India will play South Africa in their first One Day International (ODI) on February 1, 2018. After a 2-1 loss in the Test series, the Virat Kohli-led Indian Cricket team will be looking forward to bounce back to winning ways in the six-match ODI series. On the other hand, the South African team would want to continue their run as No. 1 team in the ICC ODI team rankings. You can watch the live streaming of India vs South Africa First ODI match by clicking on Sony LIV’s official website here. India vs South Africa will be live telecast on Sony Ten 1 and Sony Ten 3 from 04.30 pm IST. India vs South Africa 4th ODI LIVE Cricket Streaming: Get Free Live Cricket Score, Watch Free LIVE Telecast of IND vs SA 2018 Match on TV & Online.

The World Cup 2019 is not too far and both the sides will be looking to finalise their first-choice 11. After the Test series which saw the two sides in close-fought contests, the excitement to see an Indian series win on foreign soil is still eluding. Indian fans would not want history to repeat itself; MS Dhoni-led side lost 2-0 in a three-match series the last time they toured South Africa in 2013-14.

The young-Indian team will look to put the loss behind and look to start afresh in the six-match ODI series. Currently, the best ODI team in the circuit, South Africa have their own problems of playing XI, as the senior players being too injury-prone of late.

India has had a solid opening combination in Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, and KL Rahul as another option. Captain Kohli, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, and Hardik Pandya fill the slots no. 3, 5, 6, and 7 perfectly for the Indian side. It is, however, the slot no. 4 which is a thorn in the flesh of the Indian team. India will be looking to accommodate one of Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, and Shreyas Iyer for that crucial spot.

For South Africa, AB de Villiers ouster for the first three ODIs came as a shocker as the flamboyant batsman is nursing a finger injury. The onus will be on senior batsmen Hasim Amla and skipper Faf du Plessis to lighten the extra load. Quinton de Kock has have been in terrific form against India whenever the two sides have locked horns. It will be up to the Indian fast bowlers to stop the flow of runs at the top. Read the full Match Preview here.

India’s likely XI:

1. Rohit Sharma, 2. Shikhar Dhawan, 3. Virat Kohli (c), 4. Ajinkya Rahane, 5. Kedar Jadhav, 6. MS Dhoni (wk), 7. Hardik Pandya, 8. Kuldeep Yadav, 9. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10. Jasprit Bumrah, 11. Mohammed Shami.

On the bench: Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal and Shardul Thakur.

South Africa’s likely XI:

1. Aiden Markram, 2. Quinton de Kock (wk), 3. Hashim Amla, 4. Jean-Paul Duminy, 5. Faf du Plessis (c), 6. David Miller, 7. Chris Morris, 8. Imran Tahir, 9. Morne Morkel, 10. Lungisani Ngidi, 11. Kagiso Rabada.

On the bench: Andile Phehlukwayo, Tabraiz Shamsi, Khaya Zondo, and AB De Villiers.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 01, 2018 11:20 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).