Steven Finn
England bowler on The Cricket Social

The most aggressive player I ever played with was India spinner Murali Kartik.

He would absolutely lose his rag if any batsman even attempted to sweep him.

Is it that easy just to magic a left-arm pacer from nowhere? It's like when the England football team went years without a left winger. Sibley is happy to defend a maiden from Maharaj. There are 13 overs left in the day, but I doubt we'll get them in before the 16:00 cut-off.

This pitch has gone to sleep. No sign of the bounce that England extracted yesterday. There's a theory in South Africa that the ball is less likely to swing when it's cloudy, and more likely to move when the sky is clear. That's certainly the case at the moment. Remember when I said the Barmy Army would soon be singing? They are a predictable bunch....

Jimi Hollemans: I served dinner to one Rodney Marsh. We discussed the upcoming Ashes. It was only when he later led out the team as a Tampa Bay Rowdies legend that I realized he was the former England midfielder and not the Aussie cricketer I’d hastily googled at the restaurant.

Have you really got an OBE? Marvellous.

Here comes Anrich Nortje....

Dr Felix B Rowbotham OBE: As a kid at a county game, Phil Tufnell was fielding on the boundary and signed my mate's merch before turning his back and walking off. I loudly called him a rude word, then realised he was walking in for the next delivery. He returned after the next ball and complimented my vocabulary for such a young man. I got my autograph, rather red faced.

Sibley gets a complete gift from the returning Maharaj, a half-tracker that he cuts square for four. In the crowd, you can just about hear one or two voices starting to tune up. That will be a full chorus before the close.

Faf du Plessis is at first slip as Philander bowls to Root. The skipper has his shirt untucked and trousers that look very snug. It's a bit like when a club cricketer forgets his whites and has to beg around the dressing room for some spares. In the crowd, a lady is reading Number One Chinese Restaurant, which I believe is a novel, rather than a guide.

There's just over an hour to go in the day, 17 overs, including this one that Dwaine Pretorius is bowling. I'm not sure that's enough time for Dom Sibley, currently on 70, to reach three figures. Come to think of it, I can't actually remember a time when Pretorius wasn't plugging away at this end. When was the last time anyone saw Anrich Nortje?

Alex Hartley
England women's spinner on The Cricket Social

I switch the bails over when nothing is going my way to try and change my luck.

The hoover is a vitally important piece of kit for any groundsman. I'm trying to think of other household items you might need at the cricket.

Meanwhile, in a T20 between India and Sri Lanka....

Jonathan Agnew
BBC cricket correspondent in Cape Town

England are working very hard and that's what I like about this. They just have to bat and bat and bat.

There's a lot of tangoing going on between the non-striker and Rassie van der Dussen, the man fielding at short mid-on. Umpire Dharmasena even has a word with Van der Dussen to tell him not to encroach on to the pitch. VDD switches the bails around, either to get a change of luck or just to annoy the batsmen. Drinks come out. One South Africa sub is carrying a teacup.

Root has been searching for a gap on the off side and finally finds it with an open face, pushing Pretorius square for four. Later in the same over, he drops and runs, scurrying through for a single. The noise around the ground is polite. It feels like the Barmies are regrouping before a big push at the end of the day.