Last Update on: October 2nd, 2022 at 06:05 pm
India take on South Africa in the second T20I in Guwahati on Sunday, October 2. The hosts won the first T20I by 8 wickets. This is a must-win game for the Proteas to keep the series alive. This is India’s final international assignment before they head into the T20 World Cup in Australia facing Pakistan in their first game on October 23.
South Africa scored just 106 in the first T20I. They lost five wickets inside the powerplay from where there was no looking back. Aiden Markram (25) and Wayne Parnell (24) scored crucial runs. However, it was Keshav Maharaj’s 51 that helped them cross the 100-run mark.
For India, KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav added a crucial 93-run stand to take India home. This was after India were reduced to 17/2, their lowest powerplay score ever.
The pitch at the Greenfield stadium was criticised by both teams for the way it played. The pitch had a lot of bounce and carry and the balls often hit the batters hard after pitching. Overall, the game was not a good advertisement for T230 cricket.
From what transpired from the first game the pitch in Guwahati is expected to be a lot better as the groundsmen will now get enough time to prepare the pitch after seeing the game in Thiruvananthapuram.
India vs South Africa: Match Preview, South Africa Tour Of India 2022, 2nd T20I
South Africa
With all the criticism the pitch at the Greenfield stadium coped up, South Africa’s batting inside the powerplay was very ordinary. India’s two swing bowlers Deepak Chahar and Arshdeep Singh got the ball to swing early and beat the Protean batters with their movement off the pitch. Skipper Temba Bavuma admitted that their batting in the powerplay was very ordinary and that they failed to apply themselves.
“As a batting unit we failed to apply ourselves in those conditions. We didn’t expect the pitch to play this way. Yes, we expected it to be spicy but normally you will be able to hit through the line in this part of the world. Seamers needed runs behind them to defend. They tried their best and supported by spinners as well. I thought we fought well late with the bat. That’s a positive” said Bavuma.
The team needs a batting rejig heading into the second T20I on Sunday. With the kind of bowling arsenal the team has, they have the might to defend anything over 150-160.
South Africa Squad
Temba Bavuma (C), Quinton De Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Wayne Parnell, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Rilee Rossouw, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Bjorn Fortuin, Marco Jansen, Andile Phehlukwayo
India
India had almost a perfect game with the ball. After all the criticism the team coped up for their performance in the Asia Cup, they have made a good comeback against Australia and now South Africa. The bowlers took five wickets inside the powerplay to rattle the opposition. Ravichandran Ashwin in his comeback game bowled a spell of just 8 runs in his spell. Harshal Patel also bowled a good spell of 26 /2.
With the bat, KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav scored crucial fifties to take India home. That the batters scored runs in tough conditions will give them huge confidence heading into the second T20I. The team can be expected to make a few changes in the batting order in the next two games.
Ideally, they should also go in with an unchanged side in the second T20I. However, the overall squad had had a massive change with Jasprit Bumrah ruled out of the series with a stress fracture. He is under the supervision of the BCI medical team. Mohammed Siraj has been named his replacement for the two remaining T20Is against South Africa. Bumrah is likely to be ruled out of the T20 World Cup as well.
India Squad
Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Harshal Patel, Deepak Chahar, Umesh Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammad Siraj
