South Africa fought their way back in the first Test match, with a blistering bowling display on the second day at the Oval, and Morne Morkel admitted it was exactly what they were looking for.
Resuming at 267 for three, England felt the wrath of the South African paceman, with Dale Steyn, particularly in lethal form, as the hosts were dismissed for 385, losing the final seven wickets for just 118.
South Africa ended a rain-curtailed day on 86/1. Captain Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla were at the crease on 37 and 47 respectively, having lost opener Alviro Petersen for a duck.
Morkel, who had figures of 4-72, said the opening spell of Steyn and Vernon Philander set the tone for the rest of the day. "I think it was needed," Morkel said after the match. "They were sitting pretty good overnight and we knew that the first hour this morning was key for us, to get some early wickets.
"All credit must go to Vernon and Dale; the intensity that they bowled with was fantastic.
"The main thing for us yesterday was we didn't get the ball to swing as much as we would have liked. This morning we got it to move around a little bit and got the results."
England staged a recovery of sorts, as the tail-enders hung on with Matt Prior to ensure they reached a respectable 385. Asked if the vistors could have skittled the English for a much lower score, Morkel said: "I think we will take that.
"There were a couple of small chances here and there with a run out, and if a couple of catches had carried to slip it might have been a different story.
"But with the result we had yesterday, looking at 380 tonight I think we will definitely take that and especially with the way we batted tonight; the way Graeme and Hashim then played was exceptional."
Prior, who scored 60, ensured England posted a decent total, when at one point it looked like the English could fold for under 300, with Steyn in a menacing mood.
"We were expecting South Africa to come hard, which they did," he said.
"But I think it's very easy to think, 'Oh, this was South Africa's day, and we're not now in a good position'. Actually, it's a very attritional wicket, quite hard to score runs quickly.
"They've only gone at about two an over so far, and if we come in tomorrow morning and get two or three early wickets we're back in the ascendancy and a very, very strong position in this Test match.
"That's the way we'll look at it. We've got to put pressure on their batters and hope we can get a cluster (of wickets).
Prior had nothing but praise for Steyn, who had dismissed centurion Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara, before the wicketkeeper came to the crease. "He's a world-class performer, we know that. He's not number one in the world for no reason," Prior said.
"But it's a great challenge. You want to challenge yourself against the best in the world.
"When it was going around this morning, those are the times when you have to look at it and say, 'right, I've got to thrive on this pressure and see if I can get through it'. So in a sick kind of way, it's quite enjoyable really."
The wicketkeeper-batsman insisted 385 was a good score on the wicket, despite England looking like they could reach 500 before the start of the day. "We ended up with 385, and I think that's a good score on that wicket," Prior observed.
"Yesterday, we probably would have said we wanted to get 400. But the way the wicket changed this morning, 350 is almost a par score.
"A lot will depend on that first session tomorrow. We have the bowlers in the dressing room to do the job for us, and I'm sure we'll come out very hard."
