20 years ago, we witnessed arguably the greatest ODI match unfold as South Africa and Australia battled out a tie in their World Cup semi-final match at Edgbaston.That, might take out some of the allure and fizzle from a contest between two sporting nations that are very proud of their teams, but the contest should certainly prove to be an exciting one, especially with the pressures of qualification out of the Proteas’ minds. 

20 years later, they will do battle in a World Cup group stage match, but with far less on the line, as South Africa were one of the first teams to be eliminated this year, while Australia marched on to become the first team to qualify for the semi finals and they will look to finish top of the table.

Faf du Plessis and his men have had a torrid time in England winning just two games out of seven, that two against Afghanistan and Sri Lanka. 

Injuries to their legendary fast bowler Dale Steyn and newcomer Anrich Nortje have only added to their woes, but it has really been the batting, that has failed to step up when required and cost them games. 

Hashim Amla has scored a few fifties, but has looked a shadow of his former self against quality bowling, while Quinton de Kock has played a few good knocks but failed to convert them into hundreds. 

The same can be said about Du Plessis, who has gotten good starts but failed to capitalise on those with bigger innings while David Miller has been poor with both bat and on the field, especially during pressure situations.

Rassie van der Dussen can be the only player that South Africa would say, has been good this tournament and has put up a performance with the bat when needed.

Imran Tahir has been their best bowler but Kagiso Rabada’s pace has been down, and he hasn’t been near his best, something that has been attributed to him playing too much cricket in recent times.

The backup bowlers Chris Morris and Andile Phehlukwayo have been good for the most part, but have not had much runs to defend at times. 

On the other hand, Australia have had a lot of their senior batsmen and bowlers step up when required, and the number of runs David Warner and Aaron Finch have made are testament to that. 

Wicketkeeper Alex Carey has been another find with the bat in this tournament although players like Glenn Maxwell and Steven Smith haven’t been able to make big enough contributions with the bat.

As for the bowling, Mitchell Starc has been at his absolute best, with 24 wickets already, but he has found ample support from Pat Cummins and Jason Behrendorff. 

Adam Zampa has also been good with the ball, though he has been targeted by the batsmen, and gone for runs at times. 

Teams

There is a small injury concern with Glenn Maxwell so he could be rested as a precautionary measure and that could give Peter Handscomb and opportunity.

Australia’s Probable XI: 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Usman Khawaja, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Glenn Maxwell/Peter Handscomb, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Jason Behrendorff

South Africa put in their best display of the tournament in their last game against Sri Lanka, and they could go with the same team as a result. 

South Africa Probable XI: 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Aiden Markram, 4 Faf du Plessis (capt), 5 Rassie van der Dussen, 6 JP Duminy, 7 Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Dwaine Pretorius, 9 Chris Morris, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Imran Tahir

Pitch and Weather

The pitch at Old Trafford is expected to offer a bit of everything for everyone. There should be bounce for the fast bowlers, turn for the spinners, and but it will still be good enough for the batsmen to score once they settle. 

The weather is expected to stay fine and sunny though there is a very small chance of rain later on.