BAT MEETS BOWL – England’s spinners vs South Africa’s big hitters

England begin their Women’s Cricket World Cup campaign against South Africa on Friday 3rd October. Clare McEwen previews the match.

England have a strong history at the ODI World Cup having won it four times in the past. In the last event in 2022, they were soundly beaten by Australia in the final but in 2017, they won in front of a Lord’s crowd. They’ll be hoping they can complete the England women’s triumvirate of major trophies this year and follow in the footsteps of the Lionesses and the Red Roses.

South Africa should be considered ones to watch. Ranked third in the world in One Day Internationals, they sit only one place down from England and are very capable of upsetting them in the opener. The Proteas, as South Africa are known, have an excellent history in the ODI World Cup, reaching the semi-finals in both of the two previous competitions. They’ve finished as runners-up in the last two T20 World Cups too.

Current form 

England’s form coming into the tournament is decent with two wins in September, both over fellow World Cup favourites India and Australia. However, India won their three match ODI series in July, 2-1 and England are still fighting for consistent form.

In a three-match series just before the World Cup, South Africa beat Pakistan 2-1 to lift the trophy. However, Pakistan did demolish them in the third ODI, winning by six wickets. And this sums up South Africa’s consistency: you never quite know what you’re going to get.

Ones to watch

Laura Wolvaardt is South Africa’s big hitter, alongside Tazmin Brits. Unfortunately for England, they’re both in excellent form and will be aiming for a strong partnership. All-rounder Marizanne Kapp is currently ranked number two in the world and ties the team together with excellent batting figures and intimidating bowling chops.

All-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt is England’s heartbeat but the team can be over-reliant on her batting contributions. They’ll be looking to the openers to form better partnerships than they have recently and avoid relying too heavily on the middle-order for runs. The most fascinating battle is likely to come when South Africa’s in-form batters facing-off against number one ranked bowler Sophie Ecclestone. Ecclestone’s left-arm off-spin could be England’s biggest weapon at this World Cup.

Prediction

With a strong opening partnership backed up by the consistency of the middle-order and good figures from the in-form bowling attack, I predict an uncomfortable win for England.

Where to watch

Friday 3rd October

In-person:
Assam Cricket Association (ACA) Stadium, Guwahati at 3pm local time

TV:
UK – Sky Sports 10.30am local time
India – Star Sports Network at 3pm local time
Sri Lanka – Maharaja TV at 3pm local time
Pakistan – PTV and Ten Sports at 2.30pm local time
Bangladesh – Nagorik TV and T Sports at 3.30pm local time
South Africa – SuperSport at 11.30am local time
Australia – Amazon Prime Video, check local times
New Zealand – Sky TV NZ, check local times

Check out our guide to the Women’s Cricket World Cup here: https://thenewwomenssportmagazine.com//when-and-where-to-watch-the-cricket-world-cup