Published: Feb 11, 2016, 04:45 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 12, 2016, 04:23 PM (IST)
All has not been well with South Africa. Following close on the heels of their streak-crushing 3-0 defeat in the away Tests against India, they were beaten at home by a formidable England side. Change of format did not usher an immediate change in fortunes. In fact the first two One-Day Internationals (ODIs) an electric England comfortably outplayed their hosts. However, in the third match South Africa gave a peek into their buried identity by defeating England by seven wickets. In the fourth ODI at Johannesburg, they will seek to rebuild on their tattered confidence with a series-levelling win. SCORECARD: South Africa vs England 2015-16, 4th ODI at Johannesburg
The previous match at Centurion did South Africa’s confidence a world of good. Their bowlers conceded 318 runs on a flat track but that was easily shot down by the batsmen. Both their openers — Quinton de Kock and Hashim Amla — scored hundreds and at one stage even the possibility of chasing down the total without loss of wicket loomed. However, they both did get dismissed eventually.
Barring Adil Rashid, not a single English bowler could contain or threaten the South African batsmen as they offered a glimpse of their dominant best. Even Rashid who was good enough to concede just 45 runs was given only one wicket by the resolute batsmen. Not only did South Africa win the game, but stamped their authority by doing it with 22 balls and more than half the batting line up in the hut.
Going into the fourth game, it is the bowling department that will haunt either side. While the pitch was undeniably on the flatter side, the accuracy of certain bowlers was questionable. For South Africa, Imran Tahir, who has recently become such a force with the white ball was a big disappointment. They would like to think of it as an off day rather than a decline in form.
Similarly for England, Chris Jordan has been an under-par performer with the ball for long and was so bad in the third game, he bowled three short of his quota. David Willey has been an impressive performer but he failed to make a significant impact with the ball. Ben Stokes showed better control.
For South Africa, their strike bowlers did a fantastic job restricting batsmen and affecting breakthroughs. Kyle Abbott and Kagiso Rabada both picked two wickets each. Abbott conceded just 50 runs and was easily the best bowling performer on the day. Rabada gave away 65 runs which was a respectable effort on the day.
Batsmen on both sides had a good day overall. Apart from de Kock and Amla, England’s Joe Root scored a steadying hundred for England. His effort was consolidated with fifties from Alex Hales and Ben Stokes.
Going into the fourth game, South Africa will want to prove that their decline has been brief and they have a stomach for turnarounds in little time. England have a young, spirited young side and will put their best foot forward to win the series and cap off a fantastic series. If South Africa does downplay the challenge again, it will make for an exciting decider in the final ODI.
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, Jonathan 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: 13:30 local | 11:30 GMT | 17:00 IST
(Rishad D’Souza, a reporter with CricketCountry, gave up hopes of playing Test cricket after a poor gully-cricket career. He now reports on the sport. You can follow @RDcric on Twitter)
