Imran Tahir

South Africa v West Indies, World Cup 2011, Group B, Delhi

Spin-heavy South Africa opt to bowl first

Graeme Smith decided to bowl first against West Indies after winning the toss at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi, but hinted that there was still a degree of uncertainty over a pitch that last saw international cricket in December 2009, when a volatile surface forced an abandonment of the match between India and Sri Lanka.

It has since been re-laid under the supervision of the BCCI ground and wickets committee chairman Venkat Sundaram and ICC pitch consultant Andy Atkinson, and appears utterly transformed. Before the start of play, a rock-hard surface exhibited a couple of cracks and healthy tinge of green that could make effective use of the new ball decisive.

Imran Tahir

Once the shine is seen off, the wicket should settle and favour the batsmen - although South Africa's decision to play three frontline spinners in Johan Botha, Robin Peterson and Imran Tahir, who will be making his international debut for his adopted country - gives a hint of their gameplan for maintaining control over the middle of the innings. With JP Duminy and Faf du Plessis, not to mention Smith himself, on hand to provide part-time spin support and left-arm seamer Lonwabo Tsotsobe sitting out, there is an unfamiliar hue to this South African attack.

A nonplussed Smith suggested that it might have been a good toss to lose given the unknown nature of the wicket, but the nature of South Africa's bowling line-up and the seemingly ever-present possibility of the 'dew factor' with a chilly Delhi evening expected to follow a warm, clear afternoon means his decision was probably the right one. West Indies captain Darren Sammy insisted he was quite happy to bat first and leave the challenge of chasing under lights to the South Africans, but much will depend on whether Chris Gayle can negotiate the new-ball threat of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel and lay the platform for a defendable total.

Much has been made of the unpredictability of this West Indies side, but there's no escaping the fact that South Africa have beaten them in the last 11 ODIs the two sides have contested, including a match in the 2007 World Cup and series both in South Africa and in the Caribbean. They've also slipped to No. 9 in the ICC's one-day rankings after an indifferent year, which is quite an indictment for a side that, in theory, brims with talent. They'll be looking to this game to spark a reversal, but it will take more than just individual brilliance to overcome a South African side that claims to have covered all its bases in preparation for this tournament.

South Africa: 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Jacques Kallis, 4 AB de Villiers (wk), 5 JP Duminy, 6 Faf du Plessis, 7 Robin Peterson, 8 Johan Botha, 9 Morne Morkel, 10 Dale Steyn, 11 Imran Tahir

West Indies: 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Devon Smith, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Ramnaresh Sarwan, 5 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 6 Dwayne Bravo, 7 Kieron Pollard, 8 Darren Sammy (capt), 9 Devon Thomas (wk), 10 Sulieman Benn, 11 Kemar Roach

Liam Brickhill is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo