England captain Ben Stokes said his team had set a "benchmark" after overpowering South Africa by an innings and 85 runs in the second Test at Old Trafford on Saturday to level the series.
Victory, with more than two days to spare, brought England back into the three-match series following South Africa's equally dominant innings and 12-run triumph at Lord's last week.
England have won five of their six matches since Stokes succeeded Joe Root as skipper but this one was built on the traditional style of red-ball cricket rather than the Three Lions' new brand of attacking game.
Stokes's men were on top from the start in Manchester, reducing South Africa to 77-5 before lunch on the first day after Proteas skipper Dean Elgar. The Proteas were eventually dismissed for a meagre 151 in their first innings.
England then made 415-9 declared featuring all-rounder Stokes's 103 - his first Test century as England captain - and wicketkeeper Ben Foakes's Test-best 113 not out.
A stubborn 43-over stand of 87 between Keegan Petersen and Rassie van der Dussen kept England at bay on Saturday until Stokes removed both batsmen after tea.
That paved the way for another collapse. South Africa slumped to 179 all out after succumbing to the new-ball thrust of James Anderson and Ollie Robinson as their last five wickets fell for just seven runs in 31 balls.
Anderson took 3-30 as he became the leading wicket-taker among pace bowlers across all formats by moving past Australian Glenn McGrath's total of 949 with his second scalp. He was well supported by the returning Robinson (4-43).
"Cricket is about how you bat, bowl and field and I think that the way we batted, bowled and fielded this whole game is the benchmark of the standards we've set," Stokes said.
"It didn't feel like a wicket where you could stand there and hit through the line because of the variable bounce that it was offering."
Bowling as a fourth seamer, which Stokes was at Old Trafford, can be something of a supporting role, but not in his eyes.
"When you are bowling with the older ball, when nothing is really happening, you have to create your own energies and own theatre around that," he said.
South Africa captain Elgar insisted they will regroup quickly before the series decider at the Kia Oval in a fortnight's time.
"The bottom line is we need runs from the middle order, and at the moment that is letting us down quite a bit," Elgar said. "As much as guys don't want to hear it, I think they know that already.
"I don't want to treat a guy like a schoolkid, that's definitely not my way because I wouldn't have liked that when I was a younger player, but we'll definitely have a few chats going forward.
"Sometimes you can go into panic mode when things like this happen. Myself and the coach (Mark Boucher) are definitely not those kinds of guys to panic. We know we're still a good side.
"Let's not forget why we're here. We're here to win a Test series and we're in a great position to still a win a Test series. We'll clear our minds, let the dust settle and focus on the third Test."
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PROFILE BOX
Company name: Overwrite.ai
Founder: Ayman Alashkar
Started: Established in 2020
Based: Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai
Sector: PropTech
Initial investment: Self-funded by founder
Funding stage: Seed funding, in talks with angel investors
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
RESULT
Bayer Leverkusen 2 Bayern Munich 4
Leverkusen: Alario (9'), Wirtz (89')
Bayern: Coman (27'), Goretzka (42'), Gnabry (45'), Lewandowski (66')
School counsellors on mental well-being
Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.
Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.
Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.
“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.
“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.
“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”
Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.
The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.
At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.
“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.
“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.
"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”
Brief scoreline:
Al Wahda 2
Al Menhali 27', Tagliabue 79'
Al Nassr 3
Hamdallah 41', Giuliano 45 1', 62'
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UFC Fight Night 2
1am – Early prelims
2am – Prelims
4am-7am – Main card
7:30am-9am – press cons
