Eoin Morgan praised man-of-the-match Alex Hales for guiding England to a five-wicket victory on Saturday to hand the tourists a 2-0 lead in the five-match series against South Africa.

The Nottinghamshire opener scored 99 off 124 balls to anchor a successful run-chase of 263-5 in Port Elizabeth and the one-day skipper praised the usually explosive opener for his more circumspect approach.

“The surface that we played on today was a completely different challenge for us as a side,” said Morgan.

“Over the last three series we have probably only played on one surface like this and we did come out the other side of it, but it was a completely different challenge to what we are normally used to and to come out of that challenge with a win, against a strong side, is very pleasing.

“To get momentum and get started was quite difficult. The ball did reverse swing and it did turn a little bit, which made boundaries hard to come by, but certainly having Alex's innings to base ourselves around was brilliant.

“He didn't seem to take any risks at any stage and that allowed guys around him to take their own risks and play in their own individual way.

“That is very important in a run-chase on a wicket like this. You are never really out of the game but Jos Buttler took the game away from South Africa. He was top class.

“Halesy is pretty relaxed,” Morgan added, as he laughed off any disapointment in the Notts Outlaw not reaching 100.

“He knows he should have tucked it off his hip for one, he maybe got a little bit greedy and went to pull it, but he has been there before and knows hopefully next time he is in that position that he can kick on and get a hundred. 

“But, ultimately, he is the making of us winning the game.”

The match was still seemingly in the balance when Hales was fifth man out with the score on 202-5 in the 42nd over.

A rapid cameo from in-form wicketkeeper Jos Buttler, however, finished the job in double quick time, with 3.4 overs to spare.

The 25-year-old’s 48 off 28 balls came on the day he was signed by Indian Premier League franchise the Mumbai Indians who, Morgan believes, bagged themselves a snip at £385,000. 

“He only got one of them and hit it up into the second tier,” said Morgan. “It was huge.

“He was bought in the auction and they are getting an absolute bargain. They are getting a top, top quality player.”

Emerging victorious from a tense, relatively low-scoring cliffhanger was, Morgan believed, a crucial moment in his side’s development. 

“It means a hell of a lot,” the 29-year-old added. “This game was certainly in the balance for the majority of the day and could have gone either way, until Jos came in, because it was tricky.

“They show a lot of character within the group and what everyone is made of under pressure and if they come out the other side, how they react. Today, I'm very proud of how we handled it.

“We are very lucky that we have two exponents of swing bowling.

“And when it did swing this morning, I thought Will (David Willey) and Reece (Topley) were outstanding. They were aggressive, looked to swing it both ways and caused a couple of issues early on which was brilliant.”

 

England are returning to the scene of their Ashes triumph in 2016 for Royal London One-Day Internationals against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Don't miss the opportunity to watch some of the best players in the world go toe-to-toe in the unique surroundings of Trent Bridge and secure your seats now.