South Africa vs England 2015-16, 1st ODI at Bloemfontein, Preview: Hosts aim to make turnaround following Test debacle

South Africa take on England in the first and opening game of the five-match ODI series in Bloemfontein.

South Africa take on England in the first of the five-match One-Day International (ODI) series at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein on Tuesday. South Africa were beaten 1-2 in the just-concluded four-match Test series and would look for redemption as they get ready to switch gears and take on the game’s inventor in the shorter format. South Africa have done well in ODIs and the white ball cricket could just work in favour of the hosts. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: South Africa vs England 2015-16, 1st ODI at Bloemfontein

However, England, who have come off an impressive performance in the Test match series, would not get carried away with the win as they get set to take on the hosts on the 50-over format. They are well aware of the dangers that the hosts may present, especially in home conditions. Moreover, South Africa, who are coming off an impressive win in the previous ODI series against India in India and that would definitely act as a confidence booster. Thus, England would like to start from the scratch and carry the winning momentum from the Test series forward in this ODI series.  South Africa aim to extract revenge in ODI series against England

AB de Villiers, who has been now been handed the South African Test captaincy, now returns to the familiar format. Rated the No.1 batsman in ODI format, de Villiers had a dream run in the previous ODI series in India. He may not have inspired enough in the Test series, but white ball cricket is different. It has just been over a year since he scored fastest ODI hundred.

Apart from the skipper, the likes of former Test skipper Hashim Amla, who has been relieved of the Test captaincy services, would feel much better now and would love to play his natural and free game, while the likes of Quinton de Kock, Jean-Paul Duminy, Faf du Plessis, David Miller, David Wiese and many more batsmen are all set to take on and give a tough time to the English bowlers.

South Africa have a formidable bowling unit in the form of Kyle Abbott, Marchant de Lange, Imran Tahir, Morne Morkel, Chris Morris and Kagiso Rabada. However, the absence of Dale Steyn will hurt them.

England, on the other hand, have been led well in the recent times by Eoin Morgan, who had a disastrous ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. Morgan, himself has been in a good form of late. England’s batting wears a pretty different look when it comes to the longer format. The likes of Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler, Alex Hales, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes and others would definitely play a crucial role as they are all capable of scoring at brisk rate.

Stuart Broad’s exceptional form in the Test series has earned him an ODI spot. The English pace-attack now wears a strong look after his inclusion. The other likes of Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Chris Jordan, Reece Topley, David Willey and Chris Woakes, will derive a lot of confidence from Broad’s presence. The only drawback would be the absence of Steven Finn, who will miss out due to an injury

The English side will be raring to prove themselves in South Africa while the hosts, who have a more experienced side in the shorter format, will eye revenge.

Squads:

South Africa: AB de Villiers (c), Kyle Abbott, Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock (wk), Marchant de Lange, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Rilee Rossouw.

England: Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler (wk), Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Taylor, Reece Topley, David Willey, Chris Woakes.

Time: 14:00 local | 01:00 GMT | 06:30 IST

(Ayush Gupta is a reporter at CricketCountry. A passionate supporter of Manchester United, he idolises Roger Federer and is also a World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) maniac. He can be followed on Twitter @Ayush24x7)

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