England v South Africa: second women’s cricket one-day international – live!

Good afternoon. Lovely to be back in the UK after a few weeks in Sri Lanka for the Australian Men’s Tests, straight onto the OBO for the first time this summer. And what better time than for the two of the teams I enjoy covering most: England’s women up against South Africa at Bristol – the second ODI of a three-match series.

Heather Knight’s reconfigured and refreshed team saluted with ease in the opener at Taunton earlier in the week, hunting down the 219 they required for victory in just 32.1 overs. What an evening it was for Emma Lamb in particular, reeling off her first international ton, finishing with 102 from 97 balls at the top of the list.

With the ball, Katherine Brunt, in her first international of the season, returned the stellar figures of 3/18 from nine overs, bursting through the top order in the usual manner for the veteran. Down the other end, all-rounder Nat Sciver continued her stunning 2022: four wickets then another brisk half century in the chase. Class.

England have a great record at Bristol in the 50-over format, last year hammering India early in the summer then also getting the job done against New Zealand. I suspect they’ll be keen to bat first, which would present a fantastic opportunity for Sophia Dunkley, who has been elevated from six to three in the England list.

For the Proteas, the big-hitting Chloe Tryon saved their blushes after a limp 30 overs off the top, smacking 88 from 73. Nadine de Klerk, who impressed at the T20 World Cup immediately before the pandemic, took a couple of wickets with her lively swing after combining with Tryon for a stand of 97, contributing 38 of those.

Sune Luus’ side need to win to stay in the series. To do so, runs from the captain and opener Laura Wolvaardt are surely a must – their senior players. That’s all the more important in the absence the absence of Lizelle Lee, who retired before the series, and their full time skipper, Dane van Niekerk, who missed the tour with an injury.

Right, I’ll be back with the toss and teams shortly with play set to begin at 2pm BST. Stay in touch throughout by dropping me a line or pinging through a tweet.