Oval, England (June 3, 2017): Sri Lanka won the toss and put South Africa in to bat first in their Champions Trophy opener at the Oval on Saturday.
According to the details, Sri Lanka have won the toss and have opted to field first against South Africa. There is no Angelo Mathews with Tharanga leading the side. Lasith Malinga is back into the side after nearly two years. For the Proteas, Imran Tahir and Davd Miller are fit to play after recovering from respective injuries.
Sri Lanka have a mountain to climb when they play their opening ICC Champions Trophy encounter against South Africa. The Proteas led by AB de Villiers might have lost 1-2 to England and looked poor prior to the start of the tournament but are still the number one ranked side, have top two ODI bowlers and four of the top ten ODI batsmen.
On the other hand, Sri Lanka’s highest ranked batsman – Angelo Mathews at number 26 – is doubtful to play. In the previous series between the two sides, South Africa had thumped Lanka 5-0. Will the sheer dominance continue at The Oval? Catch live scores and updates from Sri Lanka vs South Africa from London.
Top-ranked South Africa have already enjoyed overwhelming one-day international success against Sri Lanka this year.
They whitewashed Sri Lanka 5-0 in a bilateral series in South Africa in January. Sri Lanka were not alone in being a touring side routed in 50-over cricket by South Africa, with the Proteas previously also hammering Australia 5-0.
Yet South Africa have a reputation for under-performing in ICC tournaments. The only ICC event they have won was the inaugural Champions Trophy in 1998.
South Africa also boast the world´s number one-ranked ODI batsman and bowler in AB de Villiers and Kagiso Rabada, respectively.
In all they have four batsmen and two bowlers in the respective top 10 ICC rankings, while seventh-placed Sri Lanka have none in either list.
Sri Lanka head into the tournament as underdogs and one of the key reasons they´ve struggled in recent months has been the absence of fast bowler Lasith Malinga, who hasn´t played any ODI cricket since November 2015 due to a knee injury.
The return of Malinga, whose unorthodox, slingshot action makes him one of the most difficult bowlers to face in world cricket, would be a massive boost for Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka skipper and all-rounder Angelo Mathews has been forced to sit out during South Africa match, after scans revealed some days ago he´d suffered a calf strain.
TEAMS:
Sri Lanka: Upul Tharanga, Niroshan Dickwella, Kusal Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Perera, Chamara Kapugedera, Asela Gunaratne, Seekkuge Prasanna, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Lasith Malinga
South Africa: Quinton de Kock, Hashim Amla, Faf du Plessis, AB de Villiers, David Miller, JP Duminy, Chris Morris, Wayne Parnell, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir.
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