South African cricket might have nosedived in the last couple of years across formats. But if there’s any positive news coming from the Rainbow Nation, it is in the form of the baby-faced assassin, Quinton de Kock, who will now take charge as South Africa’s ODI skipper starting from the series against England starting on Tuesday.
With Faf du Plessis and Kagiso Rabada rested and a few other names either dropped or retired and gone, the squad wears completely different look as South Africa start preparations for the 2023 ODI World Cup. There are quite a few new names in the line-up and a new captain at the helm.
The task is intensified because their opponents in this transition period are England, the current World champions who have been a dominant force in ODIs of late. Even with Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler rested from the series and Jofra Archer ruled out, England have an outstanding One Day unit capable of usurping the hosts.
Player to watch out for
Rassie van der Dussen
It’s still early stages for Rassie van der Dussen in the Proteas setup, but in 14 ODIs, the Lions middle-order batsman has seven half-centuries, the second most by any player after their first 14 ODIs. Van der Dussen comes into the series on the back of some gritty performances in his debut Test series. He was South Africa’s sole shining light through the World Cup last year and will now be responsible for marshalling the middle-order in the absence of Faf du Plessis.
Squads
South Africa: Quinton de Kock(w/c), Reeza Hendricks, JJ Smuts, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma, David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Lungi Ngidi, Bjorn Fortuin, Beuran Hendricks, Tabraiz Shamsi, Janneman Malan, Sisanda Magala, Lutho Sipamla, Kyle Verreynne
England: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow(w), Joe Root, Eoin Morgan(c), Joe Denly, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Matthew Parkinson, Dawid Malan, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Banton