The Proteas have won the toss and have opted to bat first against Pakistan in their Champions Trophy clash at Edgbaston.
The Proteas will all but secure their progression to the semi-finals with a victory against Mickey Arthur’s under-fire Pakistan side.
Arthur was lost for words after his side’s 124-run D/L method defeat against India midweek, as dropped catches, the worst bowling figures in Champions Trophy and laboured batting contributed to the loss.
The Proteas won’t take them lightly though. Pakistan beat them at the 2015 World Cup and have beaten them three times in the last four matches. It’s unfamiliar territory for the Proteas however, with just one Pakistani surviving from that 2015 clash playing today. Their unpredictability and unfamiliarity could help Pakistan.
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The skies are overcast, which has been the theme in Birmingham throughout the past week. The good news is that the rain is only expected to start affecting the game at around 20:00, so we should have a game, if not the full 100 overs.
Pakistan have made two changes to their side, with Junaid Khan coming in for the injured Wahab Riaz, while uncapped Fakhar Zaman plays in place of the dropped Ahmed Shehzad.
South Africa have opted for continuity, choosing an unchanged XI from the side that brushed aside Sri Lanka in their opener on Saturday.
SOUTH AFRICA: Quinton de Kock (wk), Hashim Amla, Faf du Plessis, AB de Villiers (c), David Miller, JP Duminy, Chris Morris, Wayne Parnell, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir
PAKISTAN: Fakhar Zaman, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir, Shadab Khan, Junaid Khan, Hasan Ali
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Photo: Christopher Lee/Getty Images
