World Cup 2019: 4 Reasons why England won against South Africa 

The England Cricket team got off to a perfect start as they defeated South Africa by 104 runs in the opening match of ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 played at the Kennington Oval, London on Thursday.

After being put into bat, England lost the wicket of Jonny Bairstow off the second ball of the match. Jason Roy (54), Joe Root (51), Ben Stokes (89) and Eoin Morgan (57) helped England post a total of 311 for 8 in 50 overs.

Defending the target of 312 runs, Jofra Archer was brilliant with the new ball, with his bouncer forcing Hashim Amla to return to the pavilion as a precaution for concussion. He also picked up the wickets of Aiden Markram and Faf du Plessis to put the South African batting line up under pressure. Quinton de Kock and Van der Dussen added 85 runs for the 3rd wicket, but the English bowlers kept picking wickets at regular intervals to bowl out the visitors out for 207 in 39.5 overs.

The England Cricket team was too strong for South Africa. Despite not scoring many runs, the hosts won the match easily and gave a warning to other teams.

Here we look at the 4 reasons why England won against South Africa

#1 The 2nd wicket partnership between Jason Roy and Joe Root

The 2nd partnership between Jason Roy and Joe Root of 106 runs steadied the England innings

England lost the early wicket of Jonny Bairstow off the 2nd ball of the match. Jason Roy and Joe Root then steadied the innings, putting pressure on the South African bowling line up.

Root and Roy took England to 60 for 1 at the end of 10 overs. After the powerplay overs, both batsmen played with positive intent. Roy reached his fifty off 51 balls while Root reached his fifty off 56 balls. Both added 106 runs for the 2nd wicket before Phehlukawyo dismissed Roy for 54. If England are to progress further in the tournament, it is imperative that players like Root and Roy turn up regularly and put in solid performances.

#2 An all-round performance from Ben Stokes

Ahead of the World Cup, Ben Stokes played a match winning innings of 71* against Pakistan in the 4th One Day International at Trent Bridge, Nottingham.

Stokes came to the crease after the fall of Joe Root's wicket. He took time to settle and added 106 runs with Eoin Morgan for the 4th wicket. The swashbuckling southpaw reached his half-century off 45 balls. In the 49th over, the all-rounder was dismissed for 89.

Stokes took a jaw-dropping one-handed catch on the boundary to dismiss Andile Phehlukwayo to end South Africa hopes of winning the match. The all-rounder also took 2 wickets for 12 runs in 2.5 overs with the ball. For his all-around performance, Stokes was awarded the Man of the Match award. This performance will surely give him huge confidence going ahead of the tournament.

#3 Jofra Archer's aggressive bowling

Archer took 3 for 27 in his 7 overs to give England a 104 run win in the opening match against South Africa

Jofra Archer made his ODI debut for England in the one-off ODI match against Ireland and put in an impressive bowling performance in the match.

Archer made into the World Cup squad after decent bowling performances in the ODI series against Pakistan. As expected, he bowled with pace and surprised the batsmen with his accuracy.

Playing his 1st World Cup match, Archer bowled with aggression in his opening spell. Jofra took 2 quick wickets in succession, dismissing Aiden Markram and South African captain Faf du Plessis to put immense pressure on the visitors.

In his second spell, Archer dismissed half-centurion Van der Dussen to dent the hopes of the South African batting line up. He finished with figures of 3 for 27 in 7 overs, and South Africa never recovered from the early losses inflicted by the charismatic pacer.

#4 Good overall bowling display by Englan

England won the opening match by 104 runs.

Apart from Jofra Archer's 3 for 27, Adil Rashid took 1 wicket for 35, Liam Plunkett took 2 for 37 in 7 overs, whilst Moeen Ali picked 1 wicket but went for 63 runs in his 10 overs. It was a good bowling performance as the hosts won the opening match by 104 runs.

England bowlers found the South Africa batsmen wanting with good line and lengths. Soon after Plunkett got the breakthrough by getting the big wicket of Quinton de Kock for 68, the English bowlers kept the South African batsmen under check and bowled them out for 207 in 39.5 overs.

It was a good bowling display by the hosts who kept picking wickets at regular intervals. From 129 for 2, England bowled South Africa out for 207. With the inclusion of Jofra Archer, the bowling looks extremely strong.