South Africa vs India, 2nd T20I, Preview: Hosts look to regroup against rampant India

The Test series between India and South Africa ended in a one-sided affair in favour of South Africa. India stormed back and returned the favour to the hosts by humbling them comprehensively humbled them in the ODI series. The first game of the T20I series at the Wanderers in Johannesburg turned out to be a thrilling encounter, yet India managed to beat the Proteas by a substantial margin of 28 runs.The pitch at the Bull Ring is renowned to get better for batting as the game progresses. Quite expectantly, JP Duminy won the toss and elected to have a crack at India.

Nevertheless, the Men in Blue stomped out all guns blazing. They also lost wickets, however, they carried on racked up 203 runs. South Africa, during their run-chase, were jolted with early wickets by Bhuvneshwar Kumar. However, Reeza Hendricks and Farhaan Behardien’s gutsy partnership brought South Africa back into contention. Following their dismissals, the Proteas crumbled alarmingly. Bhuvneshwar Kumar wreaked havoc with a stupendous five-wicket haul, his best in T20Is. The second game of the series will be played at the SuperSport Park in Centurion on the 21st of February.

Toss: SA won the toss and elected to field

India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli(c), Manish Pandey, MS Dhoni(w), Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal

South Africa (Playing XI): JJ Smuts, Reeza Hendricks, Jean-Paul Duminy(c), David Miller, Farhaan Behardien, Heinrich Klaasen(w), Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris, Dane Paterson, Junior Dala, Tabraiz Shamsi

Playing Combination

India

After their thumping victory, India is highly unlikely to make any alterations to the playing XI. Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan played fluently. Suresh Raina looked in good touch for the brief phase during his stint at the wicket. Virat Kohli also managed to find the middle of the bat frequently. Manish Pandey and MS Dhoni, Manish Pandey and Hardik Pandya are the remaining batsmen.

In the bowling department, India is likely to stick with Jaydev Unadkat, who replaced Kuldeep Yadav. Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were excellent for India at the Wanderers. Kumar, especially, ripped the heart of the Proteas batting and would be expected to replicate the same. Yuzvendra Chahal was taken for runs in Johannesburg but, his prowess to bamboozle batsmen can’t be dismissed.

South Africa

South Africa’s quest of making a comeback started with a hefty defeat at the Wanderers. To add insult to injury, the Proteas lost AB de Villiers owing to a knee injury. The team might go through a couple of changes in the next game. Tabraiz Shamsi churned out some rippers to tangle the Indian batsmen. The Proteas might want to give Aaron Phangiso an opportunity in the upcoming game.

The likes of JP Duminy and David Miller needs to shoulder responsibility and drag South Africa out of the slump. Meanwhile, Reeza Hendricks and Farhaan Behardien need to replicate their form. Junior Dala and Tabraiz Shamsi also need to play their role with the ball. All in all, the hosts will be desperate to get their combinations right.

Head to Head Record

Matches 11, India- 7, South Africa-4

Focus will be on

Suresh Raina

Suresh Raina made his comeback to the Indian team after a gap of one year. The spotlight was expectantly on the left-handed batsman. He stomped out and went hell for leather from the outside. He scorched a couple of boundaries and a colossal six over mid-wicket, however, ran out of luck to Junior Dala. The cricketer has to get a substantial score under his belt to cement his berth in the national team.

Tabraiz Shamsi

Tabraiz Shamsi was South Africa’s stand-out bowler at the batting paradise in Johannesburg. He extracted turn from the wickets and ruffled the Indian batsmen to some extent. He also trapped Virat Kohli in front when the Indian skipper was looking ominous for another big score. Shamsi will be one of South Africa’s trump card with the leather at Centurion.

Stat Attack

Virat Kohli needs 18 runs to reach the 2000-run milestone in T20Is.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli is 268 runs short of becoming the leading run-getting in T20I cricket.

Broadcast details

Timings: 21:30 IST

TV: Sony Ten 1 (English) and Sony Ten 3 (Hindi)

Online: SonyLIV

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