England win toss, bowl against SA

LEEDS, ENGLAND - JULY 31: England captain Andrew Strauss warms up alongside Jonathan Trott during a nets session at Headingley on July 31, 2012 in Leeds, England. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

LEEDS, ENGLAND - JULY 31: England captain Andrew Strauss warms up alongside Jonathan Trott during a nets session at Headingley on July 31, 2012 in Leeds, England. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Published Aug 2, 2012

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Leeds, England – England won the toss and elected to bowl in the second Test against South Africa at Headingley on Thursday.

In a major surprise, England have left out Graeme Swann and replaced the offspinner with seamer Steven Finn. It’s the first time England have played without a specialist spin bowler since 2003 – also against South Africa at Headingley and they lost.

England also gave a debut to middle-order batsman James Taylor after Ravi Bopara withdrew from the squad on Sunday because of personal reasons.

South Africa, who leads the three-Test series 1-0, are unchanged from the side who beat England by an innings and 12 runs in the first Test at The Oval.

South Africa will replace England as the No. 1 Test team in the ICC rankings if they win this Test. – Sapa-AP

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