England set sights on large total

Andrew Strauss acknowledges applause for his third Test century

Andrew Strauss set out his stall to bat for as long as possible after compiling an excellent hundred for England in the Port Elizabeth Test.

He ended the second day against South Africa on 120 not out, having struck 16 boundaries, with his side on 227-1.

Asked about England's strategy, the Middlesex batsman said: "We've got to try and get as big a score as possible in this first innings.

"The wicket is likely to deteriorate a little bit, so bat once and bat long."

Full day two report

After a poor batting performance in their warm-up game against South Africa A, Strauss said it had been important to "knuckle down" right from the start.

"It's one of those wickets where you've just got to be patient," he commented.

Strauss was senior partner in an opening stand of 152 with Marcus Trescothick, who opted to occupy the crease in an attempt to play himself into form.

"We enjoy batting together," said Strauss. "We're very different types of player and I think sometimes that puts the bowlers off, even though we're both left-handers."

Home skipper Graeme Smith was left with plenty of food for thought

South African-born Strauss revealed how he had put in extra practice to combat the angled deliveries of home paceman Makhaya Ntini.

"He comes from a very odd angle. Duncan [Fletcher] has been on at us to think about how we're going to try and play him.

"It is awkward to begin with. There are very few bowlers who bowl like that in international cricket."

Strauss was the second centurion of the game with Boeta Dippenaar contributing 110 to South Africa's total of 337.

"We are a young side and our big guns didn't score [many] so it was nice that the young guys could stand in and do a good job," said Dippenaar.

"It does a lot for my confidence. There were a lot of question marks about me being in the team.

"There's still a lot of hard work to be done and it's going to be a hard series, but it's the first step in securing the number five spot for me."