• Batting coach believes Headingley heroics can inspire team•
England chasing record 376 to beat
South Africa in first TestThey are probably not that superstitious at the England and Wales
Cricket Board but they did nominate their batting coach, Graham Thorpe, to talk to the press before the final day of that match at Headingley and here he was again at Centurion when the victory target of 376 is even bigger than the one required against Australia in August. Moreover the pitch here seems less dormant than the one in Leeds, though the manner in which Rory Burns batted on Saturday evening suggests that it is not deteriorating quite as rapidly as anticipated.
Related: Rory Burns rumbles South Africa to keep England’s first Test hopes alive