WI tour of SA, 2023

SA vs WI, 1st ODI

Preview

South Africa and West Indies will cross swords for the 1st match of the three-match ODI series. The match is scheduled at Buffalo Park in East London on Thursday, March 16. 

The hosts South Africa will look for an early lead in this series as they haven't lost a single home series since 2021. Also, they defeated the mighty England side a few months back. West Indies although come into the game with a series loss against the Kiwis and have been struggling in ODI cricket in recent times.

West Indies are going through a lean patch as they have only found one win in their previous 10 games and the constant changes in the team hasn’t helped them much. The Caribbean side have struggled against the Proteas in the past. Also, South Africa have an excellent record on this ground which they would like to continue with a win.

Although West Indies won the two-match Test series pretty comfortably, skipper Temba Bavuma would like to carry the momentum in the ODIs too. The side is missing some of their players who are busy with the T20 Leagues all around the world. Barring them, they still have a strong team who can bring changes and take an early lead to their side in this series. 

Openers Quinton de Kock and Reeza Hendricks will try to provide a strong start to the innings in this match. The skipper must anchor the innings at No. 3 and the team would count on Rassie van der Dussen and Tristan Stubbs with the bat. Wiaan Mulder and Andile Phehlukwayo can also be the hard-hitting tail-enders, and they are expected to score runs down the order. 

Lungi Ngidi and Bjorn Fortuin will be accountable to bring quick breakthroughs.  Anrich Nortje and Andile Phehlukwayo are skilled bowlers and must keep the runs under check. Keshav Maharaj will have to try out all his skills to restrict runs as this wicket will not help him much.

On the other side, West Indies changed their fourth skipper in the last three years, Shai Hope is the latest to lead the side against South Africa which will be a big challenge for him. The team management would be depending on him to bring the best out of his players and break their losing streak. 

Along with the skipper, Rovmann Powell also must deliver a promising start as the opening has been one of the major problems for the side. The team would be eager to see big scores from the bats of Roston Chase, Shamarah Brooks and Brandon King being in the middle order. Nicholas Pooran is an extraordinary striker, and he needs to deliver while batting down the order along with Kyle Mayers and Jason Holder.

The Proteas side have a strong batting side and early wickets will be necessary to stop them. The side will also deliver prolific performances with the new ball from Shannon Gabriel and Alzarri Joseph. Jason Holder and Kyle Mayers would try out their skills in the middle overs along with Roston Chase and Akeal Hosein performing well in the supporting role.

Match Details

Match: SA vs WI, 1st ODI, WI tour of SA, 2023

Date: Thursday, March 16, 2023

Time: 4:30 PM

Venue: Buffalo Park, East London

Pitch and Weather Report

The pitch at Buffalo Park in East London assists batsmen to try out their shots without fear because of the short boundaries. The surface has good bounce and pace, hence is favourable for the fast bowlers. The spinners will not have a good day bowling at this pitch as the ball doesn't grip the surface.

The weather in east London indicates thick clouds all over the area with chances of rain during the match time. The highest and lowest temperatures will be 24 and 21 degrees celsius with a humidity of 84%. There are higher chances of the match getting called off due to heavy rainfall.

SA vs WI Squads

SA: Temba Bavuma (captain), Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Bjorn Fortuin, Sisanda Magala, Lungi Ngidi, Ryan Rickelton, Wayne Parnell, Andile Phehlukwayo, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Lizaad Williams, Rassie van der Dussen, Marco Jansen*, Heinrich Klaasen*, Aiden Markram*, David Miller*

WI: Shai Hope (captain), Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Brandon King, Akeal Hosein, Romario Shepherd, Shamarh Brooks, Yannic Cariah, Odean Smith, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Kyle Mayers, Alzarri Joseph, Keacy Carty, Rovman Powell, Shannon Gabriel

 *Only available for the third ODI

SA vs WI Probable Playing XIs

SA: Temba Bavuma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Keshav Maharaj, Bjorn Fortuin, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Rassie van der Dussen, Andile Phehlukwayo, Tristan Stubbs, Wiaan Mulder

WI: Shai Hope (c), Nicholas Pooran (wk), Shamarh Brooks, Brandon King, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Rovmann Powell, Jason Holder, Kyle Mayers, Roston Chase, Shannon Gabriel

Match Prediction

West Indies come into this competition with a poor form. Their batsman doesn’t have many good records on South African soil. The pitch will test their batters who will have to face the fierce pace attack of the home side. Also, South Africa hasn’t lost a match on this pitch in more than two decades and hence they are clearly the favourites to win this match. 

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