India and South Africa have played each few times during the calendar year of 2022. The two teams played 2 T20I series both in India with one post the IPL and the 2nd one just before the start of 2022 T20I world cup. Both the teams know each other’s strength and weakness. South Africa start as the slight favorites because of the venue of the game and the fast bowling arsenal they possess at their disposal.
India on the other hand know that a win will all but secure their place in the final 4 stages of the tournament. The form of KL Rahul is a huge concern as the 30 year old hasn’t lit up the tournament. Rohit Sharma is another concern as he has been inconsistent in recent times despite the labored 50 against Netherlands. Virat Kohli will be the man to watch out for yet again as he has two back to back 50’s during the tournament so far.
Venue – Perth Stadium, Perth
Time – 1630 PM IST
Likely pitch conditions –
It is simple, the team that wins the toss will look to bat first and post a score of around 155-170 on the board. Chasing under lights at Perth is a difficult task and swing bowling does play a part. India could decide to rope in one extra pacer which would mean either Ashwin or Axar could miss out and Harshal Patel possibly getting a look in.
Likely India XI –
R. Sharma, KL Rahul, V. Kohli, SK Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, R. Ashwin/ H. Patel, A. Patel or H. Patel, B. Kumar, M. Shami and A. Singh
Likely South Africa XI –
Q. De Kock, T. Bavuma, R. Rossouw, D. Miller, A. Markram, T. Stubbs, W. Parnell, K. Maharaj, L. Ngidi, A. Nortje and K. Rabada
Head to Head record –
Matches played -23
Matches won by India – 13
Matches won by SA -9
No Result -1
Perth Stadium T20I record –
Matches played – 5
Games won by home team – 2
Games won by touring/ neutral side – 3
Games won batting 1st – 2
Games won batting 2nd – 3
Games won after winning toss – 4
Games won after losing toss – 1
Highest batting score at the ground – 84- Alex Hales vs Australia
Best bowling figures at the ground – 5/10 – Sam Curran vs Afghanistan
Approaching milestones –
·Rohit Sharma needs 9 fours to hit 350 fours in T20I cricket
·Rahul needs 9 sixes to hit 100 sixes in T20I cricket
·Rishabh Pant needs 39 runs to reach 1000 runs in T20I cricket