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CricBattle Daily Fantasy Cricket League Tips

England vs South Africa on August 4

The final match of a series spanning all three formats between South Africa and England is upon us. England lead the Test series 2-1, having beaten South Africa by 239 runs in the third Test after a dominant performance which saw Moeen Ali take a hat-trick, and the team create a record for causing the most golden ducks in an innings in a Test match. South Africa need to prove themselves when they meet England for the last time in this series at Old Trafford after losing the previous Test. Of all of South Africa’s problems, you would not expect one of them to be that the batsmen don’t actually use their bats. The Proteas were outclassed in the third Test on all fronts and will want to end the series on a high, avoiding even a draw, an unlikely outcome in any case as they look to level the series 2-2.

·         Best economical pick – After a forgettable captaincy debut at Lord’s, Dean Elgar came back brilliantly with the bat in the second innings of the Second Test Match with an 80 off 135 balls. He followed it up with a sensational ton in the Third Test match, where he displayed the art of survival with his knock of 136.

·         Top captains & vice captains – For the ninth consecutive Test Joe Root made a 50. But the more important feature was that England got back on the rails after Nottingham without the captain making a massive contribution and using up too much energy early in his reign. England’s leading wicket-taker in this series with 18 wickets Moeen Ali was the man of the hour after he claimed a hat-trick against South Africa on the fifth day of the third Test at The Oval, which the hosts won by a comprehensive margin. Which was also the first by an England spinner since Tom Goddard in 1938-39. Ali’s consistency with the ball has been a key factor behind England’s success in this series, and they will be hoping he can keep up the good work.

·         Smart pick – England all-rounder Ben Stokes turned the heat on South Africa at The Oval. First, he scored a significant ton with the bat to get England’s first innings total to a respectable 353 and then he followed it up with a lively spell of 2/51 in the second innings, during which he was on a hat-trick too.  

·         Cautious Pick – Dawid Malan might miss out the 4^th test, instead of Jennings, after a poor showing in the third Test. He scored just 1 and 10 in his two chances to bat. The other two debutants had a good Test, with Roland-Jones ripping the Proteas’ top order apart, taking all of the top four in the first innings.

My XI – Joe Root (Captain), Moeen Ali (Vice-Captain), Dean Elgar, Ben Stokes, Temba Bavuma, Vernon Philander, Kagiso Rabada, Toby Roland-Jones, Jonny Bairstow, Hashim Amla, Keaton Jennings