India vs South Africa, IND vs RSA, Today Match Prediction 28 September 2022

ind vs sa Match Prediction & Analysis

After an enthralling victory over Australia in the final game to take the series 2-1, India will be gearing up to take on South Africa for a three-match T20I series. The first match of the series will be played at Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram on 28th September from 7 pm onwards. This will be the second time South Africa visiting India to play the T20I series in 2022.

India came back stronger against Australia after losing the first game. They won the second game by 6 wickets and another 6 wickets win in the final match. Virat Kohli and Suryakumar both scored half-centuries to win the game for India with one ball to spare. Axar Patel was named man of the series for picking 8 wickets with the ball. This was India’s first T20I series win in 15 years.

South Africa’s success in this format took a turn last year. Since then they have won 5 out of the 6 T20 series and have drawn one. That one came against India when they visited them in June. SA were 2-0 up in the 5-match series but lost the next two by big margins. They are yet to lose a T20 series in India. Out of three T20I series on Indian soil they have won one and have drawn 2. 

TEAMS PREVIEW

India Preview

A series against Australia showed India’s plus as well as minus points clearly. As a batting unit, they have gathered the best squad to go to the ICC World T20 next month. Except for KL Rahul, the top order has been playing some next-level game. Rahul who has recently made his comeback after an injury has scored 198 runs with 2 half-centuries so far. His consistency and strike rate are yet to justify his place. 

On the other hand, other batters in the top order depict a completely different picture. Rohit Sharma has 192 runs in his last 6 innings at a strike rate of 170-plus. Virat Kohli has 1 century and 3 half centuries in his last 8 games. And Suryakumar Yadav is the leading run-scorer of this year with the most number of sixes. He has 682 runs with 42 sixes in 20 games at a strike rate of 182.84. With this lineup, India has scored more than 8.6 runs in an over in 15 out of the last 17 games. 

Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, and Axar Patel in the middle have bought more stability to the Indian side. Pandya has 436 runs this year at a strike rate of 151 and has taken 12 wickets in 19 games. Dinesh Karthik has played the role of the finisher in many games since his comeback. Axar Patel who replaced Ravindra Jadeja in the playing 11 was the leading wicket-taker in the Australia series with 8 wickets and took the player of the series award. 

With the batting and all-rounder unit performing well above expectations, India’s drawbacks lie in their bowling department. Bumrah and Harshal Patel are yet to find their feet after the injury. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been consistent throughout the year with 32 wickets in 24 games but he has been rested for the series. 

Key Players: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Axar Patel.

India Predicted Playing XI:

Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah.

India Actual Playing XI:

Ravichandran Ashwin, Lokesh Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Dinesh Karthik, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Rohit Sharma, Arshdeep Singh, Rishabh Pant, Virat Kohli, Axar Patel

South Africa Preview

South Africa will be eager to test their squad depth as a preparation for the World Cup. Temba Bavuma and Quinton de Kock will open the innings. De Kock has 2 fifties in the last 4 games against India and has been averaging 43.25 at a strike rate of 139.51. Reeza Hendricks will be the point of attraction. Hendricks was the leading run-scorer in SA’s both series against England and Ireland. He has 296 runs in the last 5 games with 4 fifties. 

Aiden Markram and Rilee Rossouw in the middle will be a threat to the Indian bowling attack. Rossow scored 131 runs in the series against England at a strike rate of 170.12 while Markram was the second leading run-scorer against Ireland with 83 runs at a strike rate of 224.32. SA will have a dilemma to choose between Henrich Klassen and Tristan Stubbs. 

Rabada, Nortje, and Ngidi will lead the pace attack. Ngidi took 7 wickets against England at an average of 8.57. Parnell and Andile Phehlukwayo will also be in contention. But Rabada and Nortje’s form in the Test series again England ( 14 and 10 wickets respectively in 3 Tests) showed that they will be the obvious choices. Keshav Maharaj and Tabrez Shamsi are SA’s spin options. Shamsi was the leading wicket-taker against England with 8 wickets.

Key Players: Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Anrich Nortje

South Africa Predicted Playing XI:

Temba Bavuma (c), Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram, Rilee Rossouw, Henrich Klassen, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Wayne Parnell, Tabrez Shamsi.

South Africa Actual Playing XI:

RR Rossouw, Quinton de Kock, Tristan Stubbs, Anrich Nortje, Temba Bavuma, Tabraiz Shamsi, Aiden Markram, Wayne Parnell, David Miller, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The weather will be partly cloudy with no chance of rain.  The temperature will range between 25 and 30°C. The wind will be flowing from the west at 10-25 kmh. If we go with the Australia series, the pitches are favoring batters. Especially in the second innings it will become batters paradise.

Venue Details

The 1st T20I of between India and South Africa will be played at Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram. The venue holds a capacity of 50000 spectators and has hosted 1 ODI & 2 T20Is so far.

Toss: To Bowl

In the 2 T20I, the results have favored both teams defending and chasing the target. In the last game, West Indies chased a target of 171 runs against India with 8 wickets. Seeing the pitch behavior, the team winning the toss should bowl first.