been receiving treatment also. Reports suggest that all five will be included in the starting eleven, but whether or not their performance levels are hindered remains to be seen.We are going to avoid the outright match results however. South Africa are 3/1, and whilst this is tempting in light of the England injuries and their own excellent record at Centurion, England have been the better side fairly consistently in this series. England are 7/4 with the draw at 7/5.As with at Joburg last week, there are major doubts over the weather, with some storms forecast over the five days. With the lead in the series also, Michael Vaughan will be able to move away from his attacking instincts that have brought so many plaudits to this point, making the draw more plausible. 7/5 is not a good price though, considering that three of the other four games have seen results, as have seven of the eight test matches played at this stadium.