South Africa batted for 151 overs in a Test innings last week. How quaintly old-fashioned. England, meanwhile, lasted just 32.5 and 34.4 overs in Perth, even less than the limp 50-over innings in New Zealand that passed for an Ashes warm-up, when they were out with 15, 14 and 10 overs unbowled. That’s not batsmen checking in for bed and breakfast, it’s a quick half before closing.
Oh well. Onwards. The second Test is in Brisbane and will be a day-night match with a pink ball (Thursday, TNT Sports 1, 4am). It is not a format in which England excel, with two wins from seven. The first, against West Indies at Edgbaston in 2017, was helped by 243 from Alastair Cook and 136 by Joe Root and they won their most recent, in New Zealand in 2023, with Harry Brook making two fifties.
In between came five heavy losses in which they failed to reach the 50th over five times. Pat Cummins remains unfit but Mitchell Starc excels with the pink ball, taking 81 wickets at an average of 17. Patience is required, not wafty drives at balls on fifth stump. If you want to see a longer innings, you could try South Africa’s one-day series with India, which begins on Sunday (TNT Sports 4, 8am).
The Formula One world title could be won in Qatar the same day. Lando Norris has a significant lead over Oscar Piastri, his team-mate, and Max Verstappen, whose hope of equalling Michael Schumacher’s five successive titles was boosted by the two McLarens being disqualified in Las Vegas last week.
Although 30 previous F1 seasons have come down to the final race, the title has recently been sewn up with something to spare. In the past eight years, only Verstappen’s first, controversial, win in 2021 was on the last day. The Dutchman has won in Qatar for the past two years and a third at the Lusail circuit on Sunday (Sky Sports F1, 4pm) would take it to Abu Dhabi next weekend.
It has been an odd snooker season so far with eight different winners of the ranking tournaments, none of them Judd Trump, the world No 1. Trump is the defending champion for the UK Championship, which is on in York (BBC Two, 1pm; BBC Four, 7pm). In qualifying last week, Jimmy White, 63, lost to Michał Szubarczyk, a 14-year-old Pole. When White was a teen, he also beat a sexagenarian: Fred Davis, who was born 98 years before Szubarczyk.
Now that the autumn Tests are over, the focus is on club rugby and the start of the European competitions. Saracens and Bath, who meet in the Prem on Sunday (ITV4, 3pm), begin their Champions Cup campaigns at home the following Saturday against Clermont Auvergne and Munster respectively (Premier Sports 2, 1pm; Premier Sports 1, 8pm).
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