• This was the 2029th One-day International match in cricket history.
• This was England’s 376th and South Africa’s 289th match.
• This was the 24th match between these two sides. The record now reads : South Africa 16, England 8.
• Jacques Kallis scored ninth hundred of his career and his first against England.
• Kallis, on 35, completed his 6000 runs in one-day internationals. He became only second South African after Gary Kirsten (6798 runs in 185 matches) and 27th batsman in the world to do so.
• The wicket of Mark Boucher was 50th for Andrew Flintoff in his 57th match. He became 13th Englishman and 143rd bowler in the world to do so.
• Flintoff also completed the allround double of 1000 runs and 50 wickets becoming the second Englishman after Ian Botham (who else !) to do so.
• The first wicket partnership of 200 runs between Marcus Trescothick and Vikram Solanki is England’s best for this wicket in all ODIs beating the 193 run-partnership between Bill Athey and Graham Gooch against NZ at Manchester on 18-07-1986. Incidentally England’s previous highest opening partnership against South Africa was 165 run between Nasser Hussain and Nick Knight at Bloemfontein on 23-01-2000.
• This was the third double century stand for England in all matches after the 213 run-partnership between Neil Fairbrother and Graeme Hick for third wicket vs West Indies at Lord’s on 27-05-1991 and 202 run-partnership between Graham Gooch and David Gower for second wicket vs Australia also at Lord’s on 03-06-1985.
• The partnership was the highest for the opening wicket against South Africa obliterating the previous record stand of 193 between India’s Saurav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar at Johannesburg on 05-10-2001.
• Trescothick and Solanki provided the first instance for England and 12th overall of two openers scoring hundreds in the same innings.
• Flintoff (32 & 3-46) became the second Englishman to score 30 plus runs and take three wickets in the same match against South Africa after Mark Alleyne who made 53 and took 3-55 at East London on 04-02-2000.
• Solanki won his maiden Man of the Match award in his 13th match.

(Article: Copyright © 2003 Rajneesh Gupta)