England beat South Africa in Port Elizabeth for 2-0 ODI series lead

Alex Hales hit 99 as England went 2-0 up in the five-match ODI series with a five-wicket victory at Port Elizabeth. AB de Villiers top-scored for South Africa with 73 off 91 balls as they posted 262-7 on a slow pitch, England left-armer Reece Topley claiming 4-50. Hales then struck a second successive fifty, becoming the first batsman out for 99 in both ODI and T20 matches. And Jos Buttler followed his century in the first match with an unbeaten 48 as England won with 22 balls left.

The St George’s Park surface was not as conducive to shot-making as the Bloemfontein track on which England hit 15 sixes and amassed 399 in that first match on Wednesday. They lost three wickets inside seven overs but Buttler was coolness personified, hitting three successive sixes in a devastating 28-ball cameo as England scored the final 29 runs in just eight balls to take a strong advantage into the third match in Centurion on Tuesday. (BBC News, 2016)