Inclement weather has spared WA from a difficult situation in their first game of the new One-Day Cup season, with their clash against South Australia at the WACA Ground called off without a result.

In their first competitive hit-out under new coach Beau Casson, WA needed a fine half-century from debutant fast bowler Kieran Elliott — who top-scored from No.8 with 53 not out from 71 deliveries — to get to a total of 9-238 from their 50 overs.

South Australia bossed the early stages of the chase, but the sides did not return to the field after leaving it as the rain set in with the visitors positioned at 0-58 after only 7.4 overs.

After WA lost the toss and were sent in to bat, Joel Curtis (20) and Sam Fanning (15) got away with a 41-run opening stand.

But the introduction of Henry Thornton turned the game, with the impressive SA speedster collecting four wickets to inspire an early collapse of 5-46.

Teenager Will Malajczuk looked untroubled amid the carnage, sublimely carving Wes Agar to the off-side boundary off both the front and back foot, before smashing spinner Jerrssis Wadia straight to point to depart for 20.

After being brought together in the 18th over, veterans Hilton Cartwright and Ashton Agar briefly steadied proceedings.

Remarkably, the veteran pair both fell for 23 in the same fashion, courtesy of wild slashes at wider deliveries which drew edges pouched by South Australia’s wicketkeeper Matthew Gilkes.

The task of getting WA towards a competitive total fell to Elliott and No.9 Brody Couch (39), and the tail-end pair responded with an cool-headed eighth-wicket partnership worth 69.

South Australia’s ultra-aggressive opener Fraser-McGurk set the early tone for their chase by hooking the second delivery he faced for six and sending Mahli Beardman to the boundary with some picture-perfect cover drives.

While Fraser-McGurk and Mackenzie Harvey (eight not out) made their way off the WACA with their side comfortably ahead of their Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method’s par score, the match was not able to be declared complete due falling short of the required 20 second-innings overs.