T20 International Cricket: India vs South Africa Series Preview
South Africa will kick start their long Indian tour for the Nelson Mandela-Mahatma Gandhi series. The first of the three match Twenty20 Internationals will be played at the picturesque Dharmasala on 2nd October and we are taking a look at the match in our cricket betting tips article.
Both teams will have an eye on next year’s ICC World Twenty20 which will be held in India. That is one of the reasons why the home team chose to play a longer T20 series than usual.
MS Dhoni (pictured) will be back at the helm for the hosts. It will be interesting to see how refreshed he will be, after having retired from Tests. Most of the squad members are well versed with the shortest format – thanks to the Indian Premier League. Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane are household names in IPL and will be eager to start well against the Proteas.
The Indian squad is spin heavy with Ashwin and Amit Mishra expected to lead the attack. Roger Binny could prove handy with his gentle seam bowling and burly hitting. There would be enough excitement on the new seamer Aravind.
South Africa started with a loss in the warm-up game but there isn’t much to read into that game. Their squad is well equipped to challenge the hosts with JP Duminy and Faf du Plessis being their mainstays in batting.
Kagiso Rabada will be eager to bounce out the Indians while Chris Morris and Albie Morkel will look to fill the gap left by David Wiese withdrawal. The absence of Dale Steyn could however be felt by the visitors.
India may look favorites but the pitch in Dharmasala will be seam-friendly which should play to South Africa’s strength. Back them to win the series at odds of $2.25 at William Hill.
Rohit Sharma will be vital for India at the top of the order. Back him to be the top run getter for India at odds of $3.75 at William Hill. For South Africa, that honour could go to Faf du Plessis at odds of $4.50 at William Hill.
The hosts India have won the inaugural T20 and are the reigning finalists but have rarely shown consistency in international T20s. South Africa too aren’t much ahead. It could be a very interesting start to the long series for the Safaris.
