After suffering a humiliating whitewash in the T20 series, South Africa will be looking for redemption as they face a strong white-ball England squad in the first ODI.
The hosts will miss Kagiso Rabada who has a groin injury. Temba Bavuma may retain his opener spot after scoring 32 runs in the last match. It was puzzling to see David Miller not being in the T20 team and he may play the ODI's.
The visitors will be without some key players, the man of the series, Dawid Malan who was in red-hot form, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, and Chris Jordan.
Head to Head
Matches Played-63, South Africa- 30, England- 28, Tie- 1, N/R- 4
Team News
South Africa has a few players yet to make their ODI debut in Glenton Stuurman and Pite van Biljon. They can include any of them for the first match.
While England's batting is quite powerful, they need their bowling to step up. Lewis Gregory is in line to make his ODI debut. Chris Woakes and Mark Wood will spearhead the bowling attack alongside the leggie, Adil Rashid.
Pitch and Conditions
The chasing team won both the T20's in Cape Town recently. A high-scoring game can be expected. The limited swing will be available for the seamers. The spinners can expect some turn in the latter part of the innings.
Probable Playing XI:
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (c), Temba Bavuma, Faf du Plessis, Reeza Hendricks , Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen, George Linde, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje,Tabraiz Shamsi, Pite van Bijon/ Andile Phehlukwayo
England: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Jos Buttler, Sam Billings/ Moeen Ali, Eoin Morgan (c), Tom Curran, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley/ Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Key Battles
Joe Root (Eng) vs Anrich Nortje (RSA)
Root averages more than 50 in ODI's. He has an insatiable hunger for runs and is very consistent with his performances. Forcing the pace has seemed to be an issue for him in limited-overs cricket. He can take his white-ball game to the next level if he plays his game without much worry and a clear mindset.
Nortje is a tearaway pacer who uses his height to good effect. Root must watch out for his deadly yorker that can castle his stumps. His pace can be unsettling at times and he does not give away many runs.
Chris Woakes (Eng) vs Quinton de Kock (RSA)
The SA skipper has been in good touch but failed to convert his starts into big ones in the T20I series. Said that the ODI format will give the wicket-keeper batsman more time to get settled it and he could prove the vital factor for the hosts in the ODI series.
If Woakes takes one more wicket, he will reach the 150-wicket mark in ODI's. He has been doing a decent job with some impressive performances recently. He will depend on the movement available at Cape Town. He can touch the 140-speed mark at his peak. Woakes can strike with the new ball and also restrict the run flow at the death making him a handy bowler.
Prediction
England has become the new kings of white-ball cricket since their historic World Cup triumph last year. They have been playing fearless cricket with a well-oiled team backed up by adequate bench strength. South Africa will hope they do not lose grip over their home conditions as it has been a fortress for them for a long time.
Cricwizz predicts South Africa to win the match
