There was no sentiment on show at Chester-le-Street as Rassie van der Dussen scored 134 in a comfortable South Africa victory over England in Ben Stokes' final ODI.
The Proteas batted with a fine temperament to set England an intimidating 334 to chase, despite losing captain Quinton de Kock for 19 when Sam Curran (1-67) bowled him in the seventh over.
Van der Dussen came in to put on a partnership of 109 with opener Janneman Malan before the latter hit a Moeen Ali (1-47) delivery to Liam Livingstone for 57.
Aiden Markram (77) picked up where Malan left off to put on a further 151 with Van der Dussen, taking the Proteas to almost 300 for the loss of just two wickets before both fell in the 46th over to Livingstone (2-30).
England made a steady start in response to the imposing total, with Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow trying to build a foundation for the chase, putting together a century partnership.
But Roy (43) tried to hit Keshav Maharaj's next ball (1-42) over long-on, only to lob the ball straight into the hands of David Miller.
Bairstow's 63 helped, while Joe Root tried his best to salvage things, but the writing seemed to be on the wall when Stokes trudged off for just five, trapped lbw by Markram (2-25).
Root was offered little assistance by team-mates, and after he dragged an Anrich Nortje (4-53) delivery onto his stumps for 86, South Africa claimed the final wickets to seal a 62-run win in the first of a three-match series.
RESULT | SOUTH AFRICA WIN BY 62 RUNS
— Cricket South Africa (@OfficialCSA) July 19, 2022
A solid collective effort by the bowling unit - led by Anrich Nortje (4/53) - backed up the efforts of the batters as the #Proteas dismiss England for 271 after setting the hosts a target of 334#ENGvSA #BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/hegYbqKnKf
Van der Dussen lights up Durham
South Africa batted well as a team, showing that it is not all about sixes in 50-over cricket as they managed to post a total of 333 without hitting any maximums.
Head of the charge was Van der Dussen, whose impressive 117-ball 134 saw him bat through more than 40 overs, hitting 10 fours and ensuring the hosts' chase would feel as heated as the temperature in England.
Far from an ideal swansong for Stokes
After announcing that Tuesday's clash would be the last of his ODI career, Stokes will have not been too pleased with his contribution at his home ground.
He bowled just five overs, with figures of 0-44, before failing to hit a single boundary as he fell for five from 11 balls with the bat.
