Hello and welcome to Sportstar's live coverage of today's opening World Cup 2019 match between England and South Africa at The Oval in London.
Runs with the bat, wickets with the ball and a stunning catch: That was Ben Stokes tonight and his all-round performance has propelled England to a convincing 104-run win over South Africa in the World Cup opener. He was ably supported by Jofra Archer' whose fiery spell with the new ball set the tone for the remainder of the innings. At the halfway stage, a target of 311 courtesy Stokes' 89, fifties by Morgan and Roy, had looked gettable. But credit to the England bowlers for putting up a dominant show. That would be all from our side. Join us tomorrow for Pakistan's opening match against West Indies.
Adios folks!
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WICKET! Plunkett gets Amla out caught behind. That should be the match for England, surely?
SA 193/8 after 38.1 overs. Lungi Ngidi the new batsman at the crease. SHOT! Ngidi has struck a beautiful six to long-on. Rabada, now, edges one past the keeper for four, brings up 200. And four more: off leg-byes. Stokes has his revenge; gets Rabada caught and the end is near. His first ...
Second wicket for him . Tahir comes to the crease. GONE! And a third wicket for Stokes as South Africa folds for 207.
Stokes into the attack. Rabada has joined Amla by the way. Just one run coming off that over. Liam Plunkett is back into the attack. Only three off the over. Stokes, from the other end, concedes a boundary to Rabada.
BLINDER! Ben Stokes has plucked a stunner near the ropes and Phehlukwayo has to depart. That was some athleticism from Stokes. Jeez! That will take some time to sink in. South Africa are unravelling.
Archer is going for the shorter length.. At his pace though, width or anything marginally on the leg side would work against him: Phehlukwayo glances one away for four. Rashid, meanwhile, concedes six as players break for drinks. South Africa needs 132 runs.
Jofra Archer back into the attack. Archer removes van der Dussen for his third wicket. Dussen falls for 50... South Africa six down. Hashim Amla has walked out to the middle. Wicket maiden from Archer. Jofra Archer so far: 6-1-20-3
Dussen and Phehlukwayo continue to pile misery on Moeen who has already conceded two fours in his last over. Mo: 10-0-63-1. van der Dussen brings up his 50 with a single. Phehlukwayo has been struck on the pads. England review for lbw but replays show the ball pitching outside the line of leg-stump. He survives. SA 167/5 after 31 overs.
Oh Dear! Pretorius has been run out and suddenly, South Africa are wobbling. Andile Phehlukwayo comes to the crease. Moeen and Plunkett go for combined eight runs in two overs. Rashid's back into the attack. Meanwhile, SA have brought up their 150. Phehlukwayo dances down the track and bisects mid-off and extra cover for four. SA 156/5 after 29 overs. South Africa need 156 runs.
Moeen Ali continues to be taken for runs. Duminy, this time, finds the gap between mid-wicket and long-on. But Mo has his revenge soon after. Duminy perishes and the Proteas have lost a fourth. Dwaine Pretorius comes to the crease. Five off the over. South Africa needs 170 runs.
Plunkett gets the breakthrough! A leg-stump line and De Kock goes for the big hit, ends up hitting it straight to Root. South Africa three down and England fielders find their voices again. Duminy in next. South Africa will have to play out a few quiet overs here, before they can launch a counter-attack. Dussen will look to bat through. SA 137/3 after 25 overs . Plunkett so far: 4-0-24-1
De Kock brings up the team 100 with a pull shot for four. He's in the zone, is De Kock. He follows up the four with a six over extra cover. 12 off the over. SA cruising at the moment. Dussen, at the other end, launches one over the bowler's head for six. Great footwork. Dussen is putting on an exhibition: reverse sweeps the next ball for four. Third boundary of the over, but this one's off an outside edge. 16 off the over. SA 125/2 after 22 overs.
Mo Ali into his third. A boundary for Dussen and South Africa collects five off it. Rashid continues. De Kock has managed to run that down to the fine leg boundary for four. Seven off the over. Drinks on the field. De Kock gets to his fifty with a single off Mo Ali. Liam Plunkett comes into the attack. De Kock brings up the fifty stand with a single. Six off the over. SA 95/2 after 19 overs.
Rashid and Moeen are getting appreciable turn from the wicket. Dussen has been dropped by Buttler behind the stumps... and England gets four byes a ball later. Nine off the last two overs. Rashid's gone for three in his third. SA 74/2 after 15 overs.
Adil Rashid into the attack. What happened there? Rashid's googly beats De Kock and brushes the base of off-stump but the bails don't fall! IPL deja-vu anyone? De Kock survives. South Africa bring up their 50. Moeen Ali comes into the attack. Spin from both ends for England. De Kock ends the over with a maximum over mid-wicket. SA 62/2 after 12 overs.
Archer gets rid of the opposition skipper: that was seriously quick from Archer (149 kmph) and Du Plessis tries to pull but the top-edge settles comfortably in the hands of Mo Ali. SA 44/2 after 10 overs. Rassie van der Dussen joins de Kock.
Woakes and Archer continue to test the South African batsmen with pace. Meanwhile, Markram has hit a neatly timed cover drive. Nine runs coming off the last two overs. Archer strikes!!! Gets Markram caught and South Africa have lost their first wicket. Du Plessis joins De Kock. The Protean skipper is underway with a pull shot for four. SA 40/1 after 8 overs.
Amla now gets a boundary to third man... uses Archer's pace to run it down for four. Archer's working up some good pace here. 145kmph bouncer has hit Amla in the grille... he looks in discomfort. Physio is out. Amla is walking off. Aiden Markram in the middle. Woakes to continue. De Kock cracks one square of the wicket for four. Through sweeper cover now... de Kock's up and running. SA 22/0 after 5 overs.
De Kock opens his account with a brace. Brilliant start from Woakes. Just two coming off it in the end. Archer to share the new ball. Amla gets a square cut going but Roy at point puts in a dive at backward point, saving a certain boundary. Decent start from Archer: two off the over. Width on offer from Woakes, and De Kock has a go at it; the outside edge races away to third-man for four. Six off the over. SA 10/0 after 3 overs.
Woakes had earlier said Archer's inclusion in the World Cup squad would be morally incorrect. The duo is sharing the new ball now in England's first World Cup match. Water under the bridge, eh?
Hashim Amla and de Kock to begin the run chase for South Africa. Chris Woakes to start proceedings with the new ball.
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England would've hoped for at least 350-plus after that start but credit to South Africa for fighting its way back, and then dominating the host with its bowling and fielding. Ben Stokes top scored with 89; Ngidi topping the bowling charts with three for 66. South Africa needs 312 to win.
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Ngidi to bowl out. 300 up for England. England's highest total in a World Cup is 338. Stokes perishes trying to switch gears. He falls for 89 and England are eight down for 300. Ngidi finishes with figures of three for 66. Jofra Archer is in next.
Phehlukwayo goes for nine in the eighth over. Rabada into his ninth over. Rabada gets rid of Woakes, and England continue to lose wickets. Wicket No. 7 goes down. Plunkett comes to the crease. Stokes, meanwhile, continues to find the fence. Moves into the 80s. Plunkett joins the fun: gets his first boundary. 10 off the over. ENG 294/7 after 48 overs.
Ngidi gets rid of Moeen : another brilliant catch; this time by Du Plessis and England have lost a sixth wicket. Three runs and a wicket off it. Woakes joins Stokes. Jeez! England bats deep, doesn't it? Phehlukwayo goes for just five; South Africa have managed to keep Stokes quiet in the last few overs. Rabada, at the other end, goes for 10. ENG 275/6 after 46 overs.
Tahir into his ninth over. Stokes makes room and cuts away for four. 11 off the over. Ngidi gets rid of Buttler... who was trying to pull but got an inside edge onto the stumps. England has lost its fifth wicket. Moeen Ali joins Stokes. Four runs and a wicket from the over. Tahir to bowl out. Seven off the over. ENG 257/5 after 43 overs.
Rabada back into the attack. Five off the over. Tahir to continue. Only singles and twos from that over: England nearing 250. Ngidi back into the attack. Eight runs from the over. ENG 235/4 after 40 overs.
Phehlukwayo into his sixth over and Stokes gets one away for four. Morgan brings up England's 200 with a single. Stokes hitting his strides now: gets into the 40s with another four; this time off Pretorious. Follows it up with a lofted hit over mid-wicket for four more. CHEEKY! Stokes brings up his 50 with an innovative hit to the boundary. Tahir back into the attack. GONE! Tahir with the breakthrough. Morgan falls to an excellent catch from Markram . Buttler joins Stokes. ENG 217/4 after 37 overs.
Morgan and Stokes are upping the ante. Stokes hammers Markram for a four before Morgan gets down on one knee and launches it over mid-wicket for six. 11 off the over. Phehlukwayo continues. Morgan gets to his fifty with a pull shot for four. Pretorius is back into the attack. Five singles. ENG 192/3 after 34 overs.
Tahir back into the attack. Four to Stokes. Seven off the over. Markram to continue. Another good over from the off-spinner. He's bowled two overs now for just five. Phehlukwayo is back into the attack. Tight over that from Phehlukwayo; just a run off it. ENG 131/3 after 31 overs.
JP Duminy into the attack. Five from the over. Ngidi to continue. SIX! Morgan steps down the track and launches one over mid-off for six. And another one: this time over fine leg for six more. 7000 ODI runs for Morgan. 13 off the over. Duminy to continue. 150 up for England. Morgan continues to flay the Protean bowlers: four more. Markram into the attack. Good start, only two off it. ENG 160/3 after 28 overs.
Rabada and Tahir continue to bowl in tandem. The duo has kept the lid on the scoring after those quick dismissals. Stokes and Morgan happy with the singles and twos. 11 coming off the last two overs. Ngidi back into the attack. Morgan gets another boundary ... this time with a sweetly timed straight drive. Five off it. ENG 131/3 after 24 overs.
Phehlukwayo to bowl his third. What a shot! Roy's in the mood. Hits a booming straight drive for four. Phehlukwayo gets his revenge next ball: gets Roy out. England two down. Morgan joins Root. The England skipper gets off the mark with a four. Nine runs and a wicket off it. GONE! Root departs... And South Africa are fighting back. Kagiso Rabada gets a wicket against his name . Ben Stokes joins Morgan. Tahir has been called back into the attack. Three runs from it. ENG 115/3 after 21 overs.
Pretorius to continue. Nine runs from it. Both batsmen are nearing their respective fifties with England closing in on the three-figure mark: this after losing in-form Bairstow in the first over. Phehlukwayo continues...
Roy brings up his 50 with a single...
hang on, leg byes signalled by the umpire and it's 100 up for England. Pretorius into his fifth over... 50 up for Roy, at last. And Root gets to his 50 as well.
ENG 102/1 after 18 overs.
Rabada continues to leak runs. Root, with a short arm jab, collects his fifth four. Pretorius into his third over. Four runs from the over. Both batters into the 40s. Andile Phehlukwayo has been brought into the attack. Four off it. ENG 87/1 after 15 overs.
Dwaine Pretorius into the attack. Five runs from it. Rabada into his third. Root's looking good ; yet another on-drive from England's Test captain. Eight off the over. Rabada's been quite expensive thus far. Pretorius to continue. That's a gift! Short ball and Roy has dispatched that to mid-wicket for four. ENG 72/1 after 12 overs.
Kagiso Rabada brought into the attack. Roy welcomes him with a beautiful straight drive. Five dots to follow it up. Ngidi to continue. Roy's rich vein of form continues: a boundary to long-off. Six runs from the over. Rabada to continue... Roy brings up the team 50 with a single. FOUR! Root pulls a short ball for his fourth boundary. ENG 55/1 after 9 overs.
Root cracks another four; this time to backward square-leg. Lungi Ngidi concedes a second boundary. Five runs off it. Tahir to continue. Roy greets him with a fierce hit to sweeper cover. Cheeky from Root... goes for the reverse sweep and gets two. Follows it up with a sweep shot for four. 13 off that over. Runs have started flowing for the hosts: Roy glances one to fine leg for four. 10 off the over. ENG 39/1 after 6 overs.
Roy gets off the mark with a single. GONE! Tahir, you beauty! Gets Bairstow out for a golden duck. What a start. Joe Root in at 3. Only one off it. Lungi Ngidi to share the new ball. SHOT! Root with the first boundary of CWC'19: a glorious cover drive. Six off the over. Tahir to continue. Just four coming off it. ENG 11/1 after 3 overs.
STAT ALERT: Jason Roy has four 50-plus scores in his last five innings.
STAT ALERT: Imran Tahir is the first spinner to deliver the first ball of a World Cup.
Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow to start proceedings for England. Leg-spinner Imran Tahir with the new ball.
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TOSS UPDATE: Du Plessis has won the toss and South Africa will bowl.
Morgan: " Wicket looks really good. It's set fair all day, shouldn't change much. Yes, Wood was available for selection. But unfortunately he's missed out. Archer's a guy who's come in and impressed. He's very calm when he plays. He's a very exciting prospect. Yeah, the favourites tag sits comfortably. It's been a collective drive for us."
Faf: " Going to have a bowl. Early start at the Oval, if there's anything in the wicket, it's now. Shamsi, Miller, Morris, Steyn not playing. Steyn's around 80 per cent. Ngidi and Kagiso have been exceptional over the last couple of years. Good to see Amla scoring runs in the warm up."
READ| World Cup, Eng vs SA: Toss, team news, pitch report, weather
South Africa (Playing XI): Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock(w), Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis(c), Rassie van der Dussen, Jean-Paul Duminy, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Imran Tahir
England (Playing XI): Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan(c), Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler(w), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Liam Plunkett, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid
What the captains said:
Eoin Morgan: “It would mean a huge amount. The World Cup alone raises the profile of the game and is a platform for every young kid in this country to have a hero or have the inspiration to pick up a ball or a bat.”
Faf du Plessis: “Whether we come into this tournament as favourites or as underdogs, you still have to go out on the park and play cricket and perform to win a World Cup.”
Expect cricket fans to look skywards as the World Cup returns to England after two decades. We have you covered| English sky looks promising for cricket
While we wait for the toss to officially kickstart the World Cup, read to find out why Ben Stokes thinks his side has all the potential to win the title.
Also, how about a refresher course on World Cup rules and format ? Go, ace those discussions and debates with your friends.
South Africa pace machine Kagiso Rabada talks about the benefits of IPL and how it is a good preparatory tournament for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 that starts from May 30 in the UK| Rabada: Every team has a good bowling attack for the World Cup
England has disappointed the most at the World Cup. Three finals have been lost and, if you were being generous, each defeat could be seen as unfortunate in some way| England in World Cup: Never won the title, but favourite this time
This year, skipper Faf du Plessis has encouraged the Proteas not to be affected by the inevitable hype and that “doing our best” should be its only expectation| South Africa at the World Cup: Yoked to ‘choke’
England, the No. 1 team in the world, will kick off the World Cup campaign against South Africa on Thursday. While Kagiso Rabada has been declared fit, Steyn will miss the opener against the host due to fitness concerns.
Here's today's Match Preview:
England will put four years of planning to the test when it faces South Africa in the opening match of the 2019 World Cup at the Oval on Thursday.
So embarrassing was England's first-round exit at the 2015 edition in Australia and New Zealand it prompted a major rethink of its attitude to the white-ball game.
The transformation has been remarkable, with Eoin Morgan's men climbing to the top of the one-day international rankings and twice setting a new record for the highest one-day international total, which now stands at 481 for six.
Batting has been the basis of England's ODI rejuvenation, with Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Morgan and the dynamic Jos Buttler among a top seven who can all change the course of an innings in the blink of an eye.
“It's an exciting feeling being in this team as you have world-class players all around you and the opposition might get 370, but there's a belief in the dressing room we can chase it down,” said England leg-spinner Adil Rashid.
“There is no hesitation or someone going ‘I don't know about this'. We all have that belief and confidence we can do it,” added Rashid, whose ability to take wickets at key stages has also been an important part of England's white-ball revival.
“We will hopefully stick to what we've been doing the past four years and hopefully the World Cup will work out well for us.”
South Africa has suffered plenty of World Cup heartache but having been losing semifinalists for four years, there is a sense the Proteas are going under the radar this time around.
South Africa coach Ottis Gibson is convinced the pressure is all on the tournament host and cited comments by England quicks Stuart Broad and James Anderson — both of whom no longer play ODI cricket — as an example.
“I heard somewhere that my two very good friends Broad and Anderson have said that England will have to do something really bad not to win this World Cup,” recalled Gibson, who knows the pair well from his time as England bowling coach.
“As far as they are concerned England have won it already.”
Former West Indies fast bowler Gibson added: “To play the host, the number one team, is the best way to start, because it gives us a real sense of where we are and what we need to do going forward.
“But you don't have to be number one to win the tournament and sometimes you can win the tournament and you don’t even go to number one.”
South Africa, captained by Faf du Plessis, will be without retired star batsman AB de Villiers but its top order includes the talented Quinton de Kock.
The team will be without Dale Steyn on Thursday as the outstanding fast bowler nurses a shoulder injury but South Africa has become used to his absence in recent times.
Of arguably greater importance for Thursday's match is that Kagiso Rabada, arguably the leading paceman in world cricket today, has been passed fit following a back injury.
England (From): Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan(c), Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Liam Plunkett, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Tom Curran, Mark Wood, James Vince, Liam Dawson
South Africa (From): Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis(c), Rassie van der Dussen, Jean-Paul Duminy, David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Imran Tahir, Aiden Markram, Tabraiz Shamsi, Chris Morris
That match will be streamed live on Hotstar.
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