India vs South Africa, 5th T20I: Maharaj elects to field
India will face South Africa in the fifth and final T20I on Sunday. The hosts stitched a resounding 82-run win in Rajkot. They will look to emulate the same in the series decider. The Proteas have had shoddy performances in the last two fixtures. The news from Bengaluru is that SA stand-in skipper Keshav Maharaj has won the toss and will field first.
Pitch report, timing, and TV listing
The M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru will host this outing. The match will be telecast live on Star Sports Network (7:00 PM IST) and live-streamed on the Hotstar app. The wicket has been a batsman's paradise. Chasing sides have won five of the seven T20Is played here. Teams should look to score around 200 or more for a chance to claim a triumph.
Players to watch out for in the fifth T20I
As per ESPNcricinfo, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal has clipped 74 wickets in 58 T20Is. He averages 24.85. Ishan Kishan has smashed 480 runs in 14 T20Is, averaging an impressive 36.92. Quinton de Kock has hammered 1,863 runs in 63 T20Is. He has notched 11 fifties. Heinrich Klaasen has slammed 567 runs in T20Is. He has struck at a phenomenal rate of 143.90.
Pitch report, timing, and TV listing
Both teams have faced each other on 19 occasions. India have the lead with 11 wins, while SA have eight wins to show. SA haven't lost a T20I series in India, winning by 2-1 in 2015 and later, a 1-1 draw in 2019.
India opt for the same side
India Playing XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (w/c), Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Avesh Khan
SA make three changes
South Africa Playing XI: Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen, Tristan Stubbs, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj (c), Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje. The Proteas have made a few changes. Tristan Stubbs, Reeza Hendricks and Kagiso Rabada are back. They replace Temba Bavuma, Marco Jansen, and Tabraiz Shamsi.
