South Africa v England: first T20 international – live!

3.49pm GMT15:49

“Afternoon Adam.” And to you, Adam Giles (no, not that one, if you’re reading this in Australia). “It’s a good move to bowl first with the destructive nature of this batting lineup, puts a lot of subconscious pressure on the opposition batsmen. England can comfortably hit 200+ on a good day (and I understand the boundaries aren’t the longest at Buffalo Park), so teams end up doubting their current run rate and occasionally push too hard to set what they perceive as an unreachable target, losing wickets in the process. Will be very interesting to see if Jordan and T. Curran can take advantage of this to follow on their strong form from the BBL.”

Yup. I also found it interesting that Morgan was happy to cite the lack of data on the ground as a major input as to why he is bowling. This is the modern game.

3.46pm GMT15:46

A lot of people are very cross that Joe Denly is still playing for England. In turn, I hope he makes a ton. But that probably says more about me than them.

The CricViz Analyst
(@cricvizanalyst)

Dawid Malan left out of the England XI, which will surprise some. In 2019, he played 34 T20s, making 1245 runs at a scoring rate of 8.53rpo, dismissed every 30.1 balls. He can feel unlucky to not be included today. #SAvENG

February 12, 2020

3.43pm GMT15:43

South Africa: Quinton de Kock (c & wk), Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, JJ Smuts, David Miller, Dwaine Pretorius, Andile Phehlukwayo, Beuran Hendricks, Tabraiz Shamsi, Dale Steyn, Lungi Ngidi.

Very good on paper.

3.41pm GMT15:41

England: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan (c), Ben Stokes, Joe Denly, Moeen Ali, Tom Curran, Adil Rashid, Chris Jordan, Mark Wood.

Right, so confirmation that Dawid Malan has been dropped. Wow. He has a fantastic T20I record, averaging 57. There’s an early talking point for you.

3.37pm GMT15:37

“Runs on the board are always key,” says de Kock about being asked to bat in the windy conditions. Steyn is definitely playing and Bavuma will open with the skipper. Pretorius is back into the South African team as their seaming all-rounder.

3.35pm GMT15:35

Eoin Morgan has won the toss, England are bowling first

“The wicket looks really good and there is a howling wind. There is not a lot of data about games that are played here.” That’s why Morgan wants them to chase.

He confirms that Buttler, Wood and Stokes are all playing. Full teams shortly.

3.28pm GMT15:28

England are wearing black armbands. This is in memory of Steve James’ daughter, Bethan, who passed away on Saturday night. Steve is a former Test cricketer, a deeply respected member of the press pack and a former member of The Guardian parish. The cricketing world is thinking of his family at this dreadful time.

3.21pm GMT15:21

For some pre-game reading, Barney is in East London for the paper. This is his take on England’s final training session and the week they have ahead of them.

Also, this is an excellent twitter thread from Freddie Wilde on the England team as they start this campaign. He is one of the global experts on T20 trends and tactics.

Freddie Wilde
(@fwildecricket)

The start of the South Africa series and the return of Roy, Buttler, Moeen & Stokes to the batting order after being rested in New Zealand is a significant day in England’s road to the World Cup. Thread (1/n). #SAvENG

February 12, 2020

3.16pm GMT15:16

Preamble

Adam Collins

From three fairly forgettable ODIs to the format that matters most in the lead up to the T20 World Cup this October. That’s the case for both sides with fixture lists stacked accordingly until they all fly to Australia for the next major tournament.

It all begins in East London on South Africa’s Eastern Cape, this the first of three short-form matches to finish off England’s long and largely successful tour. They welcome back Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes and Jason Roy – all of whom were rested the last time they played a 20-over international in New Zealand last November.

Word from the ground is that Buttler and Roy will open with Bairstow – dumped (or rested, if you believe that) from the Test squad yesterday – coming in at three. That should mean Malan at four, who has been an excellent T20 option. We’ll see. Eoin Morgan is in a good position with a lot of combinations to trial this week.

As for the hosts, skipper Quinton de Kock had a fine ODI series with Reeza Kendricks, Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller all looking the part. But most eyes will be on Dale Steyn with the ball. Can he make it this October? England will rotate their quicks, led by Mark Wood the Curran Brothers and Chris Jordan. Saqib Mahmood was also frugal in his ODI debut on Sunday.

I’m looking forward to this one. As I said off the top, it’s the start of a massive T20 year for both nations, so the stars are neatly aligned for an exciting series. As always, I welcome your company throughout… drop me a line. Go on – do it.