Women’s T20I Tri-Series 2023: India Women vs South Africa Women match preview, playing XI, Head to Head, Where to Watch on TV, & Live Streaming Details

India have an upper hand over South Africa in their head-to-head record and will be looking to continue the dominance.

Published - 18 Jan 2023, 17:35 IST | Updated - 18 Jan 2023, 17:35 IST

3 Min Read

South Africa will host India and West Indies in a Tri-series starting January 19, 2023, as the three teams gear up for the all-important Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 which is set to begin next month. The tri-series will prove very beneficial for the three sides as they will get accustomed to the South African soil and the conditions before the World Cup.

All three teams will play each other twice, and the top two teams will face each other in the final. Thus, a total of seven games will be contested including the finals. The first match of the series will be contested between South Africa and India, and all the games will be played at Buffalo Park in Eastern Cape.

As for India, Harmanpreet Kaur will be leading the side with Smriti Mandhana as her deputy. The Women in Blue will have the services of one of their most experienced pacers Shikha Pandey, who marks her way back into the side for the first time since October 2021. The same squad will then play the T20 World Cup and thus India will be aiming to make the most of it.

The South African side will be led by Sune Luus, and Chloe Tyron will be her deputy. Regular skipper Dane van Niekerk, who has been out of the international setup for quite some time now, has recovered from her injury but has not met the minimum national selection standards. Since Mignon du Preez announced her international retirement, senior players Marizanne Kapp and Shabnim Ismail will be the ones to watch out for.

Pitch and Conditions

India Women defeated South Africa Women by nine wickets in the only T20I played at this location. Mithali Raj and Smriti Mandhana each scored fifty runs, indicating that the circumstances appeared favorable for batting. The surface could provide some assistance to new-ball bowlers.

Probable Playing XI for SA-W vs IND-W, Match 1

South Africa

This will be the first T20I game for South Africa since the conclusion of the Commonwealth Games 2022 in August last year. South Africa faced a terrible 3-0 loss in their last T20I series, against England, and will be hoping to kick-start the home Tri-series on a winning note.

Probable Playing XI- Sinalo Jafta, Tebogo Macheke, Laura Wolvaardt, Sune Luus (c), Anneke Bosch, Annerie Dercksen, Marizanne Kapp, Chloe Tryon, Ayabonga Khaka, Shabnim Ismail, Masabata Klaas

India

The Women in Blue will be without the services of their key players Shafali Verma and Richa Ghosh, as the two youngsters have been representing the India U19 team in the ongoing World Cup. Nevertheless, Harmanpreet will try and form a strong combination to take down the hosts.

Probable Playing XI: Yastika Bhatia (wk), Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Deepti Sharma, Pooja Vastrakar, Sneh Rana, Devika Vaidya, Shikha Pandey, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Thakur