ENGLAND BEAT SOUTH AFRICA BY 104 RUNS IN WORLD CUP 2019 OPENER

THE OVAL, England (9 News) – England beat South Africa by 104 runs in their opener of the World Cup 2019 at the Oval on Thursday.

Hosts England scored 311 at the loss of eight wickets against South Africa at the Oval. Ben Stokes was the top scorer with 89 runs after South Africa invited England to bat first.

Earlier, South Africa won the toss and elected to field against England in the opening match of the World Cup at The Oval.

England’s batting line-up is laden with superstars, headed by the opening pair of Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow, who boast the highest strike-rates in ODI history, among all openers to have scored more than 1,000 runs. The rest of England’s line-up possesses similar strength, Eoin Morgan and Joe Root’s presence often relatively overshadowed by the magnificent Jos Buttler, who is arguably the most devastating 360° batsman in the world today.

Key players

Jofra Archer (England): The batting looks suitably reinforced, so it is important that Archer hits the ground running for England to establish an equally potent bowling unit.

Imran Tahir (South Africa): Quelling runs and taking key wickets in the middle overs will be vital to prevent an astronomical England total, and Tahir will be the man tasked to do it. His guile and experience could prove crucial against the strong England middle order.

Conditions:

It’s set to be a cloudy, dry day in London, with injections of sunshine. Whatever the weather, expect England to go full-tilt with the bat from ball one.

Squads:

England: Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wk), Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Vince, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

South Africa: Faf du Plessis (c), Aiden Markram, Quinton de Kock (wk), Hashim Amla, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Chris Morris, Andile Phehlukwayo, JP Duminy, Dwaine Pretorius, Dale Steyn, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Imran Tahir, Tabraiz Shamsi.