24-year-old Kagiso Rabada is full of confidence as he leads the Proteas pace attack into war against a powerful English batting lineup at the Oval.

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The speedster is fully aware of the challenge that faces his attack, one that he will lead in the absence of Dale Steyn.

And why wouldn’t KG be confident despite the threat posed by the likes of Johnny Bairstow, Jason Roy, Joe Root and co.? He starts the tournament in fifth place on the ICC ODI rankings and was grabbing headlines at the IPL – 25 wickets at 14 will do that – before injury cut short his tournament.

The former Under-19 World Cup winner – he averaged a little over 10 and starred as SA beat Australia in the semis grabbing six wickets – has graduated to the top of the class and is raring to go.

‘It’s a big occasion and I want to be the one who leads from the front and owns it,’ Rabada told Evening Standard.

‘England have got some class players with the bat, but I see that as an opportunity to show what I can do. There will be big moments on the field and I back myself to recognise them.’

The time for talking is now over, Rabada is keen to let the ball do the talking.