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50 overs South Africa 250 for 9 (Petersen 64, Amla 57) v England

Hashim Amla and Alviro Petersen lifted their side with a brace of half-centuries but South Africa's anticipated batting onslaught failed to materialise as England's varied seam attack restricted them to a manageable total of 250 for 9 in their 50 overs in the second ODI at Centurion. Even a hit-and-miss fielding performance with five clear-cut chances - three alone to the captain, Andrew Strauss - could not undermine the determination England showed in the field, with Strauss himself excelling as a strategist, in particular with his canny use of the medium-pacers, Paul Collingwood and Jonathan Trott.

Seven days ago on this very ground, South Africa managed 241 for 6 in 30 fewer overs, but a week of torrential rain had added a coating of glue to the surface, and made it hard for any player to obtain full value for their aggression. The most fluent batsman on display was the opener, Amla, who would not have even been playing had Jacques Kallis not been ruled out of the series with a fractured rib. As it was, South Africa were very grateful for his calm demeanour and calculated strokeplay, as he picked off six fours, all of them through the off side, in a 72-ball 57.

Strauss won the toss and rightly bowled first, as Graeme Smith, who made 88 from 44 balls in last Sunday's fixture, this time struggled to master the conditions. He picked off two fours from successive deliveries as James Anderson strayed onto his pads, but then, after a consultation between Strauss and England's other new-ball bowler Tim Bresnan, a slip was installed, an off-stump line was settled upon, and a cramped Smith edged a good-length delivery straight to the fielder.

That brought AB de Villiers to the crease, a man with a burgeoning reputation in one-day cricket, even though he has yet to make an ODI half-century against England in four years of trying. He didn't hang around long enough to change that particular statistic, as Collingwood marked his England-record 171st cap with one of the finest catches of his recent career. Anderson offered up a hint of width, de Villiers climbed into it with a scything cut, and Collingwood at backward point pounced with both hands as he dived to his left.

Duminy began his innings with trademark panache, welcoming the new bowler Sajid Mahmood with a pair of punched drives down the ground. He added another four two overs later when Mahmood served up too much width and was crashed through point for his sins, but on 23, he should have got his man. A fuller length delivery was driven on the up to short cover, but the usually reliable Strauss shelled the chance as he flew straight at him.

Briefly, it looked as though the error would prove costly, as Duminy climbed into a pre-meditated assault against the legspinner, Adil Rashid, who had been thumped for 25 runs in his solitary Twenty20 over last Sunday, and was this time milked for 27 in three, including a reverse-sweep for four and a slog-sweep over midwicket from consecutive deliveries. But with Luke Wright at the other end settling into an impressive and containing spell, Duminy feathered a nick through to Matt Prior, and departed for 41 from 47 balls.

Wright's reduced pace was a sign of successes to come for England, for into the attack came the medium-paced pairing of Collingwood and - less predictably - Trott. It proved to be the ideal combination for the conditions, as Amla was instantly unsettled by the lack of pace with which to work. He survived a tough caught-and-bowled chance from Collingwood's fifth delivery, but one ball later, he popped a looping chance to Strauss at short cover, who this time held on.

The pattern continued as South Africa were limited to just one shot in anger in their next ten overs, a bullish smack for six as Petersen advanced down the wicket to Collingwood. In the 33rd over, Anderson returned to the attack to keep the batsmen on the hop, and the sudden change-up in pace proved too much for Ryan McLaren, who swished flat-footedly to be caught behind for 5, only three balls after surviving a finger-tipped caught-and-bowled opportunity.

Albie Morkel can usually be relied upon to tonk a few boundaries, and sure enough, having inched along to 6 from 11 balls, he laid into a rare long-hop from Collingwood, and sent the ball spinning towards the grassy banks at midwicket. Eoin Morgan, however, intercepted the blow with a brilliantly timed run and leap, and at 165 for 6, Petersen and Mark Boucher - coming in unusually low at No. 8 - had quite a rebuilding project ahead of them.

Trott once took 7 for 39 for Warwickshire against Kent back in 2003, but six years on from that performance he was denied his maiden international wicket when Strauss shelled his second chance of the match, a scudding drive from Petersen that eluded his grasp as he fell to ground. Strauss had fewer excuses three overs later, however, when Petersen, now on 47, stabbed a sitter into his bread-basket, and straight out again. The bowler, this time, was Collingwood, who would have been celebrating his 100th ODI wicket.

It was eventually left to Bresnan to extract Petersen with his fourth ball of the batting Powerplay, an impressive off-stump bail-trimmer that ended an excellent innings of 64 from 65 balls. Roelof van der Merwe clipped Anderson to midwicket, and Dale Steyn hoisted Mahmood to wide mid-on, but Boucher kept the runs ticking until the end with a typically inventive 30 not out.