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Bayliss finally admitted that Moeen was his side’s No 1 spinner after the performance

Manchester. — South Africa slumped to heavy 177-run defeat on day four of the fourth and final test against England at Old Trafford in Manchester yesterday.

The result afforded England a convincing three-one series triumph – their first over the Proteas, at home, in almost two decades.

“I’m elated with this series win. The way we played of late, we’ve looked pretty dangerous – and having a couple of key allrounders in the side has been vital. I’m a proud captain here – and am very lucky to have had everyone contribute to this victory. We fought hard – and we will enjoy the celebrations that are to come,” enthused England captain Joe Root.

Faced with a staunch 380-run target, the visitors crumbled to an entirely insufficient 202 all out. Half-centurions Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis attempted, valiantly, to force the fixture into a fifth day, but a severe lack of support curtailed their collective ambition.

The second session provided the tourists with some hope, as Amla and Du Plessis’ combatant century stand defied the English. A change of ends for spinner Moeen Ali, though, sparked a collapse — three wickets ensued across just 10 runs.

Opener Heino Kuhn’s inadequacies were familiar, while the left-handed Dean Elgar suffered a rare failure. The talented Temba Bavuma’s promotion above Du Plessis and wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock was questionable – and the inexperienced Theunis de Bruyn, again, was out of his depth.

A batting order minus the solid services of allrounders Vernon Philander and Chris Morris, sidelined by injury, had very little to offer. Tail-enders Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel and Duanne Olivier denied the inevitable, briefly, as the eventuality soon arrived.

Ali, of course, proved the pick of the English bowlers. The left-armer’s telling match haul, complemented by a string of others, consolidated his status as the series’ leading wicket-taker. He secured the Man-of-the-Match award – and the England Player of the Series accolade.

“This was a fantastic series. Amla and du Plessis played really well, but we knew one wicket would change things, crucially. The pitch was great to bowl on, particularly if you put good revolutions on the ball.

 ENGLAND: AN Cook, KK Jennings, T Westley, JE Root (capt), DJ Malan, BA Stokes, JM Bairstow (wk), MM Ali, TS Roland-Jones, SCJ Broad, JM Anderson

SOUTH AFRICA: D Elgar, HG Kuhn, HM Amla, Q de Kock (wk), F du Plessis (capt), T Bavuma, TB de Bruyn, KA Maharaj, K Rabada, M Morkel, D Olivier. — AFP