WI vs SA Match Prediction– Who Will Win Today's T20I Match? 1st T20I, South Africa Tour of West Indies 2024

The WI vs SA T20I series will be played in Jamaica from May 23-26. The series comprises three T20Is with the first match on May 23. The match starts officially from 12.20 am IST for Indian viewers which is 2 pm local time. 

WI vs SA Team Analysis

West Indies 

Brandon King leads the West Indies in this series. Senior players like Rovman Powell, Shimron Hetmyer, and Andre Russell will be busy playing in the IPL.

A few others like Nicholas Pooran and Kyle Mayers have joined the national side after their IPL commitments. It is not a full-strength squad by any means but one that can fully challenge the Proteas at home. 

South Africa 

South Africa is led by Rassie Van der Dussen in the series. The Proteas too have a few players missing. Regular skipper Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, and Marco Jansen are busy playing in the IPL.

The likes of Kagiso Rabada and David Miller have been rested from this series and allowed time to recover from their injury concerns ahead of the World Cup. Gerald Coetzee and Anrich Nortje have rejoined the team after their IPL commitments.

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WI vs SA Key Factors 

Pitch Conditions 

Jamaica has hosted just six T20Is with three matches won each by the team batting first and chasing. There is not too much to read into the stats. The average first innings score batting first is 160 while batting second is close to 150.

Generally, the pitches in the Caribbean are low and slow wickets and aid the spinners. How the wicket in Jamaica plays out for the three games will be an interesting observation. 

Form and Fitness 

The two teams have not played too much international cricket with the IPL on for the last two months. Form-wise a few batters from both sides had a pretty decent IPL and it will be interesting to see how they translate their form into international cricket. South Africa has chosen to rest a few of their senior players and keep them fit ahead of the T20 World Cup. 

Tactical Acumen

Both are new captains who have experience leading their international teams previously. Thus both the players will need to depend on their senior players to help them with different aspects of the game.

WI vs SA Score Prediction

WI vs SA Match Prediction– Who Will Win Today's T20I Match? 1st T20I, South Africa Tour of West Indies 2024

South Africa leads the head-to-head count against West Indies in the T20I format. They have won 11 out of the 19 games played. Without the seasoned T20 players, the West Indies squad looks a bit thin and the Proteas have the edge. 

Conclusion 

Despite not playing their full-strength squads the series will be an ideal preparation for both teams ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024. The team that wins the series will be very high on confidence heading into the T20 World Cup. 

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