Ben Stokes’ farewell in One-Day International Cricket ended in an anticlimactic way as England went down by 62 runs at Chester-le-Street. South Africa defeated England in the first of three ODIs runs on the back of Rassie van der Dussen’s century at the Riverside Ground on July 19.
Van der Dussen was the star of the match for his magnificent knock of 134 off 117 on a tricky batting surface. Aiden Markram also played a crucial role, scoring 77 off 61 and picking two crucial wickets.
As it happened, South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first in extremely hot conditions. They lost Quinton de Kock early, but Janneman Malan and van der Dussen added 109 runs for the second wicket. Playing in the absence of Temba Bavuma, this series was a make-or-break for Markram and he grabbed it with both hands. Markram and van der Dussen put on a 151-run stand for the third wicket.
Dussen only scored 10 fours but ran incredibly well throughout the innings to register his third ODI century, taking his average to 74.95. England bowlers did make a comeback in the latter stage of the innings, restricting the visitors to 333/5 when it looked like 350-370 was on the cards.
The duo of Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow was watchful at the start, with the ball holding up from the beginning. They added 102 runs in 19 overs for the first wicket before Roy chipped one to wide long off, scoring a rather slow 62-ball 43.
England were setting themselves up for acceleration in the second half, but Markram trapped Bairstow LBW for a 63 off 71 and then the home hero Stokes for five off 11. Captain Jos Buttler looked to get a move on, but an unfortunate inside edge onto the pads carried to the bowler Tabraiz Shamsi.
Amidst all the chaos, Joe Root fought and fought hard, playing a terrific innings of 77-ball 86, but the target was just way too out of reach for him.
Brief scores
South Africa 333/5 in 50 overs (van der Dussen 134, Markram 77; Livingstone 2/30) beat England 271 in 46.5 overs (Root 86, Bairstow 63; Nortje 4/53) by 62 runs.
