LIVE: England spinners make impact after fast South Africa start

England v South Africa, Match Centre and Scorecard

Toss: South Africa won the toss and chose to bat first

South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first, as two of the best teams at the T20 World Cup face off in Sharjah in a clash that is sure to have massive ramifications on who reaches the semi-finals of the event.

And Proteas captain Laura Wolvaardt inspired an impressive powerplay, taking on England’s spin-heavy bowling attack.

Tazmin Brits looked to join in the fun and was caught on the rope for 13 (from 19 balls), but South Africa’s platform of 37/1 in the first six overs left them well-placed to build a big score.

However, England's spinners brought the scoring rate right down as the runs dried up through the middle overs.

England registered an excellent 21-run victory over Bangladesh in their tournament opener, while South Africa were even more impressive as they cruised to a 10-wicket triumph over the West Indies.

It was opening duo Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits that put the West Indies to the sword in that encounter and it was again this pair that dominated their Proteas' match-up against England in the semi-finals of last year's T20 World Cup.

Wolvaardt and Brits each scored a half-century on that occasion to lead South Africa to the title decider on home soil and the Proteas will be confident of going one step further this time around with a well-balanced side at their disposal with plenty of weapons.

England too have plenty of star power at their disposal and it was their bevy of spinners that did the job against Bangladesh first up, with Sophie Ecclestone, Sarah Glenn, Linsey Smith and Charlie Dean all bowling well at times during the victory.

The battle between England's spinners and South Africa's in-form top-order will be crucial to the outcome of this clash.

What They Said

England batter Danni-Wyatt-Hodge: "I thought it was a pretty dominant performance by everyone (in win over Bangladesh). With the bat I thought we adapted quite early which was good. Communication was really good out there and then with the ball I thought the girls did a fantastic job...I thought our fielding was outstanding as well. We really attacked the ball as well and pulled off some good run-outs and catches. Hopefully we can kick on, learn from tonight and put out another good display in the next game."

South Africa bowler Nonkululeko Mlaba: "I think for us now we’re in it to win it. I mean we failed (in the) semi-finals a couple of times, and we failed at the finals. And now, it's either we win it or not. So that's the mentality of the team now. We're just in it to win it."

The Teams

England: Maia Bouchier, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Heather Knight (capt), Alice Capsey, Amy Jones (wk), Danielle Gibson, Sophie Ecclestone, Charlie Dean, Sarah Glenn, Linsey Smith

South Africa: Laura Wolvaardt (capt), Tazmin Brits, Marizanne Kapp, Anneke Bosch, Sune Luus, Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Annerie Dercksen, Sinolo Jafta (wk), Nonkululeko Mlaba, Ayabonga Khaka