South Africa v England: ODI Series Preview

ODI Series Preview

The highly anticipated One Day International series between England and South Africa gets underway on Friday 27^th January. Both teams will want to come away with the series win, not just to better their rival, but also to enhance their respective preparations for the 2023 Cricket World Cup on 10^th October.

England will also have an eye on preparation for the upcoming Ashes series with Australia, which begins on 16^th June at Edgbaston in Birmingham.

There will be a total of 3 One Day Internationals in the series with the second taking place on Sunday 29^th January before the final ODI gets underway on Wednesday 1^st February.

The series will be taking place in South Africa, with the first and second ODIs being played at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein which has a capacity of 20,000. It hosted its first One Day International in December 1992, when South Africa were emphatic winners against India.

The final ODI of the series will be played at The Kimberley Oval that has a capacity of 11,000. Opening in 1973, with the first One Day International to be hosted at the venue was an ODI series match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka on 7^th April 1998. Pakistan won this particular ODI 300/6 to 295/7.

In terms of team news, there was significant news for England. Jofra Archer makes his return to the squad after recent injury issues kept him out for most of 2022.

England and South Africa have played One Day International series against each other regularly, with the first taking place in March 1992, which saw South Africa emerge victorious. It has been difficult for England to beat the Proteas but the record is still close. They have met for 66 ODI series, and historically South Africa have the better record with 31 wins compared to 29 for England.

There is more than one reason for England fans to be optimistic though. The first reason is that England were victorious in the last Test series between the two nations in 2022.

They were defeated at Lord’s in the first test, but going on to secure a 415/9d to 151 & 179 victory at Old Trafford before completing the Test Series win in the final test at The Oval, beating the Proteas 148 & 130/1 to 118 & 169.

The second reason for optimism is that despite their inferior record in ODIs, England have historically been very successful against South Africa in Test cricket, and very competitive in IT20 cricket. In IT20, they have met 25 times and have 12 wins each.

Their first meeting in Test Cricket was in March 1889, and England have won most of the 100 Test series. The Three Lions have collected 65 wins over the years compared to South Africa’s 35.

All the eyes of the cricket world will be on this ODI series, and the first two ODIs will be crucial for England, who are looking to secure the series win.

The One Day Internationals are set to be as exciting as ever in 2023, so why not experience it in style with our VIP Hospitality Packages?