South Africa v England, ODI series: All you need to know

The Cricketer runs down the who, what, where, when, why, how much, which channel and how wet will it be for the three-match ODI series between South Africa and England

What is it?

A three-match ODI series between South Africa and England.

When is it?

The first match of the series was due to take place on December 4 but was postponed at the last minute after a positive Covid-19 test emerged from a member of South Africa's squad.

As a result, the first match has been moved to December 6, with the second ODI now scheduled for a day later on December 7. The final game remains on December 9. The second and third games will start at 11:00GMT, while the first will start at 08:00GMT.

Where is it?

The first and third fixtures will be played at Newlands, Cape Town. The second ODI will take place at Boland Park, Paarl.

Who’s involved?

Despite missing out on the T20 series that precedes these three matches, South Africa will be out for revenge in the longer limited overs format.

Having won their last series convincingly against Australia earlier in the year, they may well be feeling confident going into this one.

With Quinton de Kock, Temba Bavuma and Tabraiz Shamsi all available, expect to see fireworks with both bat and ball in these games played behind closed doors.

England lost the last ODI series they played back in September against Australia. This was their first series defeat since winning the World Cup in 2019, but there is no doubt that England will be looking to bounce back straight away.

These three matches form part of the ICC World Cup Super League, a new competition devised to make bilateral series more meaningful, with World Cup qualification on the line.

Liam Livingstone could make his ODI debut in the series. The Lancashire man was drafted in for the ODI series against Ireland earlier in the year, but didn’t feature. The 27-year-old averages 36.09 with the bat and has played 55 List-A matches.

_{Livingstone batting in an intra-squad game} 

South Africa squad: Quinton De Kock (c), Temba Bavuma, Junior Dala, Beuran Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Janneman Malan, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Andile Phehlukwayo, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lutho Sipamla, JJ Smuts, Glenton Stuurman, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne

England squad: Eoin Morgan (C), Jos Buttler (WK), Joe Root, Sam Billings, Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Lewis Gregory, Tom Curran, Chris Woakes, Olly Stone, Reece Topley, Adil Rashid, and Mark Wood

How can I follow it?

The series will be available to watch in the United Kingdom on Sky Sports. TalkSPORT have the radio rights.

In South Africa, SuperSport will broadcast the games. Star India have acquired the rights to the series in India, while Willow TV will show the matches in North America.

How’s the weather looking?

At this stage, the outlook is dry for the three-match series.

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