England now lose No .1 ODI ranking as Amla's 150 propels Proteas to victory

London, Aug 29: Hashim Amla’s commanding 150 propelled South Africa to an 80 run victory in the second one-day international against England, resulting in the Three Lions losing their No.1 ODI ranking.

England has lost their No.1 status to South Africa for the second time in eight days, this time in the 50-over format on Tuesday night.

The loss, their first in this format for 2012, also brings to an end their 10-match run of victories, one short of equalling the England record.

After losing their Test crown at Lord’s last week, they have slipped to third behind India in ODIs. They can reclaim it again with a win at the Oval on Friday but they will need to bat better and drop fewer catches, The Telegraph reports.

South Africa (287-5) beat England (207-9) by 80 runs in second one-day international to lead 1-0 in series.

England have twice before scored the 288 needed runs here, so they had the backing of history, but they had the worst possible start to their chase when Alastair Cook was bowled second ball for a duck.

The match saw a record-breaking Amla, smashing a 124-ball 150, becoming the fastest player to 3,000 ODI runs as he reached the landmark in just his 57th innings compared to the 69 it took West Indies great Vivian Richards.

Amla’s shot selection and placement were so good that he rarely needed to force the issue with an “ugly” shot.

Amla’s wristy skills make it hard to set a field to him, as he can just as easily play the same ball through the leg side or through the off, the paper reports.