Cricket World Cup 2019, England vs South Africa: Ben Stokes inspires victory in opening match
Re-live the action from the opening match of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup
England kicked off their home World Cup with a crushing 104-run victory over South Africa, Ben Stokes capping an inspirational all-round performance with a one-handed catch that will go down among the greatest in tournament history.
Stokes top-scored with 89 as the hosts posted 311 for eight at a sold out Oval and finished the match with two wickets in as many balls but his best moment came while he was stationed at deep midwicket - a quite astonishing leaping effort with his outstretched right hand seeing off Andile Phehlukwayo.
On any other day the spotlight might have shone on Jofra Archer, who underlined his fast-growing superstar status with three for 27 and a bouncer that forced Hashim Amla to retreat to the pavilion for concussion tests, but Stokes' flash of inspiration lit a fuse under this competition. Re-live the action in the blog below.
39 South Africa 199/8 Rabada 7 Ngidi 6
Ngidi comes out to bat and kicks things off with a well-struck six.
Wicket!
Ben Stokes gets himself a wicket to add to his successful day.
Liam Plunkett is underneath Rabada's strike.
England win by 104 runs
A fine performance by England in the field gets their 2019 Cricket World Cup campaign off to a winning start.
Player ratings and stats from England's win
If you're name is Ben Stokes and you can't wait to see how you scored, click here.
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