Jonathan Agnew
BBC Test Match Special

"The International Cricket Council plan to cut the World Cup from its current 14-team format to 10 sides for the 2019 event in England.

"Put simply, this is a nonsense. How can cricket's governing body argue with any credibility that cutting the number of teams involved in a World Cup is good for the global game? There is no logic to that claim.

"The ICC is supposed to be encouraging the development of the game outside of its traditional Test powers. How can blocking other nations from taking part in the World Cup be good for the growth of the sport? The Associates - in the case of this World Cup, Ireland, Scotland, Afghanistan and the UAE - are all serious cricket teams."

Ireland have been excellent at the World Cup, but will they be in the tournament in four years time in England and Wales?

Well, that is something that no one knows. At the moment there are only 10 teams due to be playing in the 2019 competition, and with 10 Test playing nations, Ireland could well miss out.

But their case is improving with every good performance and every shock result. India legend Sachin Tendulkar and West Indies great Michael Holding are among those who have said the tournament should not be reduced from its current 14 teams to 10 sides in four years' time.

Another shock win today and those calls are going to get louder.

South Africa: Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock (wk), Faf du Plessis, Rilee Rossouw, AB de Villiers (capt), David Miller, Farhaan Behardien, Dale Steyn, Kyle Abbott, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir.

Ireland: William Porterfield (capt), Paul Stirling, Ed Joyce, Niall O'Brien, Andrew Balbirnie, Gary Wilson (wk), Kevin O'Brien, John Mooney, Maz Sorensen, George Dockrell, Andrew McBrine.

In his latest diary for the BBC Sport website, Ireland wicketkeeper Gary Wilson insists "we fully believe that it is possible to get a result against South Africa".

He added: "At the same time, we are under no illusions. They are obviously a quality side, packed with world-class players.

"Their captain AB de Villiers is no stranger to our shores, having blasted no fewer than two double hundreds while playing for Carrick CC 10 years back.

"I couldn't believe that a player who was playing in the NCU, our little union, was so close to playing on the world stage. Now he dominates it. Of course, we will have our plans for him. He is human after all. Albeit very nearly superhuman!"

Andrew Samson
BBC Test Match Special statistician

Five of Ireland's six World Cup wins to date have come batting second.

The last 23 times South Africa have batted first in ODIs, they have won 18, lost three and had two no-results. In that period (30 October 2013 to date) South Africa have won seven and lost eight of the matches in which they have batted second.

Image source, Getty Images

Ireland have a plan to stop AB de Villiers. They may have to put that into operation quickly as South Africa have won the toss. And they will bat first.

Ireland captain William Porterfield accepts that keeping in-form Proteas skipper AB de Villiers contained "obviously will be a challenge".

Porterfield said: "You can sit all day and talk about him and different theories and plans and whatever, but you've got to stick it on with your best ball and how you go about things."

On Ireland's run of three games in eight days:

"There's been quite a break between games and we always knew that this was the way that the group stage was going to work for ourselves, so we've been building up towards that.

"We've put in a lot of yards in the time we've had off - that's going to stand you in good stead later on in the tournament when the games come thicker and faster."

Image source, Getty Images

So just how do you a describe an innings of 162 not out off only 66 balls?

Phenomenal? Outstanding? Wonderful? It was one of those breathtaking moments when all you could do is stare in disbelief and enjoy watching someone at the absolute peak of his powers.

AB de Villiers's score was the fastest 150 in one-day international cricket of all time as his side racked up an incredible 408-5 in a crushing 257-run win over the West Indies.

So, can Ireland stop him? They have a plan.

Hello, good morning and welcome to BBC Sport's live text commentary featuring the Pool B match between Ireland and South Africa.

What a tournament it has been so far for the Irish. Victories over West Indies and United Arab Emirates from their first two games have raised hopes that they can finish in the top four of the pool and move into the last eight.

Today, they are aiming for their third win in a row.

However, there is a problem.

In 2007, it was Pakistan who were beaten. In a result that shocked the cricket world.

Image source, Getty Images

Four years later and heroics from Kevin O'Brien left England stunned.

Image source, Getty Images

And West Indies have already been seen off in this World Cup.

Image source, Getty Images

Ireland have history of beating major cricketing nations. Can they do it again today? Not only are they aiming for a win to boost their hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals, they may well be fighting for their World Cup future.