India vs South Africa, 1st T20I: How the players compare

As T20 is reckoned as a game of uncertainties and powerful hitting, Criclife introspects the key players and the delicate minutiae of both the sides.

The red-hot contest between India and South Africa kick starts with a three-match T20I series, starting at Dharamsala on Friday. As T20 is reckoned as a game of uncertainties and powerful hitting, Criclife introspects the key players and the delicate minutiae of both the sides.

Both India and South Africa wear a balanced look and have enough gun power in their cannon to put their opposition over the barrel. But with the series being played in the Indian subcontinent, India definitely have an edge ahead of the Proteas. As a matter of fact, the latter will also be missing the productive services of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Hashim Amla and David Weise.

Considering the fact that Dharamsala is a pretty small ground and the pitch being batting friendly, one can expect a run fest in the inaugural game of the T20 series. Fielding side will definitely witness a tough time in negotiating and the onus will come on to the skipper to contain the run flow. Spinner of both the sides will have a crucial role to play as the pitch will assist them. India’s Amit Mishra and Ravichandran Ashwin will be the men to watch out for but with Axar Patel in good form, Mishra may have to make way. South Africa’s hopes will highly rely on their premier leg spinner Imran Tahir.

India seems to have all their bases covered as they have massive hitters in the form of Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and Mahendra Singh Dhoni and players like Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane can anchor the innings too. Their bowling looks decent with enough variation in the spin department and the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohit Sharma forms a good pair of pace attack. On the other hand, South Africa’s strength lies in their star studded batting line-up. In Quinton de Kock, AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis David Miller and JP Duminy, they have the potential to snatch an incredible victory from looming chops of defeat. Their line up can chase any given target if couple of them click; on the contrary, most of their players have been associated with the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise and are well aware of the turning conditions.

When it comes to captaincy, Dhoni by far is aware of the conditions and is an astute captain with enormous experience in his basket. But that doesn’t mean du Plessis will be lacking behind, he has the cricketing brains of de Villiers to guide him if in case he runs out of options.

Key players from both the sides: India’s Test skipper Kohli was the man for India in the 2014 World T20 in Bangladesh and Proteas will eye to get rid of him early in the innings. He’s versatile and once he gets his eye in he will surely possess a great threat for any team. For South Africa, one needn’t to say what de Villiers can do, Indians will be inching to get the price wicket of the genius as everyone are aware of the damage he can inflict if he stays for minimum of 30 deliveries at the crease.

Both the swords are evenly sharpened and the encounter can be expected to be a lively one with boundaries raining at the scenic Dharamsala.

About the Author