How to watch England vs South Africa: live stream 1st ODI cricket online from anywhere

Ben Stokes with his name and number on the back of his England shirt

(Image credit: Getty Images)

There's no rest for the wicked as England dust themselves down from their defeat on Sunday and hope for a better outcome against South Africa in the 1st ODI of their three-match series. The Jos Buttler era isn't off to the finest of starts, and England's new white-ball skipper may be in for a rollercoaster ride against an opponent that can swing from the sublime to the ridiculous at any given moment. Follow our guide as we explain how to watch an England vs South Africa live stream for the 1st ODI online from anywhere.

England vs South Africa 1st ODI live stream

Date: Tuesday, July 19

Start time: 1pm BST / 2pm SAST / 8am ET / 5.30pm IST / 10pm AEST / 12am NZST

Venue: Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street, County Durham

Watch anywhere: try ExpressVPN 100% risk-free

The Proteas remain cricket's great enigma. They took a clean sweep of victories against India in the 50-ball format in January, but have also lost recent ODI series against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, and drawn one against Ireland. It should, therefore, come as little surprise that their warm-up games produced similarly erratic results, with the team getting thrashed by the England Lions, before staging a thrashing of their own.

With Temba Bavuma injured, Keshav Maharaj takes up captaincy duties for South Africa. Quinton de Kock is in line to return to the team after sitting out the warm-up phase of the tour, and Janneman Malan and Heinrich Klaasen will be looking to kick on after both making centuries last week. Left-arm wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi is, as ever, the danger man for the Proteas, and he'll have enjoyed what he saw from England over their three-game series against India.

Despite all of their batting firepower, only Moeen Ali and, eventually, Buttler, really turned up for England, and they paid the price, falling to a limp 2-1 series defeat on Sunday. Reece Topley and David Willey did the business with the ball, but the return of Yorkshire spinner Adil Rashid is a big boost, and Durham seamer Matthew Potts will be looking to impress on his first call-up.

Today's game also marks Ben Stokes' final one-day international appearance for England. Will he sign off with a trademark bang? Follow our guide for all the details you need to watch England vs South Africa and get a 1st ODI live stream from wherever you are.

England vs South Africa ODI schedule: dates and times

1st ODI: Tuesday, July 19 – Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street – 1pm BST / 2pm SAST
2nd ODI: Friday, July 22 – Old Trafford, Manchester – 1pm BST / 2pm SAST
3rd ODI: Sunday, July 24 – Headingley, Leeds – 11am BST / 12pm SAST

How to watch England vs South Africa in Australia for FREE

Cricket fans Down Under can watch England vs South Africa on Fox Cricket (channel 501) and via Foxtel, with play set to begin at 10pm AEST on Tuesday night for the 1st ODI.

If you don't have Fox as part of a pay TV package, your best option is to sign up for the excellent Kayo Sports streaming service.

It features no lock-in contracts and gives you access to over 50 other sports including the NRL, soccer, F1, NFL... the list goes on! Handy if you don't want to go all-out on Fox.

Better still, Kayo offers a FREE two-week trial!

After that, the Basic Package costs $25 per month and allows users to stream across two devices simultaneously. The service also offers a Premium Package, which provides three concurrent streams for $35 per month.

Outside Australia? Don't forget, you can take your cricket coverage abroad with you as well. For those wanting to watch home coverage of sports from overseas, a good VPN is the solution.

How to watch England vs South Africa ODI cricket from outside your country

Below we've got you covered with your official England vs South Africa broadcasting options for the UK, South Africa, US, India and New Zealand, but if you're currently outside your country of residence and trying to stream the cricket via your local broadcaster, you'll soon discover that you can't, as it's location restricted. But there is a way to tune in regardless.

By downloading and installing a VPN, you can effectively trick your computer into thinking that it's back at home. That way you can enjoy your home coverage without having to find an illegal stream - assuming you comply with the broadcaster's fine print, of course - specifically its terms and conditions.

Use a VPN to live stream cricket from anywhere

ExpressVPN is the world's top VPN right now
We've taken the time to try out all the best VPN providers and we found ExpressVPN to be the pick of the bunch. It works with lots of devices and offers super fast connections across its many servers.

Throw in its robust set of security features and ExpressVPN is the best all-round VPN for streaming - and perhaps best of all, it has a 30-day money back guarantee plus 3 months FREE when you subscribe for a year.

- Try ExpressVPN 100% risk-free for 30 days

How to watch England vs South Africa: live stream ODI cricket in the UK

In the UK, Sky Sports is providing exclusive live coverage of the England vs South Africa series. Play gets underway at 1pm BST on Tuesday afternoon for the 1st ODI, with Sky's coverage starting at 12.30pm.

You can choose your plan and sign up on the Sky website. And if you can't watch on TV, the Sky Go app has you covered so that you can watch on your laptop, mobile, tablet, Xbox or PS4.

If you're looking to watch the England vs South Africa series but don't fancy being locked in to a long, expensive contract, consider the more flexible streaming option, Now.

And if you're outside the UK and want to watch your cricket coverage at home, don't worry about geo-blockers - just pick up a good VPN and follow the instructions below to safely live stream the action.

South Africa flag — (Image credit: Future)

How to watch England vs Proteas: live stream ODI cricket in South Africa

England vs South Africa live stream: how to watch ODI cricket in India

In India, the Sony Sports Network has the rights to broadcast the England vs South Africa series, with play set to begin at 5.30pm IST on Tuesday afternoon for the 1st ODI.

Sony Six and Sony Six HD will telecast with English commentary, while Sony Ten 3 and Sony Ten 3 HD will offer matches with Hindi commentary, and lastly Sony Ten 4 and Sony Ten 4 HD will broadcast in regional languages.

If you'd prefer to watch on an app or website, Sony Liv will be streaming the match 一 but you'll need a premium subscription to watch England vs South Africa live, which costs Rs 999 for a year, Rs 699 for six months, or Rs 299 per month. Jio users can watch the series free of cost with the JioTV mobile application.

Anyone outside of India who wants to watch their home cricket coverage can just pick up a good VPN and follow the instructions above to safely live stream the action.

England vs South Africa live stream: where to watch ODI cricket in the US

Dedicated streaming service Willow TV is where cricket fans can watch England vs South Africa live in the US, with play starting at 8am ET / 5am PT on Tuesday morning for the 1st ODI.

Willow TV (also available in Canada), is available from a number of cable providers including Dish, Spectrum, Xfinity, Verizon Fios and more.

Perhaps a better option for those looking for an alternative to cable would be to opt for a cord-cutting streaming service like Sling TV. If you already have Sling, then you can add Willow TV for an extra $5 for one month. And if you don't, then you can currently bag a big six of a bargain by getting Sling TV - featuring 30+ channels - with your first month currently available with a 50% discount.

How to watch England vs South Africa: live stream 1st ODI in New Zealand

Cricket fans can watch the England vs South Africa 1st ODI on Spark Sport in New Zealand, but with play set to get underway at 12am NZST on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, you're going to have to stay up seriously late to catch the action live.

The better news is that Spark Sport offers a 7-day free trial so you can try before you buy.

Once that's expired, a subscription costs $24.99 per month, and includes plenty of Black Caps action, The Hundred, as well as F1 and MotoGP racing.

Spark Sport is available via web browsers on your PC or Mac, plus Apple and Android mobile devices, Chromecast, Apple TV, selected Samsung, Sony, Panasonic and LG TVs, and select Freeview streamers.

Aatif is a freelance copywriter and journalist based in the UK. He’s written about technology, science and politics for publications including Gizmodo, The Independent, Trusted Reviews and Newsweek, but focuses on streaming at Future, an arrangement that combines two of his greatest passions: sport and penny-pinching.