Sam Curran keen to share the credit after career-best figures for England

England’s preparations have been badly affected by an illness in the camp, with Ollie Pope, Chris Woakes and Jack Leach all ruled out of the series opener in Centurion, while Stuart Broad and Jofra Archer both played despite spending a week battling symptoms.

To make matters worse Ben Stokes, who has already had to cope with his father’s admission to hospital, spent two long periods off the field being treated by medical staff for dehydration.

Step forward Curran, a man who might not have been guaranteed his place before the selection options were limited but left the field as the fulcrum of the attack.

He finished with 4-57 in the Proteas’ stumps score of 277-9, including the key wicket of top-scorer Quinton De Kock for 95.

If ever there was a time for a 21-year-old to take his rightful share of the spotlight, this was it.

Instead, the left-armer said: “It’s been a really tough week for us as a team and I’m really proud of how we stuck together as a group. We made sure we were fighting for one another and stuck with the guys who are a little bit ill.

“We are sticking together because it’s not nice when you have three guys at the hotel who may have been bowling in this match. We would have liked to have bowled them out, but nine down is not a bad effort. It was a really warm day, not much breeze. Ben had some dehydration and fingers crossed he is feeling better.

“We want him to be as well as possible and we know his character is very strong.”

At times England’s senior bowlers were put in shade by Curran’s consistency, accuracy and ability to force his way into the game, particularly given the fact he was thrust into a much more central role by Stokes’s predicament.

Typically, though, he shared the praise.

“I am loving learning from the guys,” he said. “They are world-class performers. Jofra has just had an amazing summer. Broad and Jimmy, they are legends. This is my first time playing cricket in South Africa so I feel I am learning from them.”

England will now be hoping to wrap things up early in the morning and set about the job of moving ahead in the game.

For the hosts, the aim is to frustrate their opponents and eke out at least another 23 runs.

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