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UPDATE: Rassie van der Dussen hits ton as SA post 298 against England
Van der Dussen reached his fourth ODI century in the 45th over, and he and David Miller then went about trying to secure the big finish the Proteas needed.
Rassie van der Dussen dished up a marvellous century for the Proteas in the first ODI match against England in Bloemfontein.
Rassie van der Dussen’s century laid the foundation for the Proteas total of 298/7 in the first ODI against England in Bloemfontein on Friday, a typically well-constructed innings by the 33-year-old in which he farms the strike expertly and accumulates and accelerates in composed fashion.
Van der Dussen provided a superb platform as he compiled 111 off 117 balls coming in at No.3, but the rest of the batting line-up tended to get in, get set and then get out. David Miller was the only one to stay with Van der Dussen for an extended period of time, as they added 110 for the fifth wicket off 101 deliveries. But even Miller was not at his most fluent, scoring his 53 off 56 balls.
Read more: Proteas go into England series without top-scoring batters
Having won the toss and elected to bat first, South Africa prospered at first as Quinton de Kock (37 off 41) and Temba Bavuma (36 off 28) put on 61 for the first wicket in just 52 deliveries. England managed to pick up regular wickets in the next hour, though, with De Kock, Bavuma and Aiden Markram (13) all falling to soft dismissals as South Africa slipped to 116/3.
Heinrich Klaasen (30 off 32) then added 55 off 58 balls with Van der Dussen, before trying to sweep a delivery from leg-spinner Adil Rashid that was too full and being trapped lbw.
Van der Dussen reached his fourth ODI century in the 45th over, and he and Miller then went about trying to secure the big finish the Proteas needed. Fast bowler Jofra Archer went for 20 runs in the 47th over, but the excellent Sam Curran, who took 3/35 in nine overs, removed Van der Dussen in the next over.
Small consolation
The wicket of Wayne Parnell (2) was small consolation for Archer, who conceded 81 runs in his 10 overs in his first international match for nearly two years.
Miller fell in the final over to a fantastic catch at long-on by David Willey. The left-hander clubbed Curran down the ground and there was a moment when it looked like the ball would burst through the leaping Willey’s hands. But he did not panic, regained control, tossed the ball infield and stepped over the rope, before returning to complete a memorable catch.
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