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While only just over ten overs were possible on the first day, the second made up for lost time with the loss of 14 wickets, and Hampshire on the receiving end of a dismal batting collapse to boot.The home side crashed to a close-of-play 88-6, still requiring nine to avoid the follow-on, a target which seemed a long way off when half the side were back in the pavilion with only 46 on the board.It followed a rearguard from Sussex, led by Robin Martin-Jenkins, whose undefeated 80 and three wickets has put his side in command.His innings, coupled with Tim Ambrose (49) and Michael Yardy (34), steadied the Sussex ship when the wickets tumbled, almost exclusively to spinner Shaun Udal, who claimed his best figures of the season in a match he was due to miss through ankle surgery.Sussex were comfortably moving along, although slowly, at 158-4 when he, in harness with Alan Mullally began to make inroads.Udal claimed Yardy while Mullally picked up Ambrose to release the lower order and the spinner got to work by knocking over four of the last five wickets, finishing with 5-56 from 24.4 overs.However, Martin-Jenkins stood firm to shepherd the tail to 246 all out, adding small but, what could prove, significant partnerships with the lower order.And he cut through the Hampshire batting order when he turned his hand to bowling, ripping out three of the six wickets to fall in the after-tea session.Derek Kenway was trapped in front, John Crawley shouldered arms and was bowled while Neil Johnson cut a wide delivery to point where Kevin Innes comfortably accepted the catch.Hampshire’s wretched run of opening partnerships, which has yielded a best this season of just 43, was not improved this time around either. Will Kendall received the finger from umpire George Sharp when Jason Lewry had him leg before.Billy Taylor, who plays his club cricket for Winchester squeezed one through Robin Smith’s defences, leaving Hampshire on a precarious 46-5 and when Taylor induced an edge from Nic Pothas’ bat to keeper Matt Prior, it left the home side 60-6.However, some sensible batting from Giles White and a more typically attacking 19 not out from Dimitri Mascarenhas saved the situation and edged Hampshire towards respectability at 88-6.But the weather, which is forecast to be poor for the next couple of days, may have the final say in the proceedings.

There are just two matches in Division One and two in Division Two of the Norwich Union League this coming weekend, but quality certainly makes up for quantity when it comes to the top class. It’s a case of first against second and it could well be that the outcome of the title chase could take significant shape this weekend.Expect a big crowd at Worcester on Monday when local rivals Worcestershire Royals and Warwickshire Bears. The match is being played on Monday as opposed to Sunday as scheduled because of Warwickshire’s appearance in the B&H Cup final. But it is not just local rivalry that gives the game its edge. The Bears currently sit proudly atop the table, and their nearest rivals are the Royals from down the road.There are just four points separating the teams, and that is only because the Royals have played a game less. Both are unbeaten – except by the weather this season, so whether it’s a battle royal or more like a bear pit, something has got to give at New Road on Monday.On Sunday, Durham Dynamos have the chance to break their duck this season when they have a match against Yorkshire Pheonix at Chester-le-Street. It is a match that could define the Phoenix season. If they win, they could rise up to one of the top places, but if they lose, they would be sucked into the relegation dogfight.In Division Two, Derbyshire Scorpions are the highest placed team in action this week. They are currently fourth on run rate, but a win against lowly Lancashire Lightening could see them right up in the promotion frame. A win for Surrey Lions at The Oval against Sussex Sharks could see them get a lift in the standings. And the Sharks, having kick-started their season with their first win, will be looking to dash the Lions’ hopes and climb further up the table themselves.

Sri Lanka’s confidence ahead of the final npower Test against England will hardly have been boosted by their performance in the rain-affected match against an MCC side full of England hopefuls, which ended today in a draw.Sri Lanka were bowled out for just 127 in reply to the MCC’s first innings 326 for seven declared. MCC captain David Fulton and Middlesex’s Andrew Strauss then batted out 17 overs, declaring at 93 for no wicket to end the game early.MCC resumed this morning on 270 for six, and batted for a further 15 oversbefore Fulton declared. Usman Afzaal, 25 tomorrow, completed a celebratory hundred, finishing on 111 not out with 11 fours and three sixes. The one wicket to fall was that of Richard Dawson, caught by Russel Arnold for 15 off Ruchira Perera, who finished with four for 66 off 20 overs.James Kirtley and Kevin Dean then reduced the tourists to an embarassing 30 for five. Skipper Sanath Jayasuriya tried to hook Kirtley and top-edged a catch to wicket-keeper Chris Read. Kumar Sangakkara, in need of runs, was lbw padding up to Kirtley. Hashan Tillekeratne got a perfect Dean yorker before he had scored, and Arnold edged Dean to Afzaal at second slip. Upul Chandana was run out by a direct hit from Strauss attempting to get off the mark. Dean then accounted for Prasanna Jayawardene, who edged a straightforward catch to Read.Simon Jones, included in England’s 13-man squad for the Old Trafford Test, struck in his third over when Thilan Samaraweera was caught at short leg by Dawson. The tourists slipped to 57 for eight when Eric Upashantha, on eight, was caught behind cutting at Jones.Only Aravinda de Silva, with an unbeaten 54 (49 balls, three sixes, five fours), provided real resistance. He put on 59 with Dilhara Fernando before the latter was caught behind, and off-spinner Dawson finished the innings by having last man Perera caught by Jones at deep backward point.On the upside for the tourists, Sri Lanka manager Chandra Schaffter says their star bowler, Muttiah Muralitharan, is continuing to recover from his shoulder injury.”He’s much better than he was, but he’s a long way from being 100% fit, and the final decision depends on him,” Schaffter said. “I cannot say he will definitely play. If the Test was tomorrow he’d certainly be very keen to play.”Asked whether Sri Lanka would raise their game at Manchester, Schaffter said: “I think it will be difficult to perform much worse than we did atEdgbaston. I’m very confident we can do much better and I’m looking to contain England a little bit more than we did at Edgbaston.”Players sometimes relax and don’t take these matches too seriously. We didnot do too well in any of the county games, by and large, and we can’t take theresults of these matches as a serious indication as to how we will perform.”

Nottinghamshire skipper, century-maker and long-time Manchester United fan Haseeb Hameed had an all-round day to remember as Worcestershire were outplayed on an unhappy return to action at Visit Worcestershire New Road in their Vitality County Championship encounter.Worcestershire, back at their headquarters after flooding led to the first two games with Durham and Somerset being moved to Kidderminster, were bowled out in just 31.1 overs. A combination of a bowler-friendly wicket, a probing performance from the four-pronged seam attack and one or two undistinguished strokes enabled Nottingham to seize the initiative with the ball.Then Hameed heard of the Red Devils triumph over Manchester City in the FA Cup final before pressing home Nottinghamshire’s advantage with Joe Clarke during the evening session during a partnership of 147. Hameed reached three figures shortly before the close from 214 balls with nine fours before he was dismissed shortly before the close to leave Clarke unbeaten on 73.But Worcestershire were left to rue dropping Hameed on 36 and Clarke before he had scored, the latter off Nathan Smith who was the pick of the home attack, just as they threatened to keep Nottinghamshire’s advantage in check at what would have been 90-4 had the chances been taken.Groundstaff worked through the night to ensure play could get underway on time after yesterday’s wash-out. Both teams and staff lined up for a minute’s applause before the start of play in honour of Worcestershire spinner, Josh Baker, who passed away aged 20 three weeks ago.Worcestershire opener, Ed Pollock, came in for his first appearance of the season in place of Kashif Ali who was taking a break from the game. Nottinghamshire pace bowler Luke Fletcher was recalled in place of Olly Stone – and was soon making his mark after Hameed won the toss and chose to bat on a green pitch.His former Trent Bridge colleague Jake Libby fell to a stunning low catch at second slip by Calvin Harrison away to his left. Dillon Pennington, on his first return to New Road since leaving Worcestershire last summer, then knocked out Pollock’s middle stump after he pushed forward.Harrison held onto another smart catch at slip to account for Gareth Roderick off Fletcher who then had Rob Jones, after he went for an expansive drive, caught by Tom Moores who had replaced Joe Clarke behind the stumps. The procession of wickets continued with Lyndon James’ angled in delivery trapping Worcestershire Club captain Brett D’Oliveira lbw.Fletcher was rested after a spell of 9-5-18-3 but there was no let-up for the home side. Matthew Waite flicked at James and was taken by Moores diving to his left at full stretch, and Adam Hose went to pull Pennington and top-edged a return catch.Nathan Smith came down the wicket to Paterson and was lbw and the same bowler had Joe Leach pouched at backward drive. Adam Finch showed some defiance in striking Pennington for six over mid wicket before caught behind off his ex-team-mate.When Nottinghamshire batted, openers Haseeb Hameed and Ben Slater looked comfortable and scored freely as the 50 came up in the 17th over. There were few alarms for the duo although Hameed on 26 edged left armer Ben Gibbon just short of second slip.But a breakthrough finally came with Nottinghamshire just three runs in arrears when Slater on 41 pulled Smith straight to Gibbon at fine leg. There was more joy for Smith when Will Young tried to get his bat out of a way of a delivery but only deflected the ball onto his stumps.Smith should have had a third wicket in three overs but Roderick dropped Joe Clarke before he had scored – a rare let-off by the consistent keeper. Hameed also had an escape on 36 at first slip immediately after tea off Finch before going onto complete a 50 from 110 balls.Clarke followed him to that milestone from 86 balls as the pair gradually accelerated during the final session. Hameed went to three figures but did not add to his total before he was trapped lbw by Waite after striking nine fours in his 219-ball innings.

Clare Connor, England Women’s former Ashes-winning captain, has taken office at Lord’s as the first female President of MCC in the club’s 234-year history.Connor, who is also Director of Women’s Cricket at the ECB, was nominated for the role at the club’s AGM back in 2020, but her tenure was delayed by a year due to Covid-19, with her predecessor Kumar Sangakkara staying on for a second term.”I am truly honoured to be MCC President,” Connor said, “and would like to thank Kumar Sangakkara for putting his faith in me to deliver this enormously important role, for the good of the sport I have loved all my life.”I will try to bring my range of experiences from the dressing room and the boardroom to support, influence and work alongside the club’s leadership and committees over the next 12 months. I am really looking forward to being part of the MCC team”.Connor made her England debut in 1995 at the age of 19, and took over the captaincy in 2000, leading England at Lord’s against Australia a year later. An allrounder who bowled left-arm spin, Connor led England women to their first Ashes triumph in 42 years, overseeing a 1-0 series win in 2005.Clare Connor is the first female President in the 234-year history of MCC•MCC

She retired from the game soon after that series, and in 2009 was made an Honorary Life Member of MCC, only a decade after the first female members had been admitted to the club.Her career in administration has included the introduction of central contracts for England women’s players in 2014, and the first tranche of domestic contracts for female cricketers in 2020. England’s World Cup win, in front of a full house at Lord’s in 2017, helped to elevate the profile of the women’s game in the UK, while Connor was also a central figure in this summer’s successful launch of the women’s Hundred.Related

• 'We can't let this crisis narrow our ambition' – Clare Connor

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Aside from her ECB duties, Connor has been chair of the ICC Women’s Cricket Committee since 2011, and has served as a director on the board of Sussex Cricket and Sport England.MCC have also confirmed Bruce Carnegie-Brown as the club’s new chairman. He takes over from Gerald Corbett, whose maximum six years in office ended on 30 September 2021.Carnegie-Brown is currently chairman of Lloyd’s of London and vice-chairman of Santander Banking Group, and has been a full member of MCC since 1997.”It is a privilege to be MCC’s next chairman and to increase my involvement with such a special club,” he said. “I look forward to working with the club’s members to ensure that the Home of Cricket continues to provide a world-class venue and warm welcome to players and visitors from around the country and internationally.”

Mithali Raj, India’s ODI captain, has called for greater accountability from the opening pair of Smriti Mandhana, especially, and Shafali Verma after the two fell for low scores in India’s nine-wicket loss in the first ODI in Mackay. While a better start – the pair fell in quick succession after adding 31 – might have helped India put up more than the 225 for 8 they managed, better bowling could have made things tough for Australia in their chase. They eventually got to their target in just 41 overs, and Raj was unhappy about the performance of the spinners as well.Related

• Batting coach Das backs 'world-class' Mandhana to come good

• Will Mithali bat at No. 3? Can Shafali slay her demons?

• Australia's test of endurance begins in bid for Grand Slam

“The opening partnership – if they can give us a good start, clearly the middle order can take the momentum from there,” Raj told reporters after the match. “But if you lose wickets, you actually have to build an innings in the first ten overs. Smriti [16 in 18 balls] has been on the international circuit for a while, so we would expect some runs from her.”When you know the sort of batting line-up the Australians have, anything closer to 250 is what we were looking at, but losing two wickets, especially batters like Smriti and Shafali [8 in 10 balls], in the powerplay itself, it was important the middle order starts to compensate for that and build a partnership there. And that’s what we did with Yastika [Bhatia, the debutant, who scored a 51-ball 35], but then again, we didn’t get enough partnerships in the lower-middle order.”You always bat according to the situation. Of course, the players need to play shots, but it doesn’t mean you be reckless. We need to now actually have partnerships rather than thinking about fearless cricket. The girls need to get down to developing some partnerships in the middle and that will definitely give them confidence at some point to play fearlessly.”Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma fell in quick succession after putting on 31•Getty Images

Both Mandhana and Verma fell to the 18-year-old quick Darcie Brown after India were asked to bat on a pitch with bounce, pace and carry. The two have opened together in 25 T20Is, but only three times before this in ODIs, adding 23, 56 and 46, all in England in June.The relative inexperience of the 17-year-old Shafali means the team management would like to give her “breathing space”, but Mandhana, who has over 140 India caps, has struggled for consistency in limited-overs cricket since 2020. In nine ODI innings this year, against South Africa at home and in England before the latest outing, Mandhana has only one fifty and seven scores under 30 in a total of 244 runs at an average of 30.50.In a post-match interview with the host broadcaster on Tuesday, Raj made it clear that “when you’re put in to bat, you expect an opening partnership of minimum 50 runs.” Against a well-rounded Australia attack, India had just one 50-plus stand, between Bhatia and Raj, who added 77 for the third wicket, with the captain continuing to play the anchor as she went on to score her fifth straight fifty in the format.”Yastika – she had a very good [preparatory] camp in Bangalore. She was among runs and she continued that even in the practice game, whatever little she scored she was quite impressive and that is why without a doubt we picked her today in place of Harman [Harmanpreet Kaur] because Harman was injured,” Raj said. “The order we sent her [in] she was quite positive out there to score runs.”On her own performance – a 59th ODI fifty but at a sedate scoring rate (she took 12 balls to get off the mark and 92 deliveries to reach her half-century) – Raj said, “It is always in my mind to improve on that [strike rate] aspect. I wouldn’t say I definitely don’t think about it, but it’s not something that crosses my mind when I walk in to bat.”I’ve always felt no matter how many runs I score there’s always some room for improvement. I want to evolve as a player, too. I know I’ve been scoring runs but it isn’t enough for the team to win, so there’s always room for improvement.”As there is on the strike-rotation front. “As far as running between the wickets is concerned, there’s still a lot to be achieved in that aspect,” Raj agreed. “This is not just about the running between the wickets, but overall the batting department needs to work hard because just not running, but even in batting [because] as batters you need to play and score runs.”With just 225 on the board, India needed a lot from the three-pronged spin contingent of Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana and Poonam Yadav. Given how seamlessly Australia blunted India’s attack, with their top three of Alyssa Healy, Rachael Haynes and Meg Lanning blitzing solid half-centuries and putting on century stands for the first two wickets, Raj admitted that there was a concern.Mithali Raj scored her fifth straight half-century in ODIs, but it was yet another sedate innings•Getty Images

“Yes, we do have a lot to work in terms of our bowling department because predominantly we are spinners, a spin attack, and spinners are getting hit everywhere, so that’s something we need to work on,” she said. “The wicket is good for batters as well as fast bowlers. Having said that, the bowlers need to be a little more tighter in their line and length on a wicket like this, which we did get to see with the Australian fast bowlers but not really with the Indian seamers.”Though Raj said she was unlikely to tinker much with the starting XI, she kept the possibility open for “maybe one or two changes” for the second ODI, on Friday at the same venue.Complimenting the debutants Bhatia, wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh and pacer Meghna Singh for doing “really well”, Raj did hint at a possible promotion to No. 3 for Ghosh.”We definitely are looking into all that,” she said. “But because it is her first game, you also want players to have some confidence in the role they’ve already played; Richa has already been part of the T20I squad and scored runs there at a particular order.”So, when she’s making her debut, you want to give a comfort level to a player get into the same role they’ve played and experienced. That is why she went in the order she did. But, yes, she was very impressive today and, clearly, it does put thoughts in our head that we could promote her up the order.”

ScorecardYorkshire captain Gary Ballance maintained his excellent form with 85•Getty Images

Liam Livingstone first came to prominence in a Roses match almost a year ago when he flayed Yorkshire at Old Trafford in the NatWest Blast. If that was not enough to make Yorkshire wary, since then he has been tipped for great things, temporarily elevated to the Lancashire captaincy and presumably made more ravenous than ever by his exclusion from England’s Champions Trophy squad.Not just for Yorkshire, but for a partisan Headingley crowd, Livingstone has become the wicket most wanted. He looked in ominous mood in making 32 from 37 balls – although he would look more ominous in Lancashire red than sponsors’ green – the boundary was cleared on two occasions, but then Adil Rashid found an excellent googly to bowl him off the inside edge. Another googly had brought about a similar end for Alex Davies and he generally caused uncertainty throughout.Spin proved to be Yorkshire’s route to a comfortable 79-run victory as Rashid and the offspinner Azeem Rafiq were at the top of their game on a surface offering them a little purchase, sharing six wickets, bowling with craft and competitive edge and ensuring that Yorkshire’s 296 for 9 was never seriously challenged. Rafiq took 4 for 47 and it was an appropriate end when the pair combined for the final wicket.Such composure was perhaps more than Yorkshire expected after a downbeat end to their innings. An excellent stand of 143 in 20 overs between Gary Ballance and Peter Handscomb gave them visions of 330 when they were 230 for 3 with more than 12 overs remaining but Steven Parry removed David Willey, Ballance and Rashid in the space of eight deliveries and as it was they scrambled what they could.Yorkshire’s director of cricket, Martyn Moxon, could not have been happier with the matchwinning alliance. “It was a fantastic display of batting because the conditions at that time were tricky with the lights on and dampness in the pitch,” he said. “We still felt that 290 was a good score if we bowled well. And we certainly did.”Quite why there were only two Royal London Cup ties on a Bank Holiday must remain one of those mysteries in which English county cricket specialises. Whereas Roses T20s are sold out well in advance, a 50-over tie can pull in around 5000 with a host of England players involved and nobody looks too downbeat.For Yorkshire’s contingent, there was limited reward. Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root both got a start only to fall to Ryan McLaren, a Lancashire overseas player who might not thrill the popular side but who has brought grunts of satisfaction from the Old Trafford cognoscenti. Bairstow’s 28 included successive pulled sixes off Tom Bailey before he inside-edged a drive to the wicketkeeper, Davies; Root also reached the 20s but then fell to a leaping cut to backward point.The authority with which Ballance and Handscomb rebalanced Yorkshire’s innings was impressive. The attention given to the occasional appearances of Root and Bairstow is understandable but such is the disruptive nature of England calls that to a large degree it is with Ballance and Handscomb that Yorkshire’s season rests.Handscomb’s end was certainly eye-catching, a marked change in tempo bringing him 18 off four balls from Luke Procter, murderous intent apparent in every one of them, before another intemperate blow brought his downfall on the leg side.Ballance has been in wonderful form this season, although this was a more robust contribution which required a few fortunate inside edges to keep it alive. Nevertheless, he seemed destined for a fourth hundred in seven knocks when Parry defeated his reverse sweep. Three botched pulls and a run-out ensured a humdrum end to Yorkshire’s innings.Lancashire’s batting order will bring debate. Haseeb Hameed came in at No. 3 – having made 88 at opener three days ago – presumably in the hope of Procter providing a flying start and Livingstone was held back until No. 5, which seems a place too low for a player of his ambition to shape the game most effectively.Livingstone did threaten, driving Liam Plunkett from the attack with two spectacular sixes but Rashid’s googly ensured Yorkshire’s second win and left Lancashire with two defeats and much to ponder.

Sayan Ghosh’s 3 for 25 and Pragyan Ojha’s 2 for 29 helped Bengal restrict Odisha to 121 after setting them 146 to win at the Eden Gardens. Odisha’s debutant Subhranshu Senapati (41 off 42) was their only batsman from the top six who got into double figures as they were reduced to 39 for 5 in the ninth over of their chase. Earlier, Bengal were reduced to 67 for 5 in 12th over after being put in, thanks to medium-pacers Basant Mohanty (2-39) and Deepak Behera (2-16) who took the first four wickets between them. Of Bengal’s top four, only Shreevats Goswami (33 off 31) got past 10. It took efforts from Pramod Chandila (32 off 32) and Writtick Chatterjee (33 off 22) – who were both dismissed by Paresh Patel (2-18) – to lift Bengal to 145.File photo – Abu Nechim played a supporting role with 2 for 10 as Assam bowled Tripura out for 85•AFP

Pritam Das, the medium-pacer, finished with his first five-wicket haul in T20s to help Assam skittle Tripura for 85 and set-up a seven-wicket win in Kolkata. Assam now have two wins in three matches in the Inter-State T20 tournament.Tripura, sent in to bat, were tottering at 36 for 5 in the 10th over. Manisankar Mura Singh, the captain, waged a lone battle to top score with 32, before Tripura lost their last five wickets for nine runs. Rishav Das got Assam off to a flier, striking four boundaries in his 21 before they lost two wickets in successive overs. Murasingh, who dismissed Rishav, had his second when he bowled Arun Karthik. But Sibsankar Roy’s 35 not out ensured Assam suffered no further hiccups as they won with 41 balls to spare.

Angelo Mathews’ hamstring injury will keep him out of the forthcoming T20 series in Australia, Sri Lanka Cricket has confirmed. A stand-in captain is expected to be named on Tuesday, when the selectors decide on the squad.Mathews has been in Sri Lanka since he sustained the injury during his match-winning innings in the second T20 against South Africa. Dinesh Chandimal took the reins in the final T20 of that series, before Upul Tharanga assumed interim leadership of the ODI side.Sri Lanka’s selectors now face a minor dilemma about who should take over the side in Mathews’ stead, as both Chandimal and Tharanga do not necessarily make the T20 XI on present form. Chandimal made scores of 6 not out, 22 and 5 in the three T20s against South Africa, and Tharanga only played the last of those matches, hitting 20 off 11 balls. Barring the tour game in December, neither batsman has hit a fifty in any format in the ongoing tour.”The selection meeting on Tuesday will decide the squad and the captain who will lead in the three matches,” a board statement said. “The team will arrive in Canberra on Monday the 13th.”Sri Lanka are expected to play a practice T20 in Canberra on February 15, before flying to Melbourne on 17th for the first of three T20Is.

Match facts

January 20, 2017
Start time 1800 local (1600 GMT)South Africa’s T20 squad has a new look to it – just four members of their World T20 campaign have been included for the Sri Lanka series•Gallo Images/Getty Images

Big Picture

In a year with no World T20, it would be easy to forget the shortest format exists at international level, but South Africa and Sri Lanka are doing their bit to keep it alive and kicking. The three-match whirlwind series takes place in five days and will feature an almost entirely new-look South African outfit. Only four members of the squad that played in the World T20 last March, 10 months ago, have been included in the 13-man group for the first two matches as South Africa look to the future.They have assembled the best players from the last two seasons’ domestic T20 competition, and given an opportunity to veterans like Heino Kuhn, who has played professional cricket for more than a decade, and rookies like Lungi Ngidi, who at 20 has already featured in two franchise T20 finals. Of particular interest will be Jon-Jon Smuts, who may make a case as a long-term opening option and Theunis de Bruyn, whose star is rising in all formats.Sri Lanka’s squad has a more familiar hue but with one superstar omission. Lasith Malinga has failed to regain fitness after a bout of dengue fever and had to make himself unavailable for the South Africa tour, leaving Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Pradeep to carry the seam-bowling responsibilities along with recalled players, Nuwan Kulasekara and Isuru Udana.With only one new batsmen in their ranks, Thikshila de Silva, Sri Lanka will look to their line-up to do a better job than they managed in the Tests even though their form in shorter formats has not been particularly promising. Still, such an inexperienced host side may present Sri Lanka with their best chance to enjoy some success.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
South Africa: WLWLL
Sri Lanka: LLLLL

In the spotlight

David Miller is in the unusual position of being South Africa’s most experienced batsman. Captain Farhaan Behardien confirmed that Miller will bat higher than his usual No.6 spot, perhaps at No.4 where he scored a century for the Knights earlier in the season, in order to give him the best chance of facing as many balls as possible. Behardien said if Miller faces between 50 and 60 balls, he is almost guaranteed a hundred because of his strike rate. No pressure, then.Sri Lanka will look to their captain Angelo Mathews to spark a revival•Associated Press

Angelo Mathews was under fire for his tactics in the Test series, particularly in the way he used his bowlers, including himself. The limited-overs contests will be a chance for him to redeem himself. Mathews is much more respected as a short-format bowler and will likely take the new ball in a bid to strike upfront. He will have the opportunity to set the tone and, having failed to do that in the longer formats, will know his performance over the next few weeks could be important to his survival as captain.

Team news

South Africa could field as many as six new caps in a completely new-look XI which should see the T20 competition’s leading run-scorer Jon-Jon Smuts open the batting with veteran Heino Kuhn. David Miller, who will bat up the order through the series, and Farhaan Behardien will provide middle-order experience around Theunis de Bruyn and Reeza Hendricks. Mangaliso Mosehle will keep wicket, while Wayne Parnell and Andile Phehlulwayo make the allrounder contingent. Dane Paterson will compete with Lungi Ngidi for a place while Imran Tahir could edge out Aaron Phangiso as the sole spinner.South Africa: 1 Jon-Jon Smuts, 2 Heino Kuhn, 3 Theunis de Bruyn, 4 David Miller, 5 Farhaan Behardien (capt), 6 Reeza Hendricks, 7 Mangaliso Mosehle (wk), 8 Wayne Parnell, 9 Andile Phehlukwayo, 10 Dane Paterson, 11 Imran TahirSri Lanka will need a new opener to partner Danushka Gunathilaka and may turn to one of their youngsters Kusal Mendis or Dhananjaya de Silva to do the job. Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal will hope to turn a disappointing tour around, while Thikshila may make his debut. Two specialist spinners and two seamers, in addition to captain Angelo Mathews, could make up the Sri Lankan attack.Sri Lanka: 1 Danushka Gunathilaka, 2 Kusal Mendis/Dhananjaya de Silva, 3 Angelo Mathews (capt), 4 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 5 Niroshan Dickwella, 6 Asela Gunaratne, 7 Thikshila de Silva, 8 Sachith Pathirana, 9 Seekkuge Prasanna, 10 Nuwan Pradeep, 11 Suranga Lakmal

Pitch and conditions

Centurion is known for its spicy surface but in limited-overs matches it tends to favour batsmen a little more. This season, though, it has been a touch slower and seen some lower-scoring contests in the domestic T20 competition. Still, at altitude, the ball is set to travel. Tickets have been sold out for the spectacle. A perfect summer’s evening is forecast, with temperatures cooling down from 31 degrees and no afternoon thundershowers lurking.

Stats and trivia

• South Africa and Sri Lanka have never a played a T20 in South Africa before. They have faced each other six times, of which South Africa have won four matches and lost two.
• The last time South Africa and Sri Lanka met in a T20 was at the World T20 – which was also when South Africa last played in the format – and South Africa chased 121 to win comfortably by eight wickets with 14 balls to spare.

Quotes

“As a captain I try to be very lighthearted. The players need to make their own decisions, bring their own flair in the change-room. When they do that, that’s when they can perform at their best and not feel restricted to any sort of structure or anything.”