Sunday 3 January 2016 17:18, UK
Ben Stokes savoured an exceptional day with the bat in Cape Town after rewriting England's record books.
The Durham all-rounder clubbed 258 from 198 balls in the second Test against South Africa and put on 399 with Jonny Bairstow, who was 150 not out when England captain Alastair Cook declared at 629-6.
He then removed Dean Elgar as South Africa closed on 141-2, but it was his exploits earlier in the day that continued to dominate the headlines.
"It hasn't quite sunk in yet," he told Sky Sports at the end of the day's play.
"I looked at the scoreboard, we had a lot runs on board and I thought we were in a good position anyway, with only five down, so I just chanced my arm. I didn't think me slogging one up in the air would have put us in that bad a
position!
"It's complete instinct, I thought to myself what I was going to do and executed it the right way. You seem to pick the ball up a lot earlier and you bring the one-day and Twenty20 stuff back into the game when you're going like that.
"Cookie ran a message out when we were 600, said '630 or do you want to go on for 300?' I said, 'It doesn't really matter because I'm just trying to hit every ball for six anyway!'"
Stokes was quick to praise Bairstow, too, for his contribution to Test cricket's highest ever sixth-wicket stand.
"People probably won't speak about Bluey's knock but when another guy's going hell for leather at the other end, you almost get drawn into doing that yourself," he said.
"The way he played his natural game and didn't look to go too far out of his box, I thought was amazing - and then once he got his hundred he let loose."
Watch highlights of day two at 6.30pm on Sky Sports 2 and then do not miss The Verdict - a Ben Stokes special - from 7.30pm on the same channel. Our live coverage of day three begins at 7.30am on Monday on Sky Sports 2.
