On form Philander is an automatic selection, having clearly been the Proteas' most economical seamer in their first match with his 2-30 from eight overs against Zimbabwe.

South Africa's brief tour in November was Philander's first limited-overs series in Australia. The right-armer excelled as the series began in Perth, taking 4-45 from 10 overs and 1-16 from nine overs in the two matches at the WACA Ground. But after he finished with 1-70 in the third match, in Canberra, he was overlooked for the last two matches of the series, in Melbourne and Sydney.

Replacement right-armer Kyle Abbott excelled with 1-30 from nine overs, but his figures were harmed by conceding 13 runs from his final over. Abbott was one of four Proteas not chosen for their first match.

When Australia toured South Africa a year ago outspoken opener David Warner said that when pitch conditions suited Philander he was "very tough" to face, but was openly sceptical of his ability "on a flat wicket".

Proteas coach Domingo said MCG pitches generally were good for batting. While he echoed part of Warner's appraisal of Philander, about his proficiency on helpful wickets, his was in no way a backhanded compliment, to the extent Philander seems assured of facing India in Sunday's day-night match.

"There seemed to be a little bit of bounce here last time. Vernon thrives on wickets that offer a little bit, so hopefully there will be something in the wicket for him because he's a hell of a good bowler when there's something in the wicket for him," Domingo said on Thursday. "He's one of the guys in world cricket who's most effective when the wicket does offer something, so I'm hoping he can play a big role for us on Sunday."

The Proteas received a boost on Thursday with the presence at training of pace spearhead Dale Steyn, who missed the previous day's session with sinusitis suspected of being exacerbated by draughty conditions in their hotel in their recent stay in Christchurch.

Since South Africa arrived in Melbourne their off-field team has been bolstered by the arrivals of Gary Kirsten and Mike Hussey. Kirsten played in three World Cups for South Africa and was in charge of India when they won the 2011 World Cup. Hussey has played in Australia's past two World Cup campaigns, including the 2007 victory in the West Indies.

While Kirsten is a regular short-term consultant for South Africa, it is the first time Hussey has worked with the Proteas. The Australian's duties on Thursday included coaching middle-order hitter David Miller and giving throwdowns to opener Hashim Amla, although Domingo insisted "just his presence alone is a big plus for us".

"He's a guy who's won a World Cup as a player, he's been in pressure situations in Australia, he's played under these conditions for a long period of time ... hopefully some of the things he's learned playing in competitions like this he can pass on to some of our players, as well as the mental preparation," the coach said. "It's Mike's second day at practice today, second day with the team. I'm not expecting him to get us to get 500 in the next one-day game, but just his presence alone can serve as a form of inspiration for our players."

The outcome of Sunday's match is expected to go a long way to determining which team finishes on top of pool B.

Rather than shying away from South Africa's curious lack of success at World Cups, given the high quality of players the Proteas have consistently boasted, Domingo said the players had attempted to confront and overcome that flaw by treating dead-rubber matches as high-stakes ones. An example was in 2013-14 when they held an insurmountable 3-1 lead in the United Arab Emirates against Pakistan but approached the fifth and final match as if it were a World Cup final. In that match they triumphed by 117 runs.

"Every series we've played there has been a mention of the World Cup coming up ... trying to put ourselves under pressure in every game we've played," he said. "In those subtle ways we've been putting ourselves under pressure situations ... hopefully we're learned some lessons."