WIGGINS, BUTTON, ELS AND AMLA MAKE SPORTING HEADLINES.

Yesterday threw up several sports stories, some expected and some surprising.

On the expected front, Bradley Wiggins finally won the Tour de France cycle race some 10 days after the British media had first started celebrating. That they'd already written and spoken so much about what might happen had an inevitable effect on the reporting of his eventual victory, which became something of an anti-climax. In fact, the media seems to have switched its focus to what Wiggins and his colleagues may do in the Olympic cycling events, already hanging an assortment of medals around their necks.

Less expected was the second place achieved by Jensen Button in the German Formula 1 Grand Prix at Hockenheim. The race was won by current championship leader Fernando Alonso, who led from start to finish, but Button finally found some performance in his car and moved up from 6th at the start to challenge Alonso for the lead, before falling back somewhat in the last few laps. Nonetheless, his improved placing was a welcome improvement from recent performances.

Definitely unexpected was the victory of Ernie Els in the Open Golf Championship. After the first 2 rounds and American, Brandt Snedeker, had a 4 shot lead over the field and most commentators rather assumed that Tiger Woods was the man who would be his main challenger. With the British and Irish contingent finding little inspiration, although Graham MacDowell and Luke Donald ended up in the top 10, it was initially Australian Adam Scott who challenged and then passed Snedeker as the American suffered a series of disasters. Scott actually gained a lead of up to 5 shots and was still 4 ahead with only 4 holes of the final round left, when his own form deserted him and he bogeyed all 4. At the same time, Ernie Els, a man who most thought passed his best, had birdied the last and was left to watch as Scott missed a shortish putt on the last hole to hand him the title. This was a populr win for the big South African who has always demonstrated a quiet and polite demeanour, win or lose. This contrasts with the scowling of Tiger Woods who, though finishing joint 3rd, never really threatened the leaders after the end of round 2.

Unexpected by the media but perhaps not really unexpected by cricket watchers was the catastrophic performance by England's team at the Oval. After the home side had struggled to a reasonable 1st innings score of 385, the South Africans simply overwhelmed England's bowlers. A not out triple century from the bearded Hashim Amla, the first by a South African in Tests, and other big centuries from Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis helped the visitors to amass a massive 637-2, before then reducing England to the brink of defeat at 102-4 by the close of this 4th day's play. England's position at the top of the world rankings and their putative title of the world's best side now hang by a thread as the South Africans close in for the kill today.