India vs South Africa, 1st T20I: Bavuma elects to field
India and South Africa are set to lock horns in the first T20I of the five-match series in Delhi on Thursday. Rishabh Pant will lead the Men in Blue in place of KL Rahul, who has been ruled out due to a groin injury. The news from the center is that Temba Bavuma has won the toss and will field first.
Pitch report, timing, and TV listing
The Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi will host the first T20I. It has hosted six T20Is so far, with chasing sides winning three. The wicket has plenty to offer to both batters and bowlers. Anything around 160-170 would be a par total here. The match will be telecast live on Star Sports Network (7:00 PM IST) and live-streamed on the Hotstar app.
A look at the head-to-head record
India have a lead over South Africa as far as the head-to-head record is concerned. The two sides have clashed in 15 matches, with India winning nine. Meanwhile, South Africa have claimed six victories. Interestingly, both sides have won five matches each in the bilateral series. The last T20I series between India and South Africa was drawn 1-1.
A look at the key numbers
Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal is set to become India's leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket. He (274) is only behind R Ashwin (276) in terms of T20 wickets among Indians. Kagiso Rabada is one away from completing 50 wickets in T20I cricket. Quinton de Kock could become the first SA batter with over 2,000 runs in T20Is.
A look at the two teams
India Playing XI: Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (w/c), Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Avesh Khan SA Playing XI: Quinton de Kock (wk), Temba Bavuma (c), Reeza Hendricks, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Wayne Parnell, Dwaine Pretorius, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje
