SA vs IND 2018, 3rd ODI, Cape Town: Match Prediction

It has been domination at it’s very best from the men in Blue, as they have already taken a 2-0 lead in the ongoing six-match ODI series and are on the verge of winning their first ever bilateral series in the rainbow nation.

The South Africans have never really been in the game in both the matches and with injuries taking centre stage for the hosts, there is no way back for them in the series unless something out of the ordinary happens.

The Indian wrist spinners have been simply sensational in the opening two encounters, and none of the batsmen has been able to read them neither of the hand nor off the pitch. Yuzvendra Chahal recorded his best figures in ODI cricket when the talented leggie returned with exceptional figures of 5/22 while his partners Kuldeep Yadav also bowled brilliantly and finished with 3/20.

The hosts were shot out for a meagre 118 on a pitch which didn’t have any demons and run scoring wasn’t that difficult. The visitors made light work of the chase riding on a half-century by Shikhar Dhawan and an unbeaten 46 by skipper Virat Kohli. The brand of cricket India has displayed so far; they will be playing pretty badly if they don’t end up winning the series by a 5-1 margin or even better.

Team News

India

Neither Virat Kohli nor the team management will be looking to make a change in the 3^rd ODI, as they want to make a clear statement that they are here to win and convincingly. It has been a brilliant couple of days for the Indian camp and barring some below-par performances from Hardik Pandya, all the members of the team have stood up and have risen to the occasion.

Rohit Sharma will be looking to get back to his prolific run-scoring form after missing out in the first couple of ODI’s. The lower middle order hasn’t been tested yet with the top-order finishing of things in both the matches. Bhuvneshwar Kumar didn’t have the best couple of days, but the spinners have not allowed the Proteas to settle in.

Predicted XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal

South Africa

The Proteas have been pegged with injuries one after the other. Mr 360 AB de Villiers was already ruled out of the first three ODI’s of the series while Faf du Plessis will miss the rest of the series after sustaining a finger injury in the opening clash where he scored a brilliant century, but it wasn’t enough to help the hosts start of the series with a victory.

Now the list has increased and it also includes the likes of Quinton de Kock who won’t take any further part in the series. Heinrich Klaasen is in all likelihood will replace de Kock while Aiden Markram might promote himself to open the innings which he did in the Test series.

Predicted XI: Hashim Amla, Aiden Markram, JP Duminy, David Miller, Khaya Zondo, Farhaan Behardien, Chris Morris, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Lungisani Ngidi, Imran Tahir

Match Predictions

There is no doubt about the fact that the visitors are the clear favourites to win the 3^rd ODI and the series and if nothing extraordinary happens, India in all likelihood is all set to take an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the six-match series.