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25 overs England 109 for 1 (Bell 49*, Trott 39*) need another 112 runs to beat South Africa 220 for 8 (Amla 45, Tredwell 3-35)
Ian Bell played some elegant stokes while his batting partner grimaced through the pain © PA Photos
That Jonathan Trott, in obvious discomfort after being struck on the hand by Dale Steyn, would be bound for hospital as soon as his innings was over could be taken for granted, but he was in no rush to begin the journey. Midway through the innings, he was still ensconced as England made steady, if not entirely trouble-free, progress towards a victory that would put them 2-1 up with one to play and secure their hold on No. 1 in the ODI rankings.
Steyn's fiery new-ball spell accounted for Alastair Cook with the last ball of his first over, a fast inswinger which trapped England's captain in front of off stump. It was a high-class delivery which exposed what has become a bit of a weakness. Trott took a blow on the hand in Steyn's third over and needed pain-killing spray and tablets as he batted on manfully in obvious discomfort. One uppercut over point off Lonwabo Tsotsobe was followed by a curse at the pain.
But England's target of 221, perhaps 30 under par, allowed them time to weather the storm. They reached drinks, after 15 overs, in decent shape at 58 for 1 and then when South Africa took the bowling Powerplay, Ian Bell took command as a reckless edge wide of the slips was followed by a sumptuous cover drive. A six over extra-cover against the spin of Robin Peterson was his photographer's moment.
If one Warwickshire batsman looked serene, his county partner regularly grimaced in pain, taking his right hand off the bat on occasions to guard it against further damage. He was not as much a bear with a sore head as a Bear with a sore hand. It would be a surprise, on this evidence, if he played in the final ODI at Trent Bridge on Wednesday.
Interval South Africa 220 for 8 (Amla 45, Elgar 35, Tredwell 3-35) v England
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Three times Craig Kieswetter completed stumpings from James Tredwell's bowling © PA Photos
Stumped Kieswetter, bowled Tredwell is hardly the commonest entry on England scorecards, but it dominated this one. Three times, James Tredwell lured a batsman down the pitch and three times Craig Kieswetter completed a stumping. It was the first time an England wicketkeeper had pulled off three stumpings in a one-day international and give England the edge at tea.
England's catching and fielding was again far from infallible, but the Tredwell/Kieswetter combination was working well at least. It all meant that South Africa struggled to post a challenging total, achieving as much as they did largely thanks to a highly-imaginative unbeaten 31 from 20 balls by Robin Peterson, the highlight of which was a reverse-slog for six into the grandstand off Tredwell.
JP Duminy, who had looked fallible against Graeme Swann's off spin earlier in the summer, was the first batsman removed, in Tredwell's second over. Then he returned in his second spell to defeat AB de Villiers expansive drive and extended the habit by finding appreciable turn past Wayne Parnell's outside edge.
Tredwell's success transformed his morning. He has the convivial air of a suburban doctor and any self-diagnosis changed from feeling decidedly poorly to tip-top condition as South Africa's innings progressed cagily in far-from-straightforward early-September conditions.
Dropping Hashim Amla is not a habit designed to make winning cricket matches any easier. England have been dropping Amla throughout the summer and Tredwell was the latest culprit as England initially frittered away the advantage of winning the toss on an overcast London morning.
England are laden with statistical data and on a hard drive somewhere will be the information that dropping Amla has given him more than 500 additional runs since the start of a Test series won so convincingly by South Africa. This time Amla was 4 when Finn found the edge and Tredwell, fingers pointing downwards as the ball reached him at shoulder height, fumbled a chance he made more awkward than it might have been.
Ravi Bopara belatedly removed Amla, for 45 from 73 balls, as the mid-point of the innings approached, seaming the ball back a little and striking the stumps as he defeated a loose drive. It was the sort of classically English late-season day when Bopara's wobbly medium pace had an influential role to play.
Tredwell, the latest addition to a rickety England close-catching cordon, also missed Graeme Smith at slip off Finn when Kieswetter dived across him and unsettled his view, the ball striking him on the body; they were a happier couple when they were a length of the pitch apart. On the dressing room balcony, England's bowling coach, David Saker, groaned at the marked deterioration in England's close catching.
Smith's reprieve was not too costly for England as Dernbach surprised him with a bouncer which he top-edged through to the keeper. It had been a scrapping, ungainly innings by Smith, even by his standards as Dernbach attacked him with width outside the off stump and he determinedly clumped across his stumps to seek out his favoured leg side.
England did not just drop Amla, they lost their review in their desperation to remove him. Finn's lbw appeal, as Amla moved across his stumps, was judged too high by umpire Richard Illingworth and was backed up by DRS. When Bopara's big inducker brought a more convincing lbw appeal against Amla, also turned down by Illingworth, England had no review left when this time DRS would have ruled in England's favour.
It was an exacting morning for batting, one on which even Amla had to battle for every run. There were glimpses of his class - a resounding pull against Finn, the smoothest of sixes over long off as he strode down the pitch against Dernbach and a sweep over square leg as Tredwell's off spin did not emerge until the 24th over.
When he did bowl, though, he amplified the feeling already arising from Patel's overs that there was turn as well as seam in a pitch that still possessed a little moisture. South Africa would have been hoping that it lasted the day.
Once Amla departed, many who followed lacked the same threat. De Villiers, with 39 from 45 balls, got himself into a position to play a decisive innings before Tredwell pushed one a little wider for the stumping, but Faf du Plessis is horribly out of form as he proved when he unwisely tried to run a ball from Bopara against the Lord's slope.
Elgar is another South Africa batsman who has been inhibited in English conditions. His 35 occupied 59 balls before he tried to pull Finn's slower-ball bouncer and gloved to the keeper. Ryan McLaren was run out the next ball, Finn's disappointment when a good appeal for lbw was refused turning to delight as McLaren risked a second to keep Peterson on strike and Dernbach dashed around the boundary at third man and defeated his dive for the crease with a direct hit.
Ian Bell played some elegant stokes while his batting partner grimaced through the pain © PA Photos
That Jonathan Trott, in obvious discomfort after being struck on the hand by Dale Steyn, would be bound for hospital as soon as his innings was over could be taken for granted, but he was in no rush to begin the journey. Midway through the innings, he was still ensconced as England made steady, if not entirely trouble-free, progress towards a victory that would put them 2-1 up with one to play and secure their hold on No. 1 in the ODI rankings.
Steyn's fiery new-ball spell accounted for Alastair Cook with the last ball of his first over, a fast inswinger which trapped England's captain in front of off stump. It was a high-class delivery which exposed what has become a bit of a weakness. Trott took a blow on the hand in Steyn's third over and needed pain-killing spray and tablets as he batted on manfully in obvious discomfort. One uppercut over point off Lonwabo Tsotsobe was followed by a curse at the pain.
But England's target of 221, perhaps 30 under par, allowed them time to weather the storm. They reached drinks, after 15 overs, in decent shape at 58 for 1 and then when South Africa took the bowling Powerplay, Ian Bell took command as a reckless edge wide of the slips was followed by a sumptuous cover drive. A six over extra-cover against the spin of Robin Peterson was his photographer's moment.
If one Warwickshire batsman looked serene, his county partner regularly grimaced in pain, taking his right hand off the bat on occasions to guard it against further damage. He was not as much a bear with a sore head as a Bear with a sore hand. It would be a surprise, on this evidence, if he played in the final ODI at Trent Bridge on Wednesday.
Interval South Africa 220 for 8 (Amla 45, Elgar 35, Tredwell 3-35) v England
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Three times Craig Kieswetter completed stumpings from James Tredwell's bowling © PA Photos
Stumped Kieswetter, bowled Tredwell is hardly the commonest entry on England scorecards, but it dominated this one. Three times, James Tredwell lured a batsman down the pitch and three times Craig Kieswetter completed a stumping. It was the first time an England wicketkeeper had pulled off three stumpings in a one-day international and give England the edge at tea.
England's catching and fielding was again far from infallible, but the Tredwell/Kieswetter combination was working well at least. It all meant that South Africa struggled to post a challenging total, achieving as much as they did largely thanks to a highly-imaginative unbeaten 31 from 20 balls by Robin Peterson, the highlight of which was a reverse-slog for six into the grandstand off Tredwell.
JP Duminy, who had looked fallible against Graeme Swann's off spin earlier in the summer, was the first batsman removed, in Tredwell's second over. Then he returned in his second spell to defeat AB de Villiers expansive drive and extended the habit by finding appreciable turn past Wayne Parnell's outside edge.
Tredwell's success transformed his morning. He has the convivial air of a suburban doctor and any self-diagnosis changed from feeling decidedly poorly to tip-top condition as South Africa's innings progressed cagily in far-from-straightforward early-September conditions.
Dropping Hashim Amla is not a habit designed to make winning cricket matches any easier. England have been dropping Amla throughout the summer and Tredwell was the latest culprit as England initially frittered away the advantage of winning the toss on an overcast London morning.
England are laden with statistical data and on a hard drive somewhere will be the information that dropping Amla has given him more than 500 additional runs since the start of a Test series won so convincingly by South Africa. This time Amla was 4 when Finn found the edge and Tredwell, fingers pointing downwards as the ball reached him at shoulder height, fumbled a chance he made more awkward than it might have been.
Ravi Bopara belatedly removed Amla, for 45 from 73 balls, as the mid-point of the innings approached, seaming the ball back a little and striking the stumps as he defeated a loose drive. It was the sort of classically English late-season day when Bopara's wobbly medium pace had an influential role to play.
Tredwell, the latest addition to a rickety England close-catching cordon, also missed Graeme Smith at slip off Finn when Kieswetter dived across him and unsettled his view, the ball striking him on the body; they were a happier couple when they were a length of the pitch apart. On the dressing room balcony, England's bowling coach, David Saker, groaned at the marked deterioration in England's close catching.
Smith's reprieve was not too costly for England as Dernbach surprised him with a bouncer which he top-edged through to the keeper. It had been a scrapping, ungainly innings by Smith, even by his standards as Dernbach attacked him with width outside the off stump and he determinedly clumped across his stumps to seek out his favoured leg side.
England did not just drop Amla, they lost their review in their desperation to remove him. Finn's lbw appeal, as Amla moved across his stumps, was judged too high by umpire Richard Illingworth and was backed up by DRS. When Bopara's big inducker brought a more convincing lbw appeal against Amla, also turned down by Illingworth, England had no review left when this time DRS would have ruled in England's favour.
It was an exacting morning for batting, one on which even Amla had to battle for every run. There were glimpses of his class - a resounding pull against Finn, the smoothest of sixes over long off as he strode down the pitch against Dernbach and a sweep over square leg as Tredwell's off spin did not emerge until the 24th over.
When he did bowl, though, he amplified the feeling already arising from Patel's overs that there was turn as well as seam in a pitch that still possessed a little moisture. South Africa would have been hoping that it lasted the day.
Once Amla departed, many who followed lacked the same threat. De Villiers, with 39 from 45 balls, got himself into a position to play a decisive innings before Tredwell pushed one a little wider for the stumping, but Faf du Plessis is horribly out of form as he proved when he unwisely tried to run a ball from Bopara against the Lord's slope.
Elgar is another South Africa batsman who has been inhibited in English conditions. His 35 occupied 59 balls before he tried to pull Finn's slower-ball bouncer and gloved to the keeper. Ryan McLaren was run out the next ball, Finn's disappointment when a good appeal for lbw was refused turning to delight as McLaren risked a second to keep Peterson on strike and Dernbach dashed around the boundary at third man and defeated his dive for the crease with a direct hit.