The hosts bounced back after a whitewash in the Test series to win the ODI series 2–1. Now, they will look to wrap up the white-ball leg of the South Africa tour with another series win.
The defending T20 world champions will be looking to fine-tune all the chinks in their armour ahead of the home T20 World Cup next year.
For the first T20I between India and South Africa, here we present our preview and predictions.
The Men in Blue have their T20 stars in Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya back in the mix, with vice-captain Shubman Gill also cleared for the series.
Gill will partner the explosive Abhishek Sharma at the top of the order. Sharma has been in red-hot form in the domestic circuit, with Tilak Varma and Yadav making up a strong and explosive top order. With the return of their No. 1 white-ball all-rounder in Pandya, India have a lot more balance in their line-up and can field an extra batter or spinner, if needed.
In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah returns to the Indian camp to lead the bowling attack, with Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, and Varun Chakravarthy making up a resolute unit.
On the other hand, Aiden Markram is back leading the Proteas, who will be looking to secure a big double-series win. Quinton de Kock is back in the setup as well as back in form, coming into the series on the back of a solid century in the third ODI. Alongside de Kock, South Africa have more strong and experienced batters in Reeza Hendricks, Tristan Stubbs, and David Miller.
Lungi Ngidi will lead the South African bowling attack. He will be supported by Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Ottniel Baartman, and Corbin Bosch.
The Cuttack pitch, which does not see a lot of international action, is assistive to spinners. It’s a slow pitch, which means we could see both sides field a strong spin attack. India, with their spin attack led by Varun Chakravarthy, are our favourites to kick off the series with a win.
Fantasy XI: Shubman Gill (c), Abhishek Sharma, Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy (vc), Arshdeep Singh
Venue: Barabati Stadium, Cuttack
Winners Prediction: India
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