England Save The First Test.

If there’s one thing that England Cricket supporters have come to learn from following their team is that win, lose or draw they’re in for a bumpy ride- and on the final day of the first test at Centurion against South Africa the nations cricketers didn’t upset the form-book.

England eventually fought off a late South Africa resurgence to claim a draw in Pretoria, after seeing six middle order wickets fall for just 46 runs in the final session of the test.

The collapse was sparked by a crazy run-out involving Kevin Pietersen, who was cruising towards his 17^th test century before going for a single that partner Jonathan Trott stood motionless for, resulting in the run-out of the South African born player.

Pietersen and Trott’s 146-run partnership had looked as if it would all but seal England a draw in this opening test, with the duo combining solidity and carefully selective stroke play in their match saving innings.

The dismissal of the two will spark discussion for plenty of reasons, Trott’s because of the marvelous catch that brought the wicket, from AB De Villiers, and Pietersen’s because of the softness of the dismissal.

The hosts had seemingly run out of ideas heading into the final session and Pietersen’s run out gave them the initiative and the belief that they could in-fact go on and win the match.

In predictable fashion, the wicket has become the catalyst for some harsh criticism towards the England batsman with his exuberant batting style resulting in him unnecessarily trying to rotate the strike- with dire consequences.

This comment on the BBC Sport Website reflects the majority of the feeling towards the former England skipper.

"What a shambolic waste from KP. A typically senseless way to give up your wicket when the situation needs the exact opposite. Kevin may be a supreme hitter of a cricket ball, but great batsmen are far more shrewd and tactical than KP seems able."

This is a typical comment from one of the many fickle sporting fans this nation accommodates and is something better left for a rant on Radio 5 Live’s 606, or one of Talksport’s numerous discussion forums.

Pietersen’s contribution to England’s cricketing success, however limited it may have been during the last four years, can mainly be attributed to his quality with the bat and his unique match winning ability.

The odd mistake from him should not be scrutinized to the extent that he’s been made the scapegoat for England’s batting collapse.

I did mention his dismissal opened the floodgates for England’s collapse but it didn’t mean England’s batsman were suddenly obligated to give their wickets away, five wickets fell after his remember.

The circumstances surrounding the collapse did highlight how much work England have to do if they are to turn there fortunes around after a match in which they never had control of their own destiny.

From the instant Andrew Strauss sent South Africa into bat on the first morning of the test, England shattered any chance of drawing first blood in this test, and they failed from then on to wrestle the onue away from Graeme Smith’s side throughout the five rain-free days in Pretoria.

The fact that we saw five full days of cricket and the team batting fourth was still over 100 runs from parity proves how flat and lifeless the Centurion pitch was.

We’re expecting a bit more grass on the pitch for the Boxing Day test at Durban, and both teams’ selection policy is sure to different from this opening test for contrasting reasons.

The hosts have the luxury of being able to welcome back Dale Steyn into their bowling attack, and with Jacques Kallis also set to be able to bowl at 100% Smith can be confident ahead of the second test.

England on the other hand have to decide the worth of playing a sixth batsman, and whether they are willing to put any faith in Matt Prior batting higher up the order.

The hosts showed a depth and quality in their bowling attack that England couldn’t match, so a natural all-rounder, either Luke Wright or Liam Plunkett will have to be brought in to even up the England attack.

Frankly I’d be tempted to go with Ryan Sidebottom as the fifth bowler, given that both Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann make up for there not being an out and out all-rounder.

The selectors are however uneasy with the idea of Broad batting at No. 7, and therefore I expect to see Liam Plunkett given a chance to make his first test appearance since 2007.

Elsewhere in the team I’m worried about the form of Alastair Cook, who after averaging just 24.22 during the Ashes series made pitiful scores of 15 and 12 in this test and it highlights an area of concern in the England team- but one that won’t be delved into in the middle of a test series.

My final point surrounds the thrilling ending we saw to this test, and it was true testament that only test cricket could have seen an ending as exciting as what we saw today.

Even it’s biggest detractors, such as West Indies captain Chris Gayle for example couldn’t have argued that today’s climax to the game wasn’t electrifying, and rarely in other forms of the game could a game swing with such vigor as it did in the final session of the test match.

James Anderson’s tweet sums up the feeling behind test cricket, and Gayle apart, most of the players seem to be huge fans of the notion.

JimmyAnderson9: We are single handedly trying to keep test cricket alive!

Let’s hope for the future of the form of the game that he’s not the only one, otherwise we’ll be seeing decreasingly less of the types of finishes that we saw unfold this weekend.