A swashbuckling ton from Hashim Amla and a century on debut from Colin Ingram were enough to power South Africa to a 64-run win over a brave Zimbabwe effort in the first of three ODIs.

The Proteas will have been satisfied with a convincing batting display, which yielded a healthy total of 351 for six. But will be less happy with a below-par bowling performance, as the visitors reached 287 for six, thanks largely to an impressive ton from opener Brendan Taylor.

The heavy clouds looming overhead at the start of the match did nothing to deter Graeme Smith from choosing to bat first on a flat track in Bloemfontein. The Proteas skipper, returning to his more familiar role as captain after two Twenty20 Internationals as a common soldier, was justified in his decision as he and Amla got the home side off to a flying start.

Amla raced out the blocks, hitting two boundaries off the first over from Christopher Mpofu to signal his intent as the opening pair brought up South Africa's 50 from just 45 deliveries.

Smith (19), not used to being outscored by Amla at the top of the order, was the first wicket to fall as he attempted and middled an expansive drive in stinging the ball straight at Taylor, who held on to a sharp catch at short cover.

The loss of his partner, nor a brief break as the heavens opened, could halt Amla, who continued on his merry way, hitting boundaries at will as he brought up his half-century off just 32 balls.

Ingram filled the number three spot for the Proteas and he and Amla kept the home team's score ticking over to bring up South Africa's 100 as early as the 15th over.

With the three figures reached and the bowling Powerplay a thing of the past, the Proteas pair changed into accumulation mode, finding singles at will as Elton Chigumbura brought his spin bowlers into the fray. While not at the break-neck pace of the opening overs, the South African innings continued at a healthy pace, with Ingram starting to look more and more at ease in his maiden ODI innings and Amla in total control as he used his powerful wrists and effective footwork to manipulate Graeme Cremer, Prosper Utseya and Grant Flower around the park.

The 27-year-old opening batsman inevitably went to his fourth ODI ton off just 87 balls and will be a key man for South Africa in a huge season to come. His three figures came up before the 25th over and Amla was set for a big century before a needless run-out brought his knock to an end.

His innings, and the 136-run partnership with Ingram had set South Africa up for a large total with a number of talented hitters to come.

Newly crowned ODI Player of the Year, AB de Villiers was next in and looked fluent at the crease as he and Ingram opted for the batting Powerplay as early as the 39th over. The move backfired, however, as de Villiers was caught short of his ground in another unnecessary run-out. As is often the case, the Powerplay had the adverse affect of putting more pressure on the batsmen. Albie Morkel felt the pinch of a tight field and big reputation as he scored just one before hitting Shingirai Masakadza straight to cover..

David Miller (51) then entered the fray and the 21-year-old and 25-year old combined in what could become a common sight in future years for South Africa. Miller's clean hitting dovetailed with Ingram's acceleration as the pair looked ever so comfortable at the crease together.

Only five batsmen had previously managed three figures on their debuts in ODI cricket and Ingram managed to add his name to an exclusive list, going to a century from 110 balls.

He and Miller added 76 in partnership, with the latter reaching his own milestone, a maiden ODI 50 off just 41 balls, as South Africa powered to 351 for six off their 50 overs.

Elton Chigumbura used all of eight bowlers for Zimbabwe, five of which were spinners, but only one managed to take any wickets. Shingirai was expensive but took four wickets to collect his best ODI figures of four for 86 in 10 overs.

In reply, to a seemingly impossible target Zimbabwe made an encouraging start thanks to their reliable opening pair of Hamilton Masakadza (30) and Taylor, who had Morkel and Wayne Parnell to contend with with the new ball.

Both batsmen played with the confidence that has characterised Zimbabwe's recent cricketing revival and the pair set the innings off to a healthy start against the seam trio of Morkel, Parnell and Charl Langeveldt, who failed to impress up front.

The introduction of Rusty Theron and Johan Botha took the pace out of the visitors innings and Theron marked his ODI debut with the wicket of Masakadza with the score on 70.

Despite losing batting partners at regular intervals, Taylor continued unperturbed and single-handedly pulled the innings along. Grant Flower, returning after a six-year absence from international cricket, appeared nervous at the crease and battled his way to 13 runs off 24 balls before becoming Theron's second victim.

Theron ended the pick of the South African bowlers, finishing with three for 62, while his Warriors team-mate, Botha, completed a tidy two for 41 in 10 overs.

Chigumbura (23) and Prosper Utseya (22 not out) made contributions down the order but the Zimbabwean response was all about Taylor, who carried his bat to end with 145 not out from 136 balls as Zimbabwe's stubborn response came up well short.

Shot of the Day
Bowling a leg-spinner in the final overs against two left-handers was asking for trouble as Miller unleashed his power-hitting on Cremer off the first ball of the 46th over. Cremer, as he had done throughout the afternoon, looped the ball up tantalisingly and Miller obliged with a cracking straight hit back over the bowler's head for six.

Delivery of the Day
Miller was in fine fettle and had just gone to 50 with a boundary before he was beaten by the perfect yorker from Shingirai. The Zimbabwean seamer was the only bowler in his side to take wickets and with a bit more consistency could prove to be a valuable player in a team short on fast bowling options.

Defining Performance of the Day
The game was really set up for South Africa victory by the innings of Amla, who had people quietly predicting a double-ton, such was the control displayed by the Proteas opener. Formerly known as just as a Test player, Amla showed that he has added a new dimension to his game as he outscored his skipper and reached three figures off just 87 deliveries for his third ODI ton of the year.

Doug Saxby