7 hours ago
4
First ODI, Kimberley
England 186 (38.4 overs): Dean 47* (57); Dercksen 3-16
South Africa 189-4 (38.2 overs): Wolvaardt 59* (114), De Klerk 48* (28)
South Africa won by six wickets; pb bid 1-0
England were beaten by six wickets aft a below-par showing successful the archetypal one-day planetary against South Africa.
Chasing 187 successful scorching conditions successful Kimberley, Proteas skipper Laura Wolvaardt anchored the innings with a gritty unbeaten 59 from 114 balls to scope the people with 11.4 overs to spare.
England's bowlers toiled, but were near to rue dropping Wolvaardt connected 5 and 27 arsenic the opener held the innings unneurotic earlier Nadine de Klerk's lively 48 not retired from 28 balls secured the triumph successful style.
While the aboveground was tricky and offered plentifulness of uneven bounce, England's batters were wasteful successful being dismissed for 186 successful 38.4 overs.
Number 8 Charlie Dean rescued the innings with 47 not retired aft England collapsed to 106-7, adding 67 for the eighth wicket with Sophie Ecclestone.
South Africa were boosted by the instrumentality of all-rounder Marizanne Kapp, who was rested for the preceding T20 bid and delivered a new-ball masterclass to instrumentality England's archetypal 3 wickets.
Sophia Dunkley was a precocious inclusion astatine the apical of the bid aft Maia Bouchier injured her cervix successful the warm-up, and was caught down for 4 earlier Tammy Beaumont was bowled for 11 and Nat Sciver-Brunt was lbw for a duck.
Heather Knight's 40 led a little revival earlier it was near to Dean and Ecclestone to amusement immoderate resistance, with Dean matching her career-best people aft her spouse was brilliantly caught by Nadine de Klerk for 17.
South Africa's batters besides struggled to people fluently, but they withstood the menace of spinner Ecclestone by playing cautiously done her miserly spell of 0-29, and Wolvaardt's willingness to grind retired the runs proved the difference.
The 2nd of 3 ODIs takes spot successful Durban connected Sunday.
Having been truthful ascendant successful the T20 bid against a depleted South Africa, England were ever going to look a a tougher duty successful the ODIs considering the returns of Kapp and seamer Ayabonga Khaka.
Kapp showed her broadside precisely what they had missed with a relentless opening burst, swinging the shot prodigiously and seldom erring from a investigating enactment and magnitude that England's apical bid could not withstand.
Dunkley wafted needlessly extracurricular disconnected stump, Beaumont walked down the transportation and played each astir a consecutive 1 and Sciver-Brunt was trapped plumb lbw to her 3rd delivery.
After Danni Wyatt-Hodge was besides pinned successful beforehand for 11 by De Klerk and Amy Jones was caught connected the bound for 21, Knight showed however to attack the dilatory surface, playing precocious and waiting for the escaped ball.
However, a shrewd reappraisal from South Africa led to England's skipper being fixed retired aft a missed sweep, erstwhile past had hardly been an entreaty connected the field.
With England connected 91-6, Wolvaardt appeared to miss a instrumentality by overlooking Kapp, who inactive had six overs to go, and kept bowling her spinners due to the fact that of the adaptable bounce.
But Dean and Ecclestone looked astatine ease, blessed to rotate the onslaught for the astir sensible transition of play that England managed.
South Africa were blameworthy of letting the crippled drift astatine times, but recovered to wrapper up the process promptly, with Dean near stranded abbreviated of her fifty.
English (US)