India and South Africa begin the T20I leg of South Africa’s tour of India at Barabati Stadium, Cuttack, on Tuesday, 9 December, with an evening start.
India have been in outstanding T20I form. They went unbeaten through the Asia Cup and followed it with a 2-1 series win in Australia, and they come in as reigning world champions. Abhishek Sharma has been the tone-setter, often hitting 30 to 40 at a strike rate well above 200, with Shubman Gill anchoring and Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma in the middle overs. Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel add depth. Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh lead the pace attack, and Kuldeep Yadav, Axar and Varun Chakaravarthy provide spin control.
South Africa are looking for consistency after recent defeats to Pakistan and Namibia. Aiden Markram and Quinton de Kock open, and De Kock arrives after 106 off 89 balls. Tristan Stubbs and Reeza Hendricks are in the middle order, with Dewald Brevis, David Miller and Marco Jansen offering quick runs down the order. Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi can threaten early and at the death, and Jansen’s bounce has caused problems on this tour.
India’s form and conditions make them our pick, though South Africa’s depth means they can make it competitive.
