CAPE TOWN: South Africa won the toss and decided to field first in the series decider match against Pakistan at Newland
Pakistan and South Africa are facing each other in the fifth and final One Day International (ODI) match in Cape Town today.
South Africa versus Pakistan one-day international (ODI) series has turned out to be a memorable one as the five-match series is already tied at 2-2.
Du Plessis says although it is a ‘must-win’ match, he has urged his players to prepare for the match like they would for any international.
“For me it is about finding out how we play the big games,” he said to the media at Newlands on Tuesday.
“You don’t want to make it any bigger than it is. It is obviously a big game but sometimes when we do make it a big thing we don’t always bring our best as a team. For me it is about freeing up the guys and to allow them to go out there and express themselves in any way they want.
“We don’t want them to see it as a big game where they have to play differently. In the last two years we have played well in these scenarios and we want to test ourselves every time there is a series-decider.”
South Africa will be hoping for some better performances from veteran cricketers including Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis.
The only player to have not featured in the series is Aiden Markram and could be given go-ahead instead of Hashim Amla, who could rest after a hectic few months.
For Pakistan, after an astounding win in the Pink ODI, the team will be tempted under the captaincy of Shoaib Malik leading the side in the absence of regular captain, Sarfraz Ahmed.
Playing XI
South Africa: Faf du Plessis(c), Quinton de Kock(w), Hashim Amla, Reeza Hendricks, Rassie van der Dussen, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Willem Mulder, Dale Steyn, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir
Pakistan : Shoaib Malik(c), Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Rizwan(w), Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir, Shaheen Afridi, Usman Khan