#WT20 SA v England - SA to bat first
England captain Eoin Morgan won the toss and elected to field first in their World Twenty20 game against South Africa.
|||The Proteas have opted to include both Hashim Amla and Quinton de Kock for their ICC World T20 opening match against England in Mumbai on Friday.
#SA will have to bat first vs #ENG in Mumbai @TheCapeArgus @TheWeekendArgus @IOLsport #SAvENG #WT20
— IndyCapeSport (@IndyCapeSport) March 18, 2016
Amla and De Kock will open the innings for South Africa, which means that ace batsman AB de Villiers is likely to bat at No 4, with captain Faf du Plessis at first drop.
Both Amla and De Kock have secured starting positions through a number of top-class performances in the recent T20 international series against England and Australia on home soil.
Their inclusion means that Rilee Rossouw and Farhaan Behardien miss out in the middle-order.
There was somewhat of a surprise in the make-up of the bowling attack, though, with David Wiese missing out. Chris Morris will fulfil the all-rounder role as the Proteas are utilising a fifth specialist bowler in seamer Kyle Abbott.
With the expected fast pitch conditions, that is the right way to go as the quick bowlers are likely to get some assistance in terms of pace and bounce.
England captain Eoin Morgan won the toss at the Wankhede Stadium and interestingly decided to bowl first, which means that South Africa will have to set a target and defend it – something that they have battled to do in recent months.
But skipper Du Plessis did mention at the toss that he was “unsure” about whether to bat or bowl first, with dew set to fall quite heavily during the second innings, so he felt that it was a good toss to lose.
FOUR! Astonishing assault @amlahash, slices Chris Jordan over point. #SA 72/0 off 5 overs (De Kock 40* Amla 32*) #SAvENG #WT20 #Proteas
— IndyCapeSport (@IndyCapeSport) March 18, 2016
* Follow @IndyCapeSport on Twitter for live updates of Friday’s SA v England match (4pm start).
@IndyCapeSport
WICKET! @QuinnyDeKock69 gone 52 off 24. Holds out to Hales at midwicket off Moeen. #SA 96/1, 7.1 overs @TheCapeArgus @IOLsport #SAvENG #WT20
— IndyCapeSport (@IndyCapeSport) March 18, 2016
TEAMS IN MUMBAI
South Africa: Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock (wk), Faf du Plessis (captain), AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, David Miller, Chris Morris, Kyle Abbott, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Imran Tahir.
England: Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Joe Root, Jos Buttler (wk), Eoin Morgan (captain), Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, David Willey, Reece Topley.