South Africa vs Bangladesh Preview: South Africa eye first win against resolute Bangladesh

The Nightwatchman
Jun 2, 2019
2 min read

South Africa will be looking to bounce back against Bangladesh

After being outplayed in all three departments by the hosts, England, in the tournament opener, South Africa will look to get the first points under their belt when they take on Bangladesh in the fifth match of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019, at The Oval on Sunday.

South Africa had their moment of glory in the first over of the World Cup, as a brilliant tactical move by Faf du Plessis saw the return of the dangerous Johnny Bairstow for a first-ball duck. However, they could not maintain a firm hold on the game thereafter and succumbed to a 104-run defeat.

While the bowlers did manage to execute their plans for most part of the innings, Du Plessis admitted that Dale Steyn's absence hurt them dearly. The Proteas will need significant contributions from their senior batsmen, to set it up against the promising Bangladesh unit. Bangladesh's 95-run loss in their second warm-up match against India, gave them a reality check and significant positives in the same brief. While their new ball bowlers exploited the conditions to good effect, troubling the Indian top order, lack of wickets in the middle overs saw the game drift away from their hands. Mushfiqur Rahim's form with the bat comes in as a great positive, as the wicket-keeper batsman is the mainstay of their middle order. Bangladesh had defeated a strong Proteas side in the super-eights stage of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2007 by a convincing margin of 67 runs but only four players from the current lot were a part of that XI. WATCH OUT FOR - Shakib Al Hasan

Shakib Al Hasan is Bangladesh's best player and will be looking to start strongly against South Africa

Ranked as the No. 1 all-rounder in the ICC ODI rankings, Shakib has always risen up on big occasions for Bangladesh. Apart from his batting skills, the all-rounder's left-arm spin will be crucial considering the number of right-handers in South Africa's top-order. PREDICTION Despite the rising talent amongst the Bangladesh side, expect South Africa to be too strong, and better for already having a match against the team to beat England under their belt. With scattered showers expected during the afternoon, and overcast conditions, the conditions may just be suited to assist the seamers and the toss may play a crucial part in the games outcome. South Africa to win by 60-80 runs or 3-4 wickets STATISTICS HEAD TO HEAD ODI HEAD TO HEAD IN WORLD CUPS Matches: 20 Matches: 3 South Africa: 17 South Africa: 2