Cape Town: When Graham Onions began his sporting career, as an opening batsman at the Gateshead Fell Cricket Club, he probably dreamed about raising a clenched fist to salute the England dressing room.

That dream has now come about, not just once but twice in the space of four weeks. Has any tailender ever had such a defining impact on a Test series? Or got more value from the runs he scored? Onions made just one not out in the second innings at Centurion, and nought not out on Thursday. And yet, without those two innings, the score in this series would not be 1-0 to England but rather 2-1 to South Africa.

"When I started, I used to open the batting," Onions said Thursday night. "Then I grew a little bit and found out I could bowl with a bit of pace, so I turned predominantly into a bowler. I have never made a hundred and I think my highest first-class score is 43 [41, in fact]."

If the image of the 2005 Ashes was Andrew Flintoff's consoling hug for Brett Lee, then this Test series will surely be remembered for the sight of Onions's resolute defensive blade.

Graeme Smith joked Thursday night that it must be time to promote Onions up the order. No one would seriously consider trying this, in view of his rudimentary technique. And yet, there is something about his bristling body language that fosters confidence. He may be wearing a helmet, but as he walks to the wicket, you can almost see the jutting jaw.

"With 10 overs to go, I was sitting there quite happily with my trainers on and nothing to worry about," Onions said.

"All of a sudden a few wickets fell and I was next man in, and it was a lot worse waiting to go in than actually being out there.

"It felt tougher than in Centurion, definitely a harder last over to face. But it was very enjoyable to get that draw."

Absorbing the punches

Anyone looking at the statistics for this series would probably imagine that England must be behind. South Africa have scored more runs and taken more wickets, just as Australia did in the Ashes last summer. But Andrew Strauss's men have developed a knack of playing rope-a-dope, absorbing the punches and then picking off their opponents when they least expect it.

They get by not on overwhelming talent or superior firepower, but on character, resilience and a strong nerve — all qualities that have rarely been associated with Ian Bell.

Until now. If Onions's confident stride to the wicket is totally at odds with his limited batting talent, then Bell has often been the other way around. He tends to skulk around, looking like an anxious teenager at a party he wasn't invited to, despite having the silkiest touch of any batsman in the county game.

— The Telegraph Group Limited, London, 2010