South Africa VS India, 1st ODI

All eyes will be on the new skipper Kl Rahul. © BCCI

The Picture

After a riveting test series where the home team came up trumps, both teams will face off in a three match ODI series. The series is bland and almost a dead rubber considering that it doesn't count as part of the Worldcup Super League, thus relegating it to a few second-tier matchups. This series though helps both teams try out various combinations and aids in the needed course correction considering the next worldcup is in 20 months time. This series will also be filled with other sub plots, with Kohli playing his first series as only a player after having relinquished the test captaincy after the loss in the third test and how he plays just as a batsman will be viewed under a fine microscope. KL Rahul's leadership will also be looked at, as India search for a captain in the longest format of the game after the resignation of their greatest captain in the format. Questions will be asked on the commitment of Quinton deKock who prematurely retired from the test format after the loss in the first encounter. Then there are other challenges both teams face, with India's dwindling returns with the new ball and South Africa's misfortunes in this format. Both teams will be heading into this series with different objectives in mind, not least winning the ODI series. South Africa will look to build a side to take for the upcoming Worldcup  while India will look to at least solve some if not all the surfeit of issues plaguing their side in this format. If this series can even achieve half of the intensity of the preceding series, then we are in for some thrilling games ahead.

When: 19 January 2022, Wednesday

Time:   2:00 P.M (IST)

Where: Boland Park, Paarl

Team News

South Africa

Temba Bavuma returns back as skipper in this format after missing the last four months due to an injury. The hosts will be mulling on whether to hand a debut to the impressive Marco Jansen or slotback Wayne Parnell considering India's trouble against left arm pacers. 

Probable XI: Quinton de Kock, Janneman Malan, Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Wayne Parnell/ Dwaine Pretorious/ Keshav Maharaj, Andile Phehlukwayo, Sisanda Magala/ Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi

India

The skipper KL Rahul is set to open yet again alongside Shikhar Dhawan in the absence of Rohit Sharma. Considering the nature of the surface the visitors are likely to go in with 2 spinners.

Probable XI: KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, Shardul Thakur/ Deepak Chahar/ Mohammad Siraj, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal

Pitch and Playing Conditions

Boland Park has been a flat and high scoring venue with solid first innings totals being put up thanks in large to the shorter boundaries here. The batters should enjoy this after being tested by the bouncy wickets during the preceding tests. The wicket also is a bit slow and that should bring the spinners into the game as well. The Western Cape has been witnessing a heatwave recently with temperatures expected to peak at 45 degrees during the course of the week.

Interesting Facts

• Since the start of 2021, South Africa have the best opening wicket partnership averaging 55 and India have struggled with the new ball.

• South Africa are yet to win an ODI series since beating Australia 3-0 in February 2020. They have since lost to Sri Lanka and drawn with Ireland.