England vs South Africa, LIVE: Follow the action as 2019 Cricket World Cup opener sees tournament hosts take on Faf du Plessis and Co at the Oval
- Today is the first of nine group games for England before the knockout stages
- South Africa captain Faf du Plessis won the toss and put England into bat
- Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes and Eoin Morgan all reached 50 for the hosts
- But only Stokes kicked on, he made 89 as England were restricted to 311
- Lungi Ngidi took three wickets, with Imran Tahir and Kagiso Rabada taking two
- Last wicket: De Kock (c Root b Plunkett – 68)
The 2019 Cricket World Cup gets underway on Thursday with hosts England taking on South Africa at the Oval.
England start the summer as favourites to lift the trophy on July 14, but the Proteas — with their side packed full of stars such as Quinton de Kock, Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn and captain Faf du Plessis — should not be taken lightly.
Both teams will be keen to start with a win but the tournament’s format — all 10 teams playing each other once, with the top four progressing to the semi-finals — should also allow them to play without too much fear in Thursday’s opener.
Play is due to begin at 10.30am with Sportsmail‘s DANIEL MATTHEWS providing live build-up and text commentary from 9.30am.
If you are following this live blog on a mobile device, click here for full access.
England captain Eoin Morgan leads his side into battle against South Africa on Thursday
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