The Proteas failed miserably in the first match of the World Cup on Thursday, losing to England by 104 runs.
With all the pre-tournament talk being of how well they prepared mentally for the campaign, the Proteas couldn’t back it up with their performance at The Oval.
Having won the toss, captain Faf du Plessis decided to send in their hosts to bat.
England then posted a challenging 311/8 in their 50 overs, thanks to some good batting from their top order.
Of the England top five only Johnny Bairstow failed to get a half-century, losing his wicket to Imran Tahir (2/61) for a duck.
Congratulations to @englandcricket, Proteas fall 1⃣0⃣4️⃣ runs short.
Proteas will look to bounce back strongly on Sunday #CWC19 #ProteaFire🔥🔥 #ENGvSA pic.twitter.com/wQoAwCaxzX
— Cricket South Africa (@OfficialCSA) May 30, 2019
Jason Roy (54), Joe Root (51), Eoin Morgan (57) and Jonny Bairstow (89) all got runs as Lungi Ngidi (3/66) and Kagiso Rabada (2/66) tried their best to keep the score to a minimum.
And that proved to be the difference between the two teams at the end of the day.
South Africa’s top order in contrast failed, with Hashim Amla leaving the field retired hurt before returning to score 13, with Faf du Plessis (5) and Aiden Markram (11) not helping their team’s cause much.
Jofra Archer was England’s destroyer in chief with bowling figures of 3/27, while Quinton de Kock (68) and Rassie van der Dussen (50) gave their best to help SA to 207 all out.