Reece Topley returned to the field in the second half of England’s bowling innings against South Africa having spent much of the match on the sidelines after copping a blow to his left index finger during his opening spell.
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Topley was straight into the action after England opted to field, dismissing Quinton de Kock with his second ball. He bowled a typically economical opening spell, conceding 11 runs off his first three overs. In his fourth, he was hit on the hand by a powerful straight drive from Rassie van der Dussen, attempting to field the ball off his own bowling. He received treatment on the field and tried to continue his over, but went off after bowling his next delivery.
As he walked off the field, Topley vented his frustration at having to leave the field for a second successive match. He swiped at a chair on his way up the stairs before throwing items at the dressing room glass. Topley’s reaction coupled with the pain he seemed to be in on the field compounded England’s worries.
Having dropped three all-rounders from their starting XI, they were fielding only five specialist bowlers, with Joe Root acting as their back-up option. Adil Rashid also spent several overs off the field with a stomach bug, meaning Root had to bowl more overs than Jos Buttler would have planned.
Buttler and England fans’ concerns were somewhat alleviated when Topley returned to the field at the 30-over mark, with his finger heavily strapped. Four overs later, he came back onto bowl and found a much-needed breakthrough. He dismissed Aiden Markram with his final ball of the over, Jonny Bairstow taking a difficult catch on the boundary.
He struck again in his next over, Ben Stokes taking a catch off David Miller at mid on.
