Big picture
Nevertheless, a swansong for the team’s talismanic allrounder is exactly the kind of headline grabber that England need for a bit of breathing room. Not to mention playing in front of a Chester-le-Street crowd that will be focussed more on saying goodbye to one of their own rather than a loss of clarity for the hosts in a format of the game they used to nail in their sleep.
As far as South Africa are concerned, they seem in a more stable place, even if they are coming off the back of a series defeat to Bangladesh in March, and a 3-2 T20I series defeat to India last month. A shellacking at the hands of the England Lions side in Taunton was followed by a reverse in Worcester in a pair of warm-up matches that were more about getting rid of any ring rust.
To judge by the scenes at training in Chester-le-Street, the South Africans have a great deal of focus and, crucially, energy which will hold them in good stead against an England side that looks particularly weary and are coming straight into this fixture with just a single travel-day off. That Stokes cited an inability to carry on in all three formats in his farewell statement is worth heeding with as we go into the first of six white-ball games in the space of 12 days.
Form guide
England LWLWW (last five completed ODIs, most recent first)
South Africa LWLWW
In the spotlight
Team news
Matthew Mott basically confirmed Potts would debut when praising the energy and fresh legs he brought to the group over the last couple of days. That looks to be a straight swap for Reece Topley, while Adil Rashid is likely to come in for Brydon Carse, who has been ineffective so far, despite his valiant efforts in the middle overs.
England (probable): 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jonny Bairstow, 3 Joe Root, 4 Ben Stokes, 5 Jos Buttler (capt & wk), 6 Liam Livingstone, 7 Moeen Ali, 8 David Willey, 9 Craig Overton, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Matthew Potts
De Kock missed the warm-ups with a bruised finger but has been passed fit and will reprise his usual role as the tempo-setter at the top of the innings. Expect a decision to be made on whether Keshav Maharaj plumps for the extra spin of Tabraiz Shamsi or left-arm pace of Marco Jansen.
South Africa (probable): 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Janneman Malan, 3 Rassie van der Dussen, 4 Aiden Markram, 5 Heinrich Klaasen, 6 David Miller, 7 Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Keshav Maharaj (capt), 9 Anrich Nortje, 10 Lungi Ngidi, 11 Tabraiz Shamsi/Marco Jansen
Pitch and conditions
Chester-le-Street has always been one for the seamers though recent precedence has seen batting scores rise – Sri Lanka have the venue’s highest score of 338, against West Indies in the 2019 World Cup. That is probably down to a more attacking approach globally rather than any environmental shifts. That being said, temperatures will hit a high of 35 degrees Centigrade which may influence how many spinners are selected and indeed who will bat first with the 1pm start time.
Stats and trivia
Quotes
“Jos brings a nice calmness. He’s a hugely empathetic person. He won’t be someone who stands up and makes big speeches, he’ll do it in his own quiet way, one-on-one, working out what makes players tick. And he’s an amazing player – that helps.”
Head coach Matthew Mott goes in to bat for Jos Buttler after a tough start to life as England’s limited overs captain
“There are two ways to look at it. They’ve been playing more cricket than us and have found combinations, but it is a point we could capitalise on and build some confidence in our ODI unit before the World Cup next year.”
Keshav Maharaj on England playing more white-ball cricket than South Africa leading into the series
Vithushan Ehantharajah is an associate editor for ESPNcricinfo