With an unassailable 2-1 lead in the 4-match series, the Indian cricket team takes on hosts South Africa with the hopes of securing a historic series win. India did well to win two of the first three matches but South Africa would be keen to not let the tourists return home with the trophy. Though the Proteas can no longer with the series, they still have the hopes alive to get a 2-2 draw. For the match, however, India could hand debuts to Vijakumar Vyshak and Yash Dayal, both of whom have been warming the bench since the start of the series.
It was all-rounder Ramandeep Singh who earned his maiden T20I cap in the third match of the series, against South Africa. With India longer in the danger of losing the series, the management might think of handing two more maiden T20I caps.
India have used 12 out of their 15 players in the first three games and it would be interesting to see if one among the two uncapped pacers Yash Dayal or Vysakh Vijaykumar gets a debut cap in case the pitch warrants an extra specialist speedster. For Samson, he would like to forget that he is turning into Marco Jansen‘s ‘bunny’ after back-to-back failures.
In the final game, it wouldn’t be a bad option for skipper Surya to check on Ramandeep Singh’s steady medium pace as he can be an asset with multiple skills, including ability to field at all positions save keeping.
Centuries by Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma on either side of an inept batting performance has kept India’s nose ahead in the series and team would want a more collective batting effort to clinch it 3-1.
The Wanderers ‘Bull Ring’ has always been a happy hunting ground for India, where they won the 2007 T20 World Cup final against Pakistan.
Even during the previous T20I series a year back, skipper Suryakumar Yadav‘s last international hundred till date came at this very stadium and that too in a winning cause.
The Indian captain, who enjoys a staggering victory percentage of 81.25, having come up trumps in 13 out of the 16 matches, would like to do one better compared to the last series in the Rainbow Nation which had ended in a 1-1 draw with one game being washed out.
India’s Likely Playing XI vs South Africa, 4th T20I: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Tilak Varma, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Yash Dayal, Varun Chakaravarthy.
With PTI Inputs