Rassie pleased with form uptick, looks to 'repay faith' ahead of Proteas ODI series

MI Cape Town batter Rassie van der Dussen was delighted to get some time in the middle ahead of the Proteas' ODI series against England next week.

Van der Dussen's 49 was the difference as MI Cape Town defeated Paarl Royals at Boland Park by 13 runs on Saturday.

He also top-scored for MI Cape Town as he hit 49 off 42 balls (hitting four fours and a six) as his side posted 142/9 in Paarl.

"I haven't got going like I wanted to. So it provided me with a nice opportunity to just come in and bat and get myself in on that wicket, which was quite tough," Van der Dussen told reporters on Saturday.

Paarl Royals fell 13 runs short of their target despite a fiery 68 off 58 balls from England T20 World Cup-winning captain Jos Buttler.

SCORECARD | SA20 - Paarl Royals v MI Cape Town

Van der Dussen is part of the Proteas' ODI squad that will take on England in three one-dayers from 27 January to 1 February.

The Proteas side will assemble following Tuesday's SA20 fixtures before a week-long break to accommodate the three-match ODI series.

"It's a massive week. It's good to have some time out in the middle, sometimes with T20, it can be quite frantic as a batter," said Van der Dussen.

"You have to play the situation and it's a high sort of risk or reward type of game. Sometimes it just doesn't go your way and you can easily rack up a few low scores like I've done.

"It's been a stop-start, so I'm very pleased that I got some time in the middle today, but more importantly, obviously, we needed the result."

Van der Dussen hasn't had the most prolific effort with the bat, as he has scored 105 runs in his six SA20 games so far for MI Cape Town.

His 49 was his highest in the tournament so far, and with a bumper season still ahead of the Proteas batter, he