India are gearing up for their second World Cup final in seven months as they take on South Africa in the T20 title clash in Bridgetown, Barbados on Saturday.
Eager to move on from their 2023 ODI World Cup final defeat to Australia on home soil, India will face South Africa as the month-long T20 World Cup in the U.S. and the West Indies comes to an end.
Heading into Saturday’s finale, India and South Africa have one thing in common: both teams have been unbeaten at this year’s T20 World Cup.
India and South Africa finished on top of their respective groups and earned similar results in the Super Eights stage. In the semi-finals, India defeated title holders England while South Africa thrashed minnows Afghanistan.
India are aiming to lift the trophy for the second time after winning the inaugural edition in 2007. The men in blue haven’t won any silverware since the 2013 Champions Trophy and last won a World Cup at the 2011 50-over edition.
India captain Rohit Sharma has been consistent in his batting display throughout the tournament, scoring 248 runs in seven matches, including a remarkable 92 against Australia in the Super Eights phase.
Middle-order batter Suryakumar Yadav has also been in good form with 196 runs in seven matches, however, India’s ex-captain and the ever-reliable Virat Kohli has struggled in his role as an opener, having scored single-digit runs in all matches.
India’s bowling unit has been near-perfect too, with pace bowler Arshdeep Singh bagging 15 wickets, while premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been almost unplayable, picking 13 wickets so far.
While India are hoping to end their global title drought, South Africa are looking to get rid of the “chokers” tag they have been long associated with.
The Proteas will be playing in a World Cup final for the first time after seven previous World Cup semi-final defeats in all formats (five in ODI World Cups and two in T20 World Cups).
Their pace bowlers, led by Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada, have saved the team on many occasions, while Quinton de Kock has been the top-scorer with the bat, hitting 204 runs in eight matches.
The winner of the final on Saturday will be the first team to win a men’s T20 World Cup unbeaten.
The match will be played at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown. India defeated Afghanistan at this venue in the Super Eights, but South Africa haven’t played here.
In this tournament, most matches at the venue were not close contests, except for one which went to the Super Over. Historically in T20 internationals, the team batting first at this venue has won more matches than the team batting second.
The surface has been good for batting, while for the bowlers, it is more conducive to pacers than spinners.
According to The Weather Channel, there is a 70% chance of rain during the day, when the match will be played.
Head-To-Head Record
Here’s how India and South Africa have performed in their T20 international meetings:
Matches: 26
India wins: 14
South Africa wins: 11
No result: 1
Squads
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
South Africa: Aiden Markram (c), Ottniel Baartman, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs
