World Cup 2019, South Africa vs Bangladesh: Key players to watch out for
South Africa began the World Cup 2019 with a huge 104-run defeat against the home team England while chasing a target of 312. South Africa had their moment of glory in the first over of the World Cup as a brilliant tactical move by Faf du Plessis saw the dismissal of the dangerous Jonny Bairstow for a duck. However, they could not maintain a firm hold on the game thereafter and succumbed to a 104-run defeat.
They will look to get their first points under their belt when they take on Bangladesh in the fifth match of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 at The Oval on Sunday. The Mashrafe Mortaza-led team has recently won the Tri-Nation ODI series where they defeated the West Indies on three instances including in the final. Bangladesh's 95-run loss in their second warm-up match against India gave them a reality check and significant positives too.
South Africa and Bangladesh have played three matches against each other in the World Cup, out of which South Africa emerged victorious on two occasions and Bangladesh were victorious on the one other occasion.
Key Players:
South Africa: Quinton De Kock
Quinton de Kock was the top-scorer for South Africa with 68 runs against England in World Cup opener. De Kock has been one of the most consistent players for South Africa in the recent past. He is almost guaranteed to be one of the biggest keys for the team if they hope to keep their World Cup 2019 campaign on the rails.
With 4670 runs at an average of 45.78 and strike rate of 95.75 from 107 ODIs, Quinton de Kock has 14 ODI centuries with the highest of 178. He also has 22 fifties to his name. His consistency makes him the Key Player for South Africa.
His performance behind the stumps is equally impressive, as he has 150 catches and eight stumpings.
Bangladesh: Mushfiqur Rahim
Mushfiqur Rahim brings heaps of experience and surely has a major role to play for Bangladesh. If there's one weak link in Mushfiqur Rahim's batting, it would be his strike rate. The onus will be on Mushfiqur Rahim if Bangladesh are to make it big in this tournament. With his runs and wicket-keeping, Mushfiqur surely has a major role to play for Bangladesh in World Cup 2019.
With 5558 runs at an average of 34.95 and strike rate of 78.16 from 205 ODIs, Mushfiqur Rahim has 6 ODI centuries with the highest of 144. He also has 33 fifties to his name. His experience makes him the Key Player for South Africa.
Mushfiqur has 169 catches and 42 stumpings to his name as well.