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Captaining his country cannot have felt much of a pleasure or privilege to Alastair Cook as his first match in charge resulted in England’s heaviest defeat in Twenty20 cricket. This after South Africa plundered a record total between Full Member teams against some decidedly weak bowling from a depleted attack.

Handed responsibility only at 11am because of injury to Paul Collingwood, the prince in waiting behind Andrew Strauss proved helpless to prevent Loots Bosman and Graeme Smith from swinging at will through the leg side in posting 170 from 82 balls, the best partnership for any Twenty20 wicket at this level.

Seventeen sixes in the innings represented another record, and while there was not a great deal of style or finesse about the strokeplay, the unrelenting brutality of the assault could only be admired. It was certainly enjoyed by a partisan crowd.

Not even Kevin Pietersen, returning two days earlier than scheduled after injury, could steal attention from the belligerent opening pair. Smith is a known quantity while Bosman, the first player to score a hundred in South Africa’s domestic Pro20, looked like a right-handed version of his captain in style if not physique.

They were helped by too many long hops and full tosses from bowlers who could not hit yorker length often enough. Collingwood’s back injury meant the side lacked a recognised spare bowler, leaving Luke Wright to deliver a full stint. Wright is game for most things and was not disgraced.

Adil Rashid suffered the harshest treatment, conceding four sixes in his single over. Bowlers have no time to settle in this format and he looked a very slight figure ambling in to the strapping Smith. There, more than any other time, it really did look like men against a boy. But Rashid did not suffer alone.

Smith cracked Sajid Mahmood’s first three balls to the boundary and the over cost 21 runs in all, ending with Bosman caught off a no-ball to great frustration in the field. The erratic Mahmood was picked off all too easily. Bosman preferred the aerial route, hitting nine sixes in total.

Anybody missing the announcement of the teams may have struggled to work out who was leading England. At one point four fielders were pointing instructions, none of them being Cook. Understandably, perhaps, things seemed to be happening just a touch too quickly during an altogether chastening experience.

Short of placing three fielders on the grass banks beyond the mid-wicket boundaries and trying to claim catches on a sympathy vote, there was not much else he could have done, save for recalling James Anderson earlier. At least Cook could smile when Joe Denly tempted Smith to heave his first ball to Mahmood.

By then the game was over as a contest. Smith, battling with stomach cramps (and resisting any temptation to ask for a runner) had struck 88 from 44 balls and Bosman went on to hit 94 from 45 before Anderson held a good catch at deep mid-wicket. For all their inconsistency with the ball, England held up well in the field; Tim Bresnan had earlier taken a very sharp chance to remove Albie Morkel.

England chose not to alter the batting order, to the surprise of Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach, who seized an opportunity to twist the knife. “You talk about us being predictable, but England were very predictable,” he said. “For Adil Rashid to bowl only one over was criminal. It clearly shows he does not have a lot of backing within the team.”

So Cook opened, his game as it stands ill equipped to match Bosman and Smith. Trott compiled a neat half-century and Pietersen’s 29 from 19 balls was an encouraging return of sorts. But they were not threatening innings in the context and defeat was eventually heavier than the 77-run loss to Australia two years ago.

It also ended a run of six wins in all one-day cricket against South Africa before the 50-over series that begins in Johannesburg on Friday. Cook, at least, remained unscarred. “Whatever happened, I actually enjoyed the experience,” he said. He must have very high levels of tolerance.

South Africa
*G C Smith c Mahmood b Denly 88
L L Bosman c Anderson b Wright 94
J A Morkel c Bresnan b Pietersen 14
J P Duminy c Wright b Anderson 2
A B de Villiers run out 24
J H Kallis b Mahmood 7
†H G Kuhn not out 5
R McLaren not out 1
Extras (lb 3, w 1, nb 2) 6
Total (6 wkts, 20 overs) 241

R E van der Merwe, D W Steyn and Y A Abdulla did not bat.

Fall of wickets: 1-170, 2-192, 3-203, 4-204, 5-214, 6-238.

Bowling: Anderson 4-0-28-1; Bresnan 4-0-48-0; Mahmood 4-0-61-1; Wright 4-0-40-1; Rashid 1-0-25-0; Pietersen 2-0-27-1; Denly 1-0-9-1.

England
J L Denly b Abdulla 14
*A N Cook c Van der Merwe b Morkel 26
I J L Trott c Kuhn b Morkel 51
K P Pietersen b Van der Merwe 29
E J G Morgan b Steyn 10
L J Wright c sub b Steyn 12
†M J Prior not out 10
T T Bresnan c Smith b McLaren 0
A U Rashid run out 1
S I Mahmood not out 1
Extras (w 3) 3
Total (8 wkts, 20 overs) 157

J M Anderson did not bat.

Fall of wickets: 1-20, 2-65, 3-117, 4-132, 5-144, 6-146, 7-146, 8-150.

Bowling: Steyn 4-0-29-2; Abdulla 4-0-28-1; McLaren 4-0-26-1; Van der Merwe 4-0-39-1; Morkel 4-0-35-2.

Umpires: M Erasmus and B G Jerling.