Thorpe puts his hand up

Graham Thorpe put his hand up and came to the party just when England needed him most, by scoring a brilliant unbeaten 118 at Kingsmead to set up the chance of their most improbable win of the season. And afterwards, he admitted he was a proud man to have played his part in turning the Test around, after England had been bowled out for 139 on the first day.

"We were very down, but not quite out on the first day," admitted Thorpe, "and it was always going to take something special to turn the game around. We were definitely in trouble this morning, as the middle order hasn't quite got the runs we'd have liked on this tour, so it was up to someone to put their hand up today. It was great to see the character of the side coming through."

Thorpe's form has been under some scrutiny on this trip, with his only innings of any note coming in the run-chase at Port Elizabeth. "It's the way the tour has panned out," he admitted. "I've been struggling of late, with no runs under my belt, and trying to find your form in a Test match is never straightforward. But it was hugely satisfying to get runs for the team, and we've given ourselves a chance to put South Africa under pressure.

"After day two, they would be thinking they were in the driving seat," he admitted. "But this game can play tricks on you, and it's not often that a side has chased 350 on the final day. We'll have to bowl very well tomorrow to get a victory, because the Kookaburra ball gets softer as the day goes on. But we've pushed the pendulum back over South Africa, and they are going to have to play very well to see the day out."

It was not all easy going for England, however, and they had to negotiate a hostile spell from Makhaya Ntini in particular. "They bowled well," admitted Thorpe. "Yesterday evening the lads [Trescothick and Strauss] cleared the deficit, but we were still only 88 ahead at the close. It was evenly balanced, and if they had blown away the middle order, they'd have had to chase 170 or 180, and it could have been very different.

"But it showed there was something in the wicket," he said, adding that Ashley Giles would have a big part to play, after missing the first innings with a back spasm. "The cracks are there, and there's some rough as well so Giles will play a big part. There's bounce for the seamers too, so it's not going to be easy for them, nor for us, but we're proud to have turned the Test around."

Thorpe has now scored five hundreds since his return to Test cricket in 2003, and each of them has been a classic, all scored from similarly dicey positions. "I'm just glad I've been able to do it in these situations," he shrugged. "Maybe as I get older, it helps that the games are mapped out for me, so I know what I have to do. But I'm proud to put my hand up for the team just when they needed it. We're in a far better position that we could ever have imagined."