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Kent and Hampshire have been invited to take part in West Indies’ Regional Super50 competition, the domestic one-day tournament, which is set to take place early next year ahead of the start of the 2018 English season.If the offer is taken up, it will be the second successive year Kent have been part of the competition. They finished third in Group A during the 2016-17 tournament with three wins from their eight matches.Last year’s edition started in late January and if either county did take part it would require a month-long stay in the Caribbean which would come with significant associated costs. The region has become a regular feature on the pre-season scene for English counties.There could be a significant presence for English cricketers in the Caribbean ahead of the 2018 English summer with the Lions touring for four-day and one-day series against West Indies A in February and March.

Live scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAt Edgbaston, two completed innings from West Indies mustered 305 runs and neither lasted even 50 overs. On the second day at Headingley, one West Indies partnership added 246 runs in 68 overs as Kraigg Brathwaite and Shai Hope turned a promising revival with the ball into a full-blown resurgence.Brathwaite’s 134 was his sixth Test century, brought up from 189 balls with a six off Tom Westley in the final over before tea, while for Shai Hope – who took 159 deliveries – it was his first. After a lean start to his Test career, Hope’s century came three matches after his previous best of 90 and offered, dare we say, hope that the investment in him will bring long-term returns. The pair had come together inside the first hour of the day with West Indies 35 for 3 and the memories still fresh of the 19-wicket day last week.By the time England broke through, deep in the final session, when Broad burst through Brathwaite’s defence with the second new ball, West Indies were in the lead – the first time they had been ahead on first innings in England since Old Trafford in 2004 – and the partnership was West Indies’ biggest in England for more than 30 years, since Gordon Greenidge and Larry Gomes famously made David Gower regret his declaration at Lord’s in 1984.At the close, the lead stood at 71 with five wickets in hand. Ben Stokes had removed Roston Chase, edging a short delivery to first slip and there was the prospect of the fantastic work being undone. However, Jermaine Blackwood – whose idea of playing for the close was to continue to attack – ensured the day ended on a strong note. Hope’s unbeaten 147 was West Indies’ highest individual innings in England since Brian Lara’s 179 at The Oval in 1995.Until the new ball defeated him, Brathwaite’s 249-ball stay was a chanceless affair although he was twice grateful for DRS. On 34 he was given lbw to Broad but there had been an inside edge, while on 46 he was given the same way against Moeen Ali but was outside the line – one ball later he deposited Moeen into the stands for his fifty, the shot he would repeat a couple of hours later for the century.The team performance at Edgbaston brought much ridicule, but West Indies’ previous away Test had been a victory over Pakistan in Sharjah in which Brathwaite carried his bat for 142 in the first innings before marshalling the chase with an unbeaten 60 in the second.As the only member of the current squad with over 2000 Test runs, Brathwaite had already established his credentials at this level. The same could not said of Shai Hope who started this innings with an average under 20. However, he has been highly rated in the Caribbean since before his debut against England in 2015 and here that promise shone through.His fifty came from 72 balls with a strong straight drive against Chris Woakes and he came through Stokes’ attempts to unsettle him which included a hefty blow on the back of the helmet from a slippery bouncer. Ten minutes before tea, on 72, he flicked a delivery from Moeen to short leg but Mark Stoneman couldn’t cling on – it would have been an unfortunate way to go and West Indies’ effort deserved a few things to go their way.Whereas Brathwaite generally fed off short-of-a-length deliveries – of which England’s quicks offered up too many – Hope was eye-catching off the front foot (although his one-legged pull off Stokes to reach 99 was a reverse image of Lara). But for both the century-makers it was the early work in the morning session, when there was cloud cover and a new ball zipping around, that was most important to back up West Indies’ talk between matches that they had the batsmen to stand up to England in their conditions.England were off-colour with the ball; Broad struggled to consistently hit a full length (the sort that eventually dismissed Brathwaite) and after a promising first seven-over spell where he was unlucky not to pick up a wicket, Woakes looked more like a man making his way back into Test cricket after a lengthy lay-off.James Anderson was the pick of England’s bowlers and another bounty looked on the cards in the early forays of the day. He removed nightwatchman Devendra Bishoo in the fifth over of the day and then gave Kyle Hope another tough examination early in his Test career. A series of outswingers was followed by the inswinger, which brought the outside edge and Joe Root took a sharp catch at second slip. But for the rest of the day, Anderson remained stalled on 495 Test wickets, as did England’s hopes of forging a position from which they could take control of the match. That control, at least overnight, belonged to West Indies.

Match Facts

June 25, 2017
Start time 0900 local (1300 GMT)1:50

India will be pleased with Ajinkya Rahane being among the runs

Big Picture

Nine am starts in a bilateral series, after a world tournament has ended, with rain in the air, is asking a lot of a spectator. But for those die-hard fans who will still make the trip to the Queens Park Oval, be advised. Port-of-Spain is expected to receive thundershowers on Sunday afternoon, so don’t be surprised if you hit your head on a big red sign in front of the ground that says, “nothing to see here”. The sensible lot would take the time to sleep in, but the players don’t really have that luxury.India, for example, might not have anyone to grumble “five more minutes, coach,” to on this tour, but they do have a few rookies they’d want to get in shape. Left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav was handed a debut on Friday but he didn’t even step on to the field with the match being washed out. Uncapped wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant was not in the XI, but considering the low stakes, it might be useful to give him as many starts as possible to see if he could fit in the 2019 World Cup puzzle.In any case, it is starting to seem like the only way India can check on a middle-order batsman is if they can promote him to open. Typically it is their top order that fetches the bulk of the runs in ODIs – on Friday, Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane contributed 149 out of 199 before the rain came down.West Indies – from 39.2 overs of play – looked steady, and their bowlers were especially clever against Virat Kohli. Pitching it short of a length and outside off stump – on a surface that gave them a little extra lift – they forced the India captain to return with a strike rate of 68. He couldn’t get on top of the ball to bring his powerful wrists into play and he was rarely offered the drive as a means of escape. Take this attack lightly at your peril.

Form guide

West Indies WLLLW (completed matches, most recent first)
India LWWLW

In the spotlight

At 20, Alzarri Joseph generates pace effortlessly, not unlike Kagiso Rabada, who already leads South Africa’s attack in all formats. But that is only an asset when combined with discipline, and some creativity in the form of variations. Joseph showed with his dismissal of Rahane – an offcutter the batsman simply did not see coming – that he is more than ready for modern cricket.The merits in retaining Yuvraj Singh, even though he is 35, become apparent when he is in form. A career-best 150 against England and a 29-ball fifty against Pakistan showcased the best of his timing. In fact, since his comeback in January 2017, he has averaged 45 and struck at 102.24. He might have to keep up that level of performance to ward off competition from the likes of Pant, Manish Pandey (injured) and KL Rahul (injured), though.

Team news

Considering the last match they played ended in a no-result, West Indies might want to persist with the same XI.West Indies (probable): 1 Evin Lewis, 2 Kieran Powell, 3 Shai Hope (wk), 4 Jonathan Carter, 5 Jason Mohammed, 6 Roston Chase, 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Ashley Nurse, 9 Alzarri Joseph, 10 Devendra Bishoo, 11 Miguel Cummins,India came to the Caribbean with two uncapped players. One of them – Kuldeep – has debuted already and the other – Pant – would be looking forward to a first ODI cap as well.India (probable): 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Ajinkya Rahane, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 MS Dhoni (wk), 6 Kedar Jadhav, 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Kuldeep Yadav, 9 R Ashwin, 10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 11 Umesh Yadav

Pitch and conditions

Before the first ODI, Jeffrey Dujon described the pitch at the Queens Park Oval as a “tie-dye t-shirt” by Jeffrey Dujon, implying that it was difficult to assess. The one thing he was certain of was that it would spin in the first innings and flatten out later.

Stats and trivia

• The average run-rate batting first at the venue across 66 matches is 4.86. That translates to an average score of 243.
• Dhawan and Rahane’s last five ODI partnerships read: 83, 125, 56, 112, 132
• Jason Holder has 48 wickets as West Indies captain – the same as Courtney Walsh

Alastair Cook insists he has no regrets after giving up the England captaincy, but admitted there were just a couple of moments during the Lord’s Test when he felt a pang for a special job he knows he’ll “never do again”.While Cook, England captain from late 2012 to the start of 2017, described himself as “happy with the decision” to move back into the ranks, he confessed the sight of his successor, Joe Root, walking down the Lord’s steps to take the toss did bring home to him the realisation of everything he had given up.And, later in the Test, when he was moved in the field by Ben Stokes – Root’s vice-captain – it again brought home to him his new place in the England hierarchy.”I am happy with my decision,” Cook said. “The only bit was seeing Rooty walk down the stairs in his blazer and working out you will never do that again.”The shock was when Ben Stokes told me to move fielding positions. That was when I realised that life was different. He told me to swap with Jimmy because he thought Jimmy would be better in that position. So not only did I have Jimmy gloating at me but Ben Stokes telling me where to move.”It was different. More the first couple of days of preparation, having spent three or four years being the focal point of decisions. Even when the 12-man squad was announced, I forgot the thought and effort that went into that. It is very different to being captain.”But I have done my bit. I gave everything to the role and I move on from it. Let’s get behind Joe.”Cook feels the gap between making the decision, at the end of the Test tour of India in December, and the resumption of England’s Test schedule, was crucial in giving him adequate time to adjust mentally. But while he can look back on his time as Test captain with pride and satisfaction, he admits there is an element of regret over his period in charge of the ODI side.”It would have been very strange if I had gone straight from not having the captaincy to playing a Test match two weeks later,” he said. “I was pretty clear coming back from India I wasn’t going to be captain. Those two weeks when I was ‘making the decision’ didn’t change it.”The constant decision-making takes its effect. I don’t miss the media commitments. But I don’t want to sound negative.”And it was a bit strange when it was announced. I don’t want to say I was in mourning as that’s not quite the right word, but it wasn’t relief I felt. It was sadness.”I don’t have many regrets but the way my one-day career finished with England was one. That last 12 months when I couldn’t score a run was not a true indication of my one-day game.”People will remember that period but, for that first 18 months when we got to No.1 in the rankings, I was averaging 50 and striking at over 100. Or something like that, anyway. I played well in the period when I first took over as captain.”In the end, the simple pleasure of playing cricket again proved key to Cook recovering his enthusiasm and his form. He has already made six centuries for Essex in the county season and, on a deteriorating pitch, made the highest score in the third innings of the first Investec Test at Lord’s.”The period in February I had off I didn’t bat at all,” he said. “I was on the farm.”As soon as I got on that plane to go on Essex’s pre-season tour, the challenge of scoring runs and mucking in with the lads made sure any thoughts about the captaincy were quickly forgotten.”I quite like playing cricket, actually. It is an amazing thing what we do and, yes, there are tough times and hard moments along the way.”But you know the thought of playing here on Friday in front of a full house… That opportunity is not going to be around forever so that’s what kind of motivates me.”While Cook reckoned Root was uncharacteristically nervous at the start of England’s training programme ahead of the Lord’s Test, he felt he soon settled.”I thought he was really calm all week,” Cook said. “In that first net session I don’t think I have seen him bat as badly. Normally he hits lots of balls but he said ‘OK, that is it’ and came back the next day and was fine.”Clearly if you get a score like he did, that settles a lot of talk about the captaincy. Often captains come in and think they have to change everything. But we haven’t done too much different. He was really calm all week. It was a very impressive first week from him as a captain and leader.”Investec is the title sponsor of Test match cricket in England. For Out of the Ordinary thinking visit investec.com/cricket

Match facts

June 11, 2017
Start time 1430 local (1830 GMT)3:16

Agarkar: No doubting Rashid’s quality

Big Picture

The shorter the duration of a game, the closer the difference between a higher and a lower-ranked team. The NBA playoffs series’ are a race to four. Grand Slams in tennis are best of five sets. And Tests in cricket last five days. The reason is that the better team is able to sustain itself over extended periods of pressure. Afghanistan’s tour has already thrown up a paradoxical situation.They may well have found some success in the T20s had they not looked like their first ride from the airport was to the ground. They were harried for pace while batting, and didn’t have their own fast-bowling firepower. Although it wasn’t entirely unsurprising that conditions were tough for batting in the first ODI – pitches in the West Indies have been primarily slow this decade – it played right into Afghanistan’s hands. Rashid Khan, quickly rising in confidence and ability, spun his way past both edges to finish with the fourth-best bowling figures in ODIs. Afghanistan had found just the right pace.West Indies, it seemed, had misread conditions in St Lucia. Playing four seamers in slow conditions disallowed them from gaining an advantage with spin. And when they batted, they found the difference. The absence of their best ODI batsmen showed as they continued to fail to pick Rashid.

Form guide

West Indies LLLWL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Afghanistan WWLLW

In the spotlight

West Indies’ middle order – Shai Hope, Jason Mohammed, Roston Chase and Jonathan Carter – have played a combined 45 ODIs. In the series against Pakistan and in the first ODI against Afghanistan, their inexperience was evident from their inability to hit gaps. On a slow pitch, they’ll need to find ways to push the score along without just boundaries.Rashid Khan earned himself an IPL contract with Sunrisers Hyderabad by flummoxing Associate batsmen. Then he troubled the elite at the IPL. Subsequently, his confidence, a crucial factor in sport, supplemented his legspinning prowess. Now, he has taken a seven-for too. West Indies need to find a way to pick his variations or develop a method of playing him off the pitch.

Team news

Having named a 13-man squad for this series, West Indies don’t have too many back-up options. With the second ODI at the same venue, West Indies may bring in legspinner Devendra Bishoo for Alzarri Joseph, who went for 52 in his 10 overs.West Indies (probable): 1 Evin Lewis, 2 Kieran Powell, 3 Shai Hope (wk), 4 Jason Mohammed, 5 Roston Chase, 6 Jonathan Carter, 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Ashley Nurse, 9 Miguel Cummins, 10 Devendra Bishoo/Alzarri Joseph, 11 Shannon GabrielAfghanistan not only found the right combination for the conditions in the first game, but also achieved the right result. Hence, they’re unlikely to change that winning combination.Afghanistan (probable): 1 Noor Ali Zadran, 2 Javed Ahmadi, 3 Rahmat Shah, 4 Asghar Stanikzai (capt), 5 Samiullah Shenwari, 6 Mohammad Nabi, 7 Afsar Zazai (wk), 8 Gulbadin Naib, 9 Rashid Khan, 10 Amir Hamza, 11 Dawlat Zadran

Pitch and conditons

The surface was the first ODI was symbolic of how pitches have turned in nature from pacy and bouncy to low and slow. Those characteristics are unlikely to change much, and if the second match is played on the same surface, don’t expect high scores. There isn’t a high chance of rain for Sunday.

Stats and trivia

• Rashid Khan became the youngest bowler to take a seven-for in ODIs, beating Aaqib Javed’s 7 for 37
• This will be just the second ODI at this ground after it was renamed the Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium

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.

New Zealand will wait until the end of the Dunedin Test before making a call on Ross Taylor’s availability for the rest of the series. Taylor was diagnosed with a low grade tear in the right calf on Friday morning, after he underwent scans, but returned to bat, although he appeared restricted in his movements.Taylor was helped off the field when he was on 8 on the second day and received treatment overnight. New Zealand Cricket confirmed he would bat if required in this match and, with the hosts into the lead with nine wickets down, he returned to the crease to resume his innings but admitted he did not have high hopes for a long stint in the middle, because of his inability to run.”I wouldn’t say the confidence is that high. When I was walking out to the middle I was hoping I wouldn’t get timed out,” Taylor told New Zealand after the day’s play.Despite his injury, Taylor started with a single off Keshav Maharaj and then faced six more deliveries from Morne Morkel, the first of which he slogged over the leg side for a six. “It was more of a fluke than anything, I couldn’t put any weight on it so I had to get forward and Morne worked out that he just had to bowl short,” Taylor said.Taylor was not asked whether he hoped to play any further part in the series but the indications are that he will face at least some time out of the game. At the end of the second day’s play Trent Boult said Taylor did “not look good,” but the man himself is not giving anything away. “It’s just a small tear so it was nice to contribute in some sort of way and get a lead but I am obviously still frustrated.”Taylor is New Zealand’s second-highest Test century-maker on 16, one behind his mentor Martin Crowe. Earlier this season he became their leading century-maker in ODIs, but has lost his place in the T20 side.If this Test goes the duration, there are only three days before the second Test starts in Wellington on March 16, which gives New Zealand six days to name a replacement if necessary. One man they cannot turn to is Martin Guptill, who will need six weeks of rehabilitation on his hamstring ahead of the Champions Trophy. Colin Munro, Neil Broom and Dean Brownlie are believed to be in contention for a call-up if needed.

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.”