Barely a week ago, South Africa would have surely anticipated a mighty challenge coming their way, in the form of taking on England in their own backyard. That, however, was even the ideal practice the Proteas needed in the lead up to the ICC Champions Trophy, the only ICC event which was won by South Africa in their cricketing history. However, they were in for a rude shock when England routed them within the first two games and sealed the series right there.
Seeking some morale boost ahead of the tournament, South Africa played their A game at Lord’s on Monday as they completed an easy win over England. Bowling first, the hosts would have been in for some serious embarrassment after being reduced to 20-6, with Kagiso Rabada breathing fire.
A steady half century from Jonny Bairstow however, got England to 153, but that too was easily chased down as the Proteas ended up winning the game by 7 wickets. Post the game, skipper AB de Villiers mentioned that despite the series loss, his side was extremely confident for the grand event.
“It looks a lot better now, we had a lot to play for today and there some encouraging signs,” said de Villiers. “It was very pleasing. The boys hung onto almost everything that came their way. The intensity was very good. It comes down to the basics, top of off with the odd bouncer, and a couple of fuller ones moved around a bit.”
De Villiers confirmed that his side was quite confident about his first choice XI.
“All three grounds have been different. It’s all about the senior players to communicate to the rest of the team. We are pretty sure of our best XI but we have 15 really good players and the team can change at any time. We are very confident,” he said.
England captain Eoin Morgan was delighted after the series win and seemed upbeat about the favourites tag.
“Today wasn’t our day. Jason has scored a huge amount of runs for us, the way in which he plays is very important and it will continue to be like that. A big score is around the corner. We’ve gained a lot of confidence from this series. It’s flattering to be favourites, today is a reminder not to get carried away but we’ll give it a good crack,” Morgan said.