Sky Sports statistician Benedict Bermange is using a cricket simulation to play out a Virtual Test between Nasser Hussain and Rob Key-picked England XIs
Thursday 23 April 2020 19:41, UK
Rob Key's XI will go into the final day of the Virtual Test facing a struggle to save the game.
Faced with a nominal victory target of 479, they were 74-2 at the close of the fourth day, with both openers already back in the hutch.
Much hope rests on their captain - who is at the crease - and the mercurial Kevin Pietersen - who has already struck three imperious boundaries on his way to 15.
Much of the earlier part of the day surrounded the debate as to if and whether Nasser Hussain would declare his side's second innings closed and how long he would give his bowlers to try to give his side the victory.
In the end, the decision was taken out of his hands as his side were bowled out for 325 on the stroke of tea, leaving them a minimum of 112 overs to take the 10 wickets.
Shaking off the early loss of Graham Gooch, who could only add three runs to his overnight 80 not out, Robin Smith and Graham Thorpe played some enterprising strokes to score at more than three runs an over during the course of their fifth-wicket partnership of 125.
Smith started the day with three boundaries in the first four overs and continued to his second half-century of the match. Thorpe was more circumspect but flourished in the final half-an-hour of the morning session with several crisply-struck boundaries.
Thorpe eventually edged the expensive Simon Jones to Marcus Trescothick at slip and as if to make a point, Ian Botham was off the mark with a straight-driven six which echoed his 1985 effort at Edgbaston off Craig McDermott.
It wasn't to last, as Key's decision to take the new ball brought about a clatter of wickets, with Stuart Broad the main beneficiary to end with figures of 3-63 with two wickets for each of Graeme Swann and Steve Harmison.
Trescothick started the run-chase as if it were exactly that - taking 10 runs from James Anderson's first over and raced to 20 within the first four overs of the innings.
Having not been bowled in the first innings, Ashley Giles was finally given the ball by his captain for just the 11th over of the innings and he immediately brought about a slowing of the run-rate.
He also inspired Darren Gough to trap Alastair Cook leg-before with an inswinging yorker which would have taken most of the three stumps!
Angus Fraser - as so often in his career - came to his team's aid just when it was needed, producing a beautiful delivery which clipped Trescothick's off bail.
Captain Key and Pietersen survived the final six and-a-half overs to stumps without any undue alarm, and they will look to continue their third-wicket partnership long into the final day to try to save the game.
The pitch hasn't seemed to have any demons so far, so it remains to be seen how much of a threat Giles will be.
