England v South Africa – Women's Cricket World Cup Kicks Off

Quiet now! All discussions have ended, for now at least, while England’s World Cup is about to begin. On the downside, they face a challenging match against South Africa. Fortunately, they start with a tough game facing the South Africans. A win in this match might boost England's confidence right away and legitimise the cautious confidence from their pre-competition talk.

Pre-Tournament Momentum

An excellent win versus the Aussies in their previous practice game has heightened their belief, although the standout displays of Alice Capsey (88 not out) and Sarah Glenn (taking 5 wickets for 32 runs) gave Charlotte Edwards a slight selection headache.

Edwards is known for her success, thus there is no risk of the team having modest ambitions. But from a distance they are in the slightly unusual position where their tournament benchmark is quite obvious.

Tournament Expectations

Not making the last four might come as a small upset, despite the progress made by usual lower-ranked teams. Reaching the final before Australia or India, the two top contenders to claim the title, would represent a major feat. And if England win it… no, let’s not go there. It’s way too early for those kinds of predictions.

The game today starts at 10.30am BST.