We take a look at the stats that have made Trent Bridge a happy hunting ground for England in recent years.
The hosts haven’t lost a Test in almost a decade at the Nottingham ground, with their last defeat coming against India in 2007 by seven wickets.
In their last 10 matches at the ground, they have won seven, lost two and drawn one. South Africa have only played England twice at Trent Bridge since readmission, in 1998 and 2003. The visitors lost on both occasions.
That stat tells us that the Proteas will face a daunting task to defeat England in the second Test and square up the four-match series.
Five out of those seven victories were very convincing, (an innings and nine runs, 354 runs, 319 runs, nine wickets and an innings and 78 runs). Only Australia came close to defeating them in 2013, but lost by 14 runs.
Since 1990, the highest individual score at Trent Bridge is still the 210 scored by Graham Gooch. No other batsman has managed to score a double century since then.
Hansie Cronje is the last South African to score a Test century at Trent Bridge. His 126 was scored back in 1998.
The two bowlers who have taken the most wickets for England at Trent Bridge since 1990 will also be playing in the second Test.
In eight matches, James Anderson has taken 58 wickets at an average of 19.24, while Stuart Broad has taken 34 wickets in the seven that he played at the ground.
Broad also has the best bowling figures at the ground. He took 8-15 when he ripped through the Australia batting order in 2015.
Shaun Pollock is the highest wicket-taker for the Proteas at the ground, taking 11 wickets at an average of 23.45 in his two Tests played.
Interestingly, spinners have not taken many wickets at this venue. Monty Panesar took only nine wickets in the three Tests that he played there.
So don’t expect Moeen Ali to replicate his performance at Lord’s and take another ten-wicket haul this time.
The seamers will play a vital role in the outcome of this match.
Duanne Olivier comes into the side for the suspended Kagiso Rabada, to play only his second Test.
Olivier took five wickets on his debut against Sri Lanka, and the Proteas will rely on him to take a few scalps in this match.
If the Proteas want to beat England, they will have to improve their fielding and minimise all the no-balls.
The visitors bowled an alarming 13 no-balls in the first innings, and in the process Morne Morkel became the bowler with the most wickets off no-balls in Test history, with 12. The Proteas did show greater discipline in the second innings, however, conceding only a single run for a no-ball.
Joe Root is England’s most in-form batsman, and despite riding his luck in the first Test, his 190 runs scored in the first innings was a match-winning one. His wicket will once again be the most vital for the Proteas.
The Proteas will rely heavily on the likes of Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock and the returning Faf du Plessis to rectify what went wrong in the second innings at Lord’s.
ALSO READ: Second Test: The Preview
Photo: Gareth Copley/Getty Images
