Herschelle Gibbs on way to his century during the sixth ODI at Kingsmead on Friday. (Reuters)

Durban?s fickle weather gods made their second intervention of the tour lastnight, and once again England were the victims. When teeming rain forced theabandonment of the sixth one-day International, South Africa were crowned one-day champions, two up (3-1) with one to play (as reported in Saturday?s Late City edition).

It was a frustrating way to lose the series, but England cannot really claim to have been hard done by. South Africa were clearly the better side in this leg of the tour, at least from the moment in Port Elizabeth when GraemeSmith?s hundred put an end to their 12-month losing streak.

Rain stopped play twice last night, the first time when South Africa were 187 for seven. At that stage England might have imagined they had the game half in the bag. But the first 22 balls of their own curtailed innings told a differentstory. With both openers back in the hutch, and just seven runs on theboard, a target of 213 looked an awfully long way away.

For all South Africa?s reputation as a sun-kissed holiday state, bad weather has been a regular companion on this tour. On this very ground six weeks ago England were on the verge of a famous Test victory when the clouds closed in, forcing the umpires to offer the light to AB de Villiers and Makhaya Ntini.

The boot was on the other foot by the time the teams reached Centurion Park,and South Africa?s attempt to level the Test series was thwarted by the loss of some 130 overs in the game. In the circumstances the home side might see Friday?s interruption as poetic justice.

The game did at least see England?s attack firing as a unit. Their bowlers have been pretty average for much of this series, with the honourable exception of Darren Gough. But last night they held the initiative from ballone. After five overs South Africa?s score of three for two sounded like abargain offer from Tesco.

Alex Wharf had not played a match since going for millions against SouthAfrica A at Kimberley. Friday though, he made a startling return to theside. His seventh ball found Smith?s outside edge, and his eighth produced a dubious decision against Jacques Kallis, who looked to have been given out caught off his shoulder.

The only man to come to grips with a slippery surface was Herschelle Gibbs,who scored his second hundred of the series. But even Gibbs was not his usual self.

In a stultifying fourth-wicket partnership, he and Ashwell Prince went through a phase where they scored 49 singles in a row. When the capacity crowd rolled into Kingsmead, one thing they were not dying to see was an exhibition of tip-and-run.

One-day cricket is supposed to be about flailing bats and flying balls. But the modern vogue, some might say plague,is for risk-free accumulation in the middle overs.

These formulaic tactics have become so entrenched that the authorities havebegun investigating new ways to liven the game up. Prince, in particular, was appallingly short on ambition. Facing spin from either ends, he met eachball in almost the same way ? a little shuffle out of his crease, a wristydeflection through the infield, and a turn of speed that might put MauriceGreene to shame. As a batsman, he looked a very good sprinter.

Things livened up when the players returned to the middle. With the game reduced to 48 overs a side, South Africa had only 32 more balls to face, but with twocatches in the deep ? one an absolute blinder from Andrew Strauss ? and one flying stump, England managed to burst through through the tail with 11/2overs to spare.

South Africa had more than reclaimed the initiative by the time the teamswere forced off again for what proved to be the last time.The sight of the rain picked out against the floodlights must have beenfamiliar to their senior players, who endured the far greater frustration of going out of the 2003 World Cup at this ground on a Duckworth-Lewis calculation. This time, though, they were the ones to benefit.