4 Fantastico Battles that could Impact the 4th ODI between Eng and SA

It has been a closely fought series between South Africa and England so far with England being the marginally better team of the two and now the fourth ODI at Johannesburg promises another tight game with plenty of sub plots and internal battles which will have a close impact on the outcome of the match.

4 Fantastico Battles that could have an Impact on the 4th ODI:

Quinton de Kock and Hashim Amla Vs Reece Topley and David Willey

The two left arm fast bowlers for England have performed admirably well in all the three ODI matches so far and they have given England the control at the start of the innings. Both of them bowled economically in the first ODI when an avalanche of runs were being scored and Topley followed it up with a four wicket haul in the second game. Even in the third match, the two gave away only 30 in the first five overs before de Kock and Amla opened their arms and launched their attack. De Kock and Amla will try to continue from where they left and it will certainly be a good battle between two in-form batsmen up against two bowlers who have been bowling well.

Faf du Plessis and AB de Villiers Vs Adil Rashid

Faf has been hitting the ball sweetly and De Villiers, even though he has not been at his fluent best, has still managed a half century in the series. Both these players are superb players of spin and can easily unsettle the line and lengths of a slower bowler with their use of feet, quick hands and unconventional shots. But Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid have held their own amidst all the onslaught. While Moeen picked up a three wicket haul in the first match including Du Plessis and De Villiers, Rashid picked up Du Plessis in the second while both of them went at only around for runs to the over, stagnating the Protea middle order. It will a lip smacking battle between two excellent players of spin and two good spinners in the middle overs.

Alex Hales and Joe Root Vs Kasigo Rabada and Kyle Abbott

Hales has made three half centuries in the series while Root has a 50 and a 100 to his name from the three matches that have been played. Rabada and Abbott did not play the first game when England managed to score 399 but the addition of these two has given the Protea attack much needed teeth and grit. Abbott picked up a 3 fer in the second ODI, Rabada went at less than 4 runs per over thus creating the pressure, while both of them picked up two wickets each at Centurion to restrict England greatly during the death overs.

Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes Vs Imran Tahir

Jos Buttler kicked the series off in fine fashion with a 105 off just 76 balls and followed it up with a high impact 48* off just 28 balls. Stokes has been in hot form himself making 57 off 38 balls in the 1st game and making 53 off just 37 balls in the 3rd. Both of them have been responsible for giving England the late charge and they have been able to do so because Imran Tahir has been utterly hopeless against them. Tahir has leaked runs in all the matches, going at well over 7 runs per over and he will be keen to pull things back at Johannesburg.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.