LONDON, July 10: South Africa’s pace bowlers rebounded after a disappointing morning session to take three wickets in 13 balls after lunch on the opening day of the first Test against England at Lord’s on Thursday.

At the tea interval England, 71 without loss at lunch, were 163 for three.

After Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook had looked rarely troubled in an opening partnership of 114, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel struck three times in the space of eight minutes.

Morkel caused the breakthrough by dismissing Strauss lbw for 44, shuffling across his stumps. Captain Michael Vaughan lasted only three balls for two runs when he was comprehensively bowled by Steyn with a delivery which moved away from the right-hander down the slope from the Nursery End.

Morkel, who had been wayward in the opening session, jagged two balls sharply back into left-hander Cook (60). The second caught the edge of Cook’s bat as he jumped hurriedly in an attempt to counter the bounce. The ball lobbed up into the slips cordon where A.B. de Villiers accepted the simple catch.

Kevin Pietersen, playing his first Test for his adopted country against the land of his birth, did his best to run himself out when he pushed his second ball into the leg-side. Makhaya Ntini’s throw missed the stumps with Pietersen short of his ground.

South Africa showed their lack of recent match practice in the pre-lunch session after Graeme Smith won the toss and elected to bowl on a pitch with plenty of water under the surface after two days’ constant rain.

Steyn hit 145km an hour in his second over from the Nursery End but was then taken off after only three overs. He returned shortly before lunch for a further three overs from the Nursery End after Smith had shuffled the remainder of his four-man pace attack to no avail.

The two England left-handers played with admirable discipline, picking up runs square off the wicket and refusing to be tempted outside the off-stump.

Cook was the more enterprising of the pair, striking nine fours from 132 deliveries before he was dismissed. Strauss played the anchor role with a firm off-drive to bring up the 100 partnership signalling his growing confidence.

Strauss’s dismissal signalled a mini-collapse before Pietersen and Ian Bell, under pressure after an indifferent series against New Zealand, steadied the innings.

Bell played some delightful drives to reach 33 at the interval with five boundaries while Pietersen (13 not out) was starting to strike the ball with increasing authority.

Scoreboard

ENGLAND (1st Innings):

A. Strauss lbw b Morkel 44

A. Cook c de Villiers b Morkel 60

M. Vaughan b Steyn 2

K. Pietersen not out 13

I. Bell not out 33

EXTRAS (B-4, NB-7) 11

TOTAL (for three wkts, 54 overs) 163

FALL OF WKTS: 1-114, 2-117, 3-117.

TO BAT: P. Collingwood, T. Ambrose, S. Broad, J. Anderson, R. Sidebottom, M Panesar.

BOWLING: Steyn 14-4-43-1 (5nb); Ntini 13-2-41-0; Morkel 13-1-41-2 (2nb); Kallis 10-2-31-0; Harris 4-2-3-0.

SOUTH AFRICA: Graeme Smith, Neil McKenzie, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, Ashwell Prince, A.B. de Villiers, Mark Boucher, Paul Harris, Morne Morkel, Makhaya Ntini, Dale Steyn.

UMPIRES: Daryl Harper (Australia) and Billy Bowden (New Zealand).

TV UMPIRE: Nigel Llong (England).

MATCH REFEREE: Jeff Crowe (New Zealand).—Agencies