New Delhi: Suryakumar Yadav’s India will take on Aiden Markram’s South Africa in the second of the five-match T20I series on Thursday at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur in Chandigarh. The hosts have thumped the visitors in the first T20I.
On a sticky wicket, India has managed to put on a decent total thanks to cameos from various players. And with the ball, they unsettled the South African batting, bundling them out for 74. Hardik Pandya played a blistering cameo at the end with the bat and also played a crucial role with the ball later, helping India defend 176 runs.
The Indian vice-captain, Shubman Gill, since being brought back into the T20I setup, has had a few starts at the top but has not had a score of substance to show for it. The dismissal on Tuesday also questions the approach with which he wants to play in this setup. Regardless, he needs to chip in with a score to give himself the confidence going forward.
For South Africa, the six-hitting machine in a T20 cricket is a lethal middle-order bat who can turn the game from any situation. The surface at Cuttack might not have suited his batting style as much, but with a true surface in Mullanpur, Brevis, if he gets going South African team will be able to put on more than a competitive total on the board.
Predicted XIs
India predicted XI: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube Jitesh Sharma(w), Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, and Arshdeep Singh.
South Africa XI: Quinton de Kock(w), Aiden Markram(c), Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Lutho Sipamla, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje
